Our last trip to Paris was several decades ago in Winter and it was unseasonably freezing. We were ill-prepared for the low temperatures, bitter cold and cutting winds. It made our stay very uncomfortable and difficult. This time we have been spoiled by sunny days, sensible temperatures and gentle breezes. And, it has to be said, there were not too many idiotic tourists (stopping at the top of stairs or in the middle of the pavements) nor chain-smoking or vaping Parisians (though there were still a ridiculous number). We walked a lot – over 10km each day – rubbernecking at the architecture, promenading down the tree-lined boulevards and cobbled streets, visiting some must-see sites and finding cafes and little squares to sit and people-watch from.
We had a well-located apartment, just near the Gare d’Austerlitz. There were excellent connections to several Metro lines and the RER which meant it was easy to get around, even though we have had our fair share of public transport nightmares of cancelled trains, renovation work rat mazes and ticket machine malfunctions.
Morning strolls along the Seine and around the Ile de la Cité and Ile St Louis, a ‘headline’ attraction (think Eiffel Tower, Sacré-Coeur, Canal Saint-Martin) and then a somewhat planned return route via a few other places of interest (Arc de Triomphe Etoile, Notre-Dame, Sainte-Chapelle, Marais, Opéra, Latin Quarter,) were how we broke up the day and explored the city. Paris this time was lovely …. (do you sense a ‘but’ here?) … but (there it is!) for a city that held the Olympics only last year, it looks uncared for and just a little run down. Putting that little niggle aside, we had an enjoyable time shopping, eating, drinking, viewing and wandering; in other words, being adults and not worrying about the appalling exchange rate between the Euro and the Australian Dollar (almost $2 to a Euro). Our last evening in Paris was celebrated with a glass of champagne on the second level of the Eiffel Tower, watching a squall miss us but slam the northern suburbs, a walk to the Trocadero and a café to pass the time until the 10pm sparkle of the tower. It was a magical way to end the visit.
A morning’s walk in gorgeous sunshine along the Seine (to keep up the step count) before a slightly weird immigration clearance at Gare du Nord for our Eurostar was how we ended our time in Paris.
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