Eiffel Tower

Paris, the city of love

For our wedding anniversary this year, we (more like me) decided to spend a long weekend somewhere. And where could be more fitting to celebrate our love than Paris, the city of love? 🙂

If you’re anything like me, you don’t need much convincing when it comes to visiting Paris, the city of love, whether it’s for a romantic getaway, a foodie trip or a shopping trip. Either way, it’s going to be a splurge! Walking down the quintessential Parisian streets dressed in winter coats, leather gloves and a red beret with Lady Dior in one hand and a French baguette in the other admiring the beautiful French buildings. Who can say no to that?!

Alan, on the other hand, needs a bit of convincing. But nothing an InterContinental’s mille fleur and eleven-course dinner in Guy Savoy can’t fix! 😉

I will forever associate Paris, the city of love with the deadly fire that burnt down Cathedrale Notre-Dame, the world’s most iconic monument! An icon that is linked to Paris forever and a day, second to the Eiffel Tower. This Parisienne icon took 200 years to build, with 850+ years of history… all crumpled down in the blink of an eye! To think that I was just there four weeks before the fire. What left me even more speechless was how the whole world came together to mourn this loss and support the reconstruction of this historical icon. Paris, the city of love will not be the same without Our Lady! I read the Arnaut family has offered €200m to the reconstruction fund. If you didn’t know, Mr Bernard Arnaut is the Chairman and Chief Executive of LVMH. So meh… it’s probably just petty cash for him! 😎 I also read a 9-year-old British girl sent €3 to the appeal. “This is not much, but every little bit counts,” she said. Nawwww… isn’t so cute!

I am so grateful that I got to see Our Lady standing beautifully in her original form on my recent trip to Paris, the city of love. I just wish I had taken more pictures of her!

Cathedrale de Notre Dame The Notre Dame standing beautifully by the Seine River.

Notre dame cathedral
Doing a cruise on the Seine River is certainly a good way to see the cathedral and get to know the city.

This is actually my fifth time in Paris! It is literally a 2-hour train journey from London. This is less than some of my colleagues’ daily commute to the office! So it’s not surprising that Paris is the most visited destination for us Londoners. And after my fifth visit, I think I can say that I know my a list of my favourite things to do and places to eat in this city of love Paris.

We like to stay in a new neighbourhood each time we come to Paris. This time, we stayed really close to Jardin du Luxembourg (Luxembourg Garden). Like all French gardens, this garden is immaculately maintained. It’s a shame we were too early to see all the spring blooms though.

Luxembourg Garden

Luxembourg Garden

Parisians really know how to embrace the outdoors. There were chairs scattered all over the garden to sit on and enjoy the sunshine. I can just imagine how lovely it would be when the weather warms up.

Sun chairs in Luxembourg garden
Enjoying the sunshine in Luxembourg Garden.

But I’m not gonna lie, early March it was freezing, despite the beaming sunshine, so after a couple of photos, we took off making our way towards the Louvre. First, head towards the Latin Quarter to check out this Romanesque Pantheon building sitting on the historic hill of Montagne Sainte-Geneviève. You can also get tickets to go inside and climb the dome for a panoramic view of Paris. We didn’t climb it this time but I highly recommend it if you have time.

The Pantheon

The Pantheon building is in the Latin Quarter, modelled by the Pantheon in Rome. We were feeling peckish, so we did a pit stop for lunch. A Parisian special, duck and gizzard salad. One of my favourite dishes in Paris. I’m afraid I don’t remember the name of this restaurant.

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After lunch, time to walk off your food. So we continued on towards the Louvre. It is only about a 20min walk from here. Look out for Notre Dame along the way.

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Notre Dame cathedral
Photo credit to Alan with his Huawei P20 Pro

The Louvre is still pretty spectacular no matter how many times I’ve seen this place, it is still amazing! We didn’t visit the museum this time but definitely worth a visit if you have at least 3-4hours spare.

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Next stop, make your way to Opera. Time for a coffee break and the best mille fleur in the world!

Opéra Garnier opera house
The facade of Palais Garnier opera house. Also referred to as Opéra Garnier

The opera house is definitely worth checking out. But that’s not why we’re here. We are here for Le Grand cafe of the InterContinental hotel. They have a cabinet full of French pastries and cakes. Order a slice (or two) of their mille fleur!! Crispy and airy pastries that melt in your mouth layered with out-of-this-world vanilla custard. You can thank me later. This sure is my must-do in Paris!

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A trip to Paris is not complete without a visit to the Eiffel Tower. So after a nice feed, we set off again…

Eiffel Tower

Trocadéro is the best place to view the Iron Lady.

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Eiffel Tower at Trocadéro

Try and get there for the sunset. Nothing quite like watching the red and orange sky being replaced by street lamps and the sparkly fairy lights from the Eiffel Tower (which comes on every hour on the hour). You will be amongst crowds but don’t let that scare you. There is enough space for everyone here!

Eiffel Tower night view

The Iron Lady at night

That takes us nicely to dinner time and I know just the place. Follow me… to the next post! 😊

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