There are many ways of going to Paris. This is the story of how not to go there and still have the most perfect day anyway.
Though we had been to Paris already in 2017, when the time came to revive our Schengen visa, we booked tickets to Paris as the French embassy was the most generous with visa duration. When I say booked tickets though, I mean the cheapest tickets available as the visa application date and travel dates had gotten neck to neck due to queues at VFS. It got to the point where on the Friday we were supposed to leave for Paris, we packed our weekend bags when we left for work but we had no idea whether or not we would get our visas in time to travel later that day. At lunch time though, the status on the website refreshed to Processed and viola we were going to Paris after all.
We boarded a bus from Victoria to Paris, yes it was a bus. Flying and taking the Eurostar to Paris were more expensive than we were willing to risk cancelling hence we booked the cheapest mode of transport to cross to mainland Europe, a bus. The bus left London at 9.30pm and we were woken up at 1am in Dover to go through a Schengen visa check and then the bus boarded the underbelly of the ferry.
All the passengers were asked to alight the bus and find seats in the ferry. We bought some snacks and hot chocolate and hung out in the ferry cafeteria till 4am. Then we returned to the bus to sleep a little more and were dropped off in the most awful bus stand in Paris at 7am (Bercy Siene). The bus stand was way dirtier than Koyambedu CMBT with no working toilet and no water to even brush teeth.
Swearing that we will never do something this crazy again, we left the bus stand and walked a little to a cafe that was just opening for the day. Breakfast service only started at 8am so we started by ordering coffee and and freshening up in the cafe facilities. Having croissants in Paris felt a bit like eating Sambar Idli in Triplicane, as authentic as it could get. After coffee and breakfast, our moods considerably improved, we walked to the nearest metro station to head off to, of course, the Eiffel Tower.
We spent the morning at Eiffel tower, not going up but by people watching, sitting by Trocardero, filling a questionnaire about Paris commute and when a crooked charity seeker tried to trick me into giving up atleast twenty euros, I dramatically pretended to have lost my wallet to get out of that situation.
Feeling exceptionally tired due to lack of sleep, we slowly crossed the bridge and boarded the tourist boat from Eiffel tower. We had done this already in 2017 but the experience was still impressive and we noticed a few new places to explore in this trip.
Though we had been to Paris already in 2017, when the time came to revive our Schengen visa, we booked tickets to Paris as the French embassy was the most generous with visa duration. When I say booked tickets though, I mean the cheapest tickets available as the visa application date and travel dates had gotten neck to neck due to queues at VFS. It got to the point where on the Friday we were supposed to leave for Paris, we packed our weekend bags when we left for work but we had no idea whether or not we would get our visas in time to travel later that day. At lunch time though, the status on the website refreshed to Processed and viola we were going to Paris after all.
We boarded a bus from Victoria to Paris, yes it was a bus. Flying and taking the Eurostar to Paris were more expensive than we were willing to risk cancelling hence we booked the cheapest mode of transport to cross to mainland Europe, a bus. The bus left London at 9.30pm and we were woken up at 1am in Dover to go through a Schengen visa check and then the bus boarded the underbelly of the ferry.
All the passengers were asked to alight the bus and find seats in the ferry. We bought some snacks and hot chocolate and hung out in the ferry cafeteria till 4am. Then we returned to the bus to sleep a little more and were dropped off in the most awful bus stand in Paris at 7am (Bercy Siene). The bus stand was way dirtier than Koyambedu CMBT with no working toilet and no water to even brush teeth.
Swearing that we will never do something this crazy again, we left the bus stand and walked a little to a cafe that was just opening for the day. Breakfast service only started at 8am so we started by ordering coffee and and freshening up in the cafe facilities. Having croissants in Paris felt a bit like eating Sambar Idli in Triplicane, as authentic as it could get. After coffee and breakfast, our moods considerably improved, we walked to the nearest metro station to head off to, of course, the Eiffel Tower.
