Paris has always been one of my top destinations to travel to. I have to admit growing up I had a romanticized view of the city through photography and pop culture. When I had the chance to go at a great deal from Iceland, I definitely couldn't say no. So I found myself flying into Orly after my trip to Iceland last October.
Researching were to stay in Paris was fairly easy; I wanted to stay close, but not too far to the main tourist attractions. And a place that doesn't require too many transfers through public transportation. I ended up finding a cute room near Avenue Victor Hugo station in the Passy area on Airbnb. I highly recommend staying in that area as it was quiet, yet just a bit touristy. It was also walking distance to the Arc de Triomphe and very easy to get to the places I wanted.
I was extremely nervous going to Paris alone, as it was the first time I've traveled in a foreign country by myself without speaking the language fluently. All I had with me was a year of French taken in college. My concerns quickly came to an end as I had rented pocket-wifi from Travel Wifi through the info booth at the ORLY airport. I had access to google maps the entire trip, which definitely helped calm my nerves.
I arrived late afternoon and decided to ease my way in by exploring the neighborhood for the rest of the day. So the first thing I did was to stop at a French pharmacy down the street. I was so excited, I immediately bought some Nuxe products because it was sooooo cheap. At that moment I realized why people come to Paris just to shop. :D
I did have some self-control though as I went to three other pharmacies that day, but patience is definitely a virtue, because the pharmacy within the Passy Plaza had the best deals. so Ooopsies! on not being patient with purchases.
I also found a Kookai shop along the way - a brand that I've adored since I was I was a teen. It was nice because they were also having a sale at the time and I snagged a lovely checkered blouse for a momento.
By the time I finished shopping about, I went to have dinner. I found a restaurant I wanted to try, but alas reservations only. I ended up eating at the Victor Hugo Cafe, which didn't have a lot of people. Honestly, it wasn't very good which was probably why they didn't have many customers compared to the other restaurants in the area. Still! It was my first meal and here are some food pictures below to commemorate the experience.
So pretty much after dinner, I went bed and prepared for the next day.
My second day was a day full of museums and site seeing! My first stop was the Louvre - while iconic, I wasn't too impressed overall. They do have a solid selection of art, but if you've ever been to the Metropolitan in NYC, to me, it felt like I've been. What I enjoyed most out of this visit was the the spaces around it like the Tuileries Gardens. Like most places in Paris, I really enjoyed the architecture as I strolled through the city.
After the Louvre, I stopped by the Palais de Tokyo, which is a modern art museum and pretty much one of places on my list I was most looking forward too. I had seen pictures of past exhibitions online and raving reviews. However, this museum was honestly the biggest let down ever. The day I went they didn't have any particular exhibitions going on. Plus, I was off to a bad start when I got screamed at by the ticket checker for not understanding what he said when he went to check my ticket. Fine, I thought, off to a bad start but wasn't going to let me down.
I definitely felt like this museum doesn't have a particular order you have to start with, but after you get in you definitely know where the main exhibition is due to the massively long line of people waiting. I also forgot to mention all the exhibitions I saw at the time were visual.
Discouraged by the long line, I stumbled upon a smaller second exhibition, which had two people like on the flooring - singing a song in french -as a crowd of people watched them. At about 10 minutes they got up and left towards another part of the museum. Being extremely confused, I decided not to follow.
I then went back to the main exhibition and waited in line. This turned out to be the best part of the museum, because it was an interactive exhibition. It starts off with an individual getting paired with a child that asks you what you think progress is. It switches up a couple of times to a teenager, middle aged adult, and a senior, whom take the conversation from where it left off at the meeting points. Along the way, you walk through the museum, which had only big white blank walls.
After the main exhibition, you walk into a barren stripped down section of the museum where there is a whole crowd of people chanting things in french. As a bystander you can go through the crowd as you wish. I even saw a young student chilling along the wall while lying down. Because my french isn't very good, I had no idea what was going on and basically left due to feeling confused.
I walked right into the museum's bookstore. To hide my disappoint with the museum overall, I bought cute postcards so I wouldn't feel pissed about spending 12 euros to get admitted. I have to say that day, my biggest regret was not going to Museum d'Orsay nearby.
For the rest of the day, I decided to stay positive and visit the Notre Dame Cathedral and do more shopping. At the cathedral, I encountered the gypsy scammers you always here about. One of them asked me if I wanted to sign a petition, but I stood there curt and said no. Throughout my trip I also kept my bag in front and didn't have a problem. Honestly, I think as long as you're smart about your surroundings, you won't really have a problem.
After the church, I walked around the 1st Arr. again and then went back to Passy to grab some dinner at Le Petit Retro. The food there was better than the first night and the restaurant had was impressively decorated with retro themed items. The beef tartare was good, but the bone marrow was a little too greasy for me.
