It is MOST DEFINITELY possible that this trip to Paris has the ability to change my mind in regards to my disliking towards the city. I won’t necessarily say that I hated it the first time I visited in February; however, it did NOT live up to my expectation that time.
It’s possible that I overestimated what Paris had to offer, due to so many people {and the movies} speaking so highly of the city. It’s possible that a lot of your enjoyment is based upon who you spend your time traveling with and how close you are. It’s possible that this time I just wasn't as focused on the pure “touristy” things… There are so many factors that could have been a part of the reason why I did not fully enjoy Paris, France just a few months ago.
This time, Paris lived up to the name and Lauren and I most definitely had one busy schedule…
On our first full day, we had a hearty breakfast consisting of nutella croissants, soggy scrambled eggs, and undercooked bacon. YUM!! Can’t say our spread was FABULOUS, but considering the concierge said we should go to McDonalds for a quick breakfast, I think that we won in regards to that situation.
Following breakfast, we made our way up the hill a few minutes and went to the train station. In attempts to communicate with the ticket lady, a kinda French woman came to our rescue, enabling us to get the correct tickets to get from that given station to the station closes to the Palace of Versailles. With about an hour to kill, Lauren and I wandered around and then headed to the nearest Starbucks for a lil pick-me-up prior to our tour.
THE PALACE WAS ABSOLUTELY BREATHTAKING!! We had the chance to walk throughout the many different corridors, take pictures in the infamous hall of mirrors and chandeliers, learn about the sneak ways of the king, and get lost in the garden. It was beautiful, and definitely one of the MUSTS of France.
After getting back to our hotel, we got changed as quickly as we could, and then were off and on our way out once more. With Moulin Rouge to see at night, we wanted to check an amazing view of the Eiffel Tower, so we wound up at this gorgeous hotel {Shang Palace} where we were escorted to near the top, lead throughout a hall of rooms, and then swiped into a private room that is turned into a bar during the day. After talking to the people who worked there, they explained to us how the room is the most wanted in the hotel {aka $$$$}, and only allowed to be checked out beginning at eight in the evening. The room was a corner room, so no matter where you were, in the bathtub, in the living room, or on the deck, you would have the best view of the entire city.
When our sixty euro glasses of champagne {two hours later} were finally finished, we headed to the area of Moulin Rouge, and found a yummy place for din. After we shoved our faces with the usual, bread and pasta, we made our way to the theatre in which we were redirected into a waiting room. It wasn't until minutes before the show began that they allowed everyone to enter and find their seats. We got so lucky and were in the front and a little to the left of the stage, but our view was perfect. For two and a half hours, we sulked as we watched super scantily clad girls dance around half naked. Drinking our bottle of champagne, in hopes of feeling better about our bodies, I would have to say that even though we could not understand one word that was said on stage, it was one of the most entertaining performances I have ever sat through.
By the end of the show, both Lauren’s and my phones were out of battery, I was the only one with cash {only twenty euros}, and we had to get home somehow. THIS is when it gets interesting… Now to begin with, Moulin Rouge is a little out and we were told by a couple of French guys that the area is kinda sketch. I will be honest in saying that the area itself wasn't bad at all; however there is one region in which the road is lined with gangs, prostitutes, and “people who do weird things to animals.” We got into a taxi in hopes of our driver taking card, but with the language barrier he couldn't really understand me when I told him that all I had was a card to pay or twenty euros. Lauren was already asleep in the seat beside me and when we had reached the dark road lined with basically the unknown, my taxi credit was up to eighteen dollars… AND the driver did NOT take card!! I think I was on the verge of a panic attack but luckily, the driver was sweet enough to recognize that the four mile stretch was not a place to drop two American girls. Long story short though, he eventually took us back to our hotel in which I paid him {ten euros less than the actual charge} and we made it back safely… SOOOO that being said, good people DO still exist!!
The next day was the first day of Lollapalooza, so we began with our typical breakfast and because the artists we were interested in seeing weren't going to perform until a little bit later in the day, we decided to go to the main shopping street where we treated ourselves to Laduree macaroons {and I bought my very first designer Louis Vuitton bag with my own money}. Once we had done damage, we decided to head back to the hotel and begin getting ready.
The music festival was two days full of fun, good music, great people, and even better memories. The Lineup was amazing, and who would've thought that Lollapalooza Paris, considering it was the first year there, would attract such a wide range of people {in the audience and the artists}. Even funnier though would be our experience the second night. After tearing up listening to Lana Del Rey and then standing in the pouring rain to see the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Lauren and I booked it Chipotle. And when I say we booked it, I don't think it would have been possible to see someone run so fast through a field of people in order to find an Uber, call Chipotle and beg them to stay open just for us, and ACTUALLY make it!! One of the best meals after a long day of drinking and standing…
On our very last day in Paris, we decided to make a visit to Mickey Mouse rather than Mona Lisa… BEST DECISION EVER!! It was only about a forty minute Uber drive, and the day was spent with us running around the park, collecting special Paris pins, purchasing new Minnie Mouse ears, and standing in lines that were a maximum of MAYBE twenty minutes. It was FABULOUS, considering the line for Cars Land in California is an average of three hours!! Also it was so cool to see the differences in the rides: Indiana Jones was a rollercoaster rather than a safari truck, Space Mountain was a lot faster and and had a cooler atmosphere, and Thunder Mountain had some differences too.
The day at Disneyland Paris seemed to go by so quickly due to us needing to catch a flight that night; however, because of the such short lines we got on as many rides in a few hours in Paris than we would have in California in a whole day. That’s what you get though when you have two HUGE Disneyland addicts who would rather hang out with Mickey Mouse than see the Mona Lisa on their last day in Paris.
xoxo v