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| Never get tired of this view |
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| Trocardero, the perfect vantage point to admire Eiffel Tower from - notice the rainbow in the fountain |
Feeling exceptionally tired due to lack of sleep, we slowly crossed the bridge and boarded the tourist boat from Eiffel tower. We had done this already in 2017 but the experience was still impressive and we noticed a few new places to explore in this trip.
It was nearly noon, so we walked to the pizza place in Garibaldi that proved exceptional during our last trip but alas it was closed for renovation. We decided to stop at different restaurant for lunch and had reasonable meal. We finally boarded the metro to our hotel located in what was clearly the Lewisham of Paris. Again due to not knowing whether we would be able to go, we had booked the cheap option. The temperature that day had gone to mid thirties and the heatwave made our sleep deprived tiredness worse and we were grateful for the shade and a bed. I only tried to nap but Lakshman successfully napped despite the traffic noise from the street.
We showered before heading off to Sacrecour with cool juice bottles bought at a supermarket to watch sunset over Paris. Since this was something else we had already done in 2017, the people watching was more entertaining.
As we walked back to the hotel, we noticed that we were surrounded by hair braiding shops that wove intricate patterns in the curly manes of the local women. We crashed back at the hotel at about 9 pm glad that the streets were falling silent and eager to finally be able to sleep. It had been a very long day.
We showered before heading off to Sacrecour with cool juice bottles bought at a supermarket to watch sunset over Paris. Since this was something else we had already done in 2017, the people watching was more entertaining.
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| Worth climbing up Sacrecour for the sprawling view |
As we walked back to the hotel, we noticed that we were surrounded by hair braiding shops that wove intricate patterns in the curly manes of the local women. We crashed back at the hotel at about 9 pm glad that the streets were falling silent and eager to finally be able to sleep. It had been a very long day.
The next day was the complete opposite and perhaps my favourite day of 2019. We had breakfast at the hotel, the buttery croissants and orange juice pumped us up for a perfect day. The full night of sleep helped too!
We headed off to Museum Orsay that we had noticed from the boat the previous day and the entry to the museum was supposed to be free on the first Sunday of the month, so added bonus! Even though there was a queue to get in, it did not take us long to enter the massive museum atrium. We spent the morning looking at stunning statues and paintings at the museum.
While the art was stunning, people watching was very entertaining, especially when I spotted who must be the most beautiful woman in the world. She was of Eastern Asian descent, probably weighed 45kgs and moved like a poetry. As we explored the museum further, I had an epic moment of taking selfie with "the selfie" of the famous painter, Van Gogh.
We had lunch at a sandwich place nearby and walked along Sienne all the way to Notre dame. We sat by the River bank at various spots watching people, boats on the river, dogs and birds. The weather was perfect Mediterranean fare with blue skies, fluffy clouds and a gentle breeze, ideal for relaxing on a Sunday.
We walked holding hands and talking about all sorts of topics that only occur while on vacation. It was like that song - ulagam surungudhe iruvaril adangudhe (the world has shrunk and has become contained in the two of us). I think this day was how I pictured "happily ever after" to be.
As the evening wore on, we had consumed ice cream, soft drinks and candy bars, all the sugar of course contributed further to the good mood. Then off we went to Louvre in the evening to do more people watching. The museum had closed so we sat near the glass pyramids and observed the many tourists, armed police officers and the preparations for some stage performance nearby. Sounds of musical instruments being played wafted through the air, adding more depth to the scene.
After about an hour there, we watched dancers outside the metro station while eating a light dinner of crepes. We stopped at a supermarket near the hotel to get some snacks for that night's sleeplessness and noticed the most unusual orange juice vending machine where customers can make their own freshly squeezed orange juice. There were even plastic bottles supplied to take the juice home. We understood that the French took their orange juice very seriously!