So that brings me to the end of my first two days. If you've finished reading to the end and sense that I haven't been too impressed with Paris so far, please note this was only my experience! Furthermore, in my next post you'll read about the following day, where I actually had the best time during my Paris trip!
Au revoir till next time,
Researching were to stay in Paris was fairly easy; I wanted to stay close, but not too far to the main tourist attractions. And a place that doesn't require too many transfers through public transportation. I ended up finding a cute room near Avenue Victor Hugo station in the Passy area on Airbnb. I highly recommend staying in that area as it was quiet, yet just a bit touristy. It was also walking distance to the Arc de Triomphe and very easy to get to the places I wanted.
I was extremely nervous going to Paris alone, as it was the first time I've traveled in a foreign country by myself without speaking the language fluently. All I had with me was a year of French taken in college. My concerns quickly came to an end as I had rented pocket-wifi from Travel Wifi through the info booth at the ORLY airport. I had access to google maps the entire trip, which definitely helped calm my nerves.
Night view from my room
I did have some self-control though as I went to three other pharmacies that day, but patience is definitely a virtue, because the pharmacy within the Passy Plaza had the best deals. so Ooopsies! on not being patient with purchases.
Passy Neighborhood
I also found a Kookai shop along the way - a brand that I've adored since I was I was a teen. It was nice because they were also having a sale at the time and I snagged a lovely checkered blouse for a momento.
By the time I finished shopping about, I went to have dinner. I found a restaurant I wanted to try, but alas reservations only. I ended up eating at the Victor Hugo Cafe, which didn't have a lot of people. Honestly, it wasn't very good which was probably why they didn't have many customers compared to the other restaurants in the area. Still! It was my first meal and here are some food pictures below to commemorate the experience.
So pretty much after dinner, I went bed and prepared for the next day.
Breakfast at a local bakery near my neighborhood
My second day was a day full of museums and site seeing! My first stop was the Louvre - while iconic, I wasn't too impressed overall. They do have a solid selection of art, but if you've ever been to the Metropolitan in NYC, to me, it felt like I've been. What I enjoyed most out of this visit was the the spaces around it like the Tuileries Gardens. Like most places in Paris, I really enjoyed the architecture as I strolled through the city.
Louvre view from inside the museum
After the Louvre, I stopped by the Palais de Tokyo, which is a modern art museum and pretty much one of places on my list I was most looking forward too. I had seen pictures of past exhibitions online and raving reviews. However, this museum was honestly the biggest let down ever. The day I went they didn't have any particular exhibitions going on. Plus, I was off to a bad start when I got screamed at by the ticket checker for not understanding what he said when he went to check my ticket. Fine, I thought, off to a bad start but wasn't going to let me down.
I definitely felt like this museum doesn't have a particular order you have to start with, but after you get in you definitely know where the main exhibition is due to the massively long line of people waiting. I also forgot to mention all the exhibitions I saw at the time were visual.
Discouraged by the long line, I stumbled upon a smaller second exhibition, which had two people like on the flooring - singing a song in french -as a crowd of people watched them. At about 10 minutes they got up and left towards another part of the museum. Being extremely confused, I decided not to follow.
I then went back to the main exhibition and waited in line. This turned out to be the best part of the museum, because it was an interactive exhibition. It starts off with an individual getting paired with a child that asks you what you think progress is. It switches up a couple of times to a teenager, middle aged adult, and a senior, whom take the conversation from where it left off at the meeting points. Along the way, you walk through the museum, which had only big white blank walls.
After the main exhibition, you walk into a barren stripped down section of the museum where there is a whole crowd of people chanting things in french. As a bystander you can go through the crowd as you wish. I even saw a young student chilling along the wall while lying down. Because my french isn't very good, I had no idea what was going on and basically left due to feeling confused.
I walked right into the museum's bookstore. To hide my disappoint with the museum overall, I bought cute postcards so I wouldn't feel pissed about spending 12 euros to get admitted. I have to say that day, my biggest regret was not going to Museum d'Orsay nearby.
Notre Dame
For the rest of the day, I decided to stay positive and visit the Notre Dame Cathedral and do more shopping. At the cathedral, I encountered the gypsy scammers you always here about. One of them asked me if I wanted to sign a petition, but I stood there curt and said no. Throughout my trip I also kept my bag in front and didn't have a problem. Honestly, I think as long as you're smart about your surroundings, you won't really have a problem.
Plaza near Louis Vuitton Maison Vendome
Bone Marrow and Steak Tartare
After the church, I walked around the 1st Arr. again and then went back to Passy to grab some dinner at Le Petit Retro. The food there was better than the first night and the restaurant had was impressively decorated with retro themed items. The beef tartare was good, but the bone marrow was a little too greasy for me.
So that brings me to the end of my first two days. If you've finished reading to the end and sense that I haven't been too impressed with Paris so far, please note this was only my experience! Furthermore, in my next post you'll read about the following day, where I actually had the best time during my Paris trip!
Au revoir till next time,
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