After collecting our luggage from the hotel, we went to a different but much better bus stand (Gallieni) to board the bus for our return journey of horror. Again forced to stay awake from 1-4am in the ferry, we arrived back in Victoria on Monday morning. I had some time to sleep before logging in as it was thankfully a WFH day but Lakshman went to the office from Victoria, poor fella.
Despite all the sleep deprivation, we had packed a lot into just a weekend and our interest was rekindled to go on city breaks in Europe. I was looking forward to exploring Prague in February 2020 and was left with the memory of a perfect day (1-Sept-2019) and unforgettable lesson on how not to go to Paris.
We headed off to Museum Orsay that we had noticed from the boat the previous day and the entry to the museum was supposed to be free on the first Sunday of the month, so added bonus! Even though there was a queue to get in, it did not take us long to enter the massive museum atrium. We spent the morning looking at stunning statues and paintings at the museum.
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| Such a good looking family |
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| What a two faced bitch.. amazing depiction though |
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| Day out with the family, looks so real |
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| Just stretching |
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| Hair drying in those days |
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| Eeek!! |
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| Oh you beauty! |
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| A royal greeting |
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| Creepy superman |
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| Such a pretty face |
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| Back to office on Monday, ugh |
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| Beautiful scene broken down into two paintings of different dimensions |
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| The famous Waterlilies painting by Monet |
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| Just the scale of this museum though |
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| I will just sit there |
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| I know, I am fabulous |
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| Biggest elegance in the world |
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| Really? This is a painting? |
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| Be an angel and go to sleep. Jo Jo Jo... |
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| Ah those opulent days |
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| Take me with you Daddy! |
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| Paris through "time", view via the museum clock tower |
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| Museum rooftop, view with a view |
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| Fancy museum rooftop restaurant |
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| View of Sacrecour from rooftop |
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| Such majesty in proportions |
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| Trading port from those days |
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| Awestruck at the gymnastic poses being struck by a model posing nearby |
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| Stunning room in the museum |
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| Grandeur on every side |
While the art was stunning, people watching was very entertaining, especially when I spotted who must be the most beautiful woman in the world. She was of Eastern Asian descent, probably weighed 45kgs and moved like a poetry. As we explored the museum further, I had an epic moment of taking selfie with "the selfie" of the famous painter, Van Gogh.
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| Where is your right ear Mr? |
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| Another Van Gogh depicting vibrant countryside |
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| Time for some food? |
We had lunch at a sandwich place nearby and walked along Sienne all the way to Notre dame. We sat by the River bank at various spots watching people, boats on the river, dogs and birds. The weather was perfect Mediterranean fare with blue skies, fluffy clouds and a gentle breeze, ideal for relaxing on a Sunday.
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| Beautiful Sienne |
As the evening wore on, we had consumed ice cream, soft drinks and candy bars, all the sugar of course contributed further to the good mood. Then off we went to Louvre in the evening to do more people watching. The museum had closed so we sat near the glass pyramids and observed the many tourists, armed police officers and the preparations for some stage performance nearby. Sounds of musical instruments being played wafted through the air, adding more depth to the scene.
After about an hour there, we watched dancers outside the metro station while eating a light dinner of crepes. We stopped at a supermarket near the hotel to get some snacks for that night's sleeplessness and noticed the most unusual orange juice vending machine where customers can make their own freshly squeezed orange juice. There were even plastic bottles supplied to take the juice home. We understood that the French took their orange juice very seriously!
After collecting our luggage from the hotel, we went to a different but much better bus stand (Gallieni) to board the bus for our return journey of horror. Again forced to stay awake from 1-4am in the ferry, we arrived back in Victoria on Monday morning. I had some time to sleep before logging in as it was thankfully a WFH day but Lakshman went to the office from Victoria, poor fella.
Despite all the sleep deprivation, we had packed a lot into just a weekend and our interest was rekindled to go on city breaks in Europe. I was looking forward to exploring Prague in February 2020 and was left with the memory of a perfect day (1-Sept-2019) and unforgettable lesson on how not to go to Paris.
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