Paris

To the city of lights!

Rugby matches and a weekend in Paris

09/11/2013: Day One

We are in Paris for the weekend!

The weekend! Do you know how bizarre it is to go to another country just for a weekend when you are from somewhere like New Zealand?

We caught the first train from Exeter on Saturday morning. There was a bit of panic when we were delayed in Reading, I swear we get delayed here every time we go through. The panic did not subside when were where then delayed further when our tube from Paddington to St Pancras broke down. We calmed down once we arrived at the Eurostar just in time to board and take our seats. Then we were ready to head to France!

We had a bit of trouble with our accommodation. We were supposed to be staying in a hostel near Sacre Coeur, but they double booked us so we ended up in an apartment of a sister hostel down the road. This sounded fine until we got there. It was a freezing cold room with a fold down couch instead of a bed and no hot water (which we discovered in the morning when trying to have a shower). But it was secure and it was only for one night.

For our first (half) day in Paris we went straight to Sacre Coeur, via a stop to look at Moulin Rouge, where we walked straight in as it was raining there weren’t many people arond. We had a lovely time walking around the Cathedral and snuck photos when we thought no one was looking at us.

In the evening we were off to the rugby, so We had some street food in Montmatre for dinner (partially because we had no idea where to eat and partially because we didn’t want to be late for the game).

The rugby was fantastic!
It was our first time seeing the All Blacks play live. We managed to be seated with a bunch of ex pat Kiwis living in London, one of whom was there with a French friend so we got translation of the commentary.
The vibe of the stadium was fantastic; everyone was getting so into it. We learnt that the French Fans sing the National Anthem both when the game is going well and when it is not, it’s surprising how different it can sound when it’s the same song.
New Zealand won (of course) but on a bit of a controversial try so we didn’t wave our flag around as the locals were a bit upset.

After waiting to cram back onto the Metro with everyone else, and having a few great conversations of half words half gestures, we made it back to the freezing apartment and tried to get some sleep before our big day in Paris on Sunday.

10/11/2013: Day Two

Today we walked until we could walk no further!

We were up at the crack of dawn, quickly ate some of the breakfast provided by the hostel, and then were on the move. Louise had read that a park near to where we were staying gave great views over Paris. Either we had the wrong park, or it did not have the great views promised. Either way we did not see anything so caught the Metro down to town again.

We headed first to Notre Dame where once again we walked straight inside. We had arrived just after Sunday mass so the tourists hadn’t had a chance to gather yet. From there we walked to the Jardin de Luxembourg via the Lock Bridge (Ponts des Arts). Unfortunately the locks have since been removed but at least we have a photo of the time that ours spent nestled amongst the others. Next stop was the Pantheon, where we got in for free because we had EU passports. The Pantheon is very impressive, and very quiet if you are looking for some peace while out for a day in Paris. We then wandered down the road to the Jardin De Luxembourg, which was beautiful and well worth a visit no matter what season you are visiting Paris in. Louise decided she wanted more photos of Notre Dame in the sunshine (a continuing theme), so we waled back down to the river.

After a quick stop for coffee we went back to the Metro and were on the home stretch back to Gare Du Nord. We got off the Metro at the Louvre station, and walked around the fountains outside and went to look at the inverted pyramid at the entrance of the Museum. Then we walked up the Champs-élysées to the Arc De Triomphe. The Champs-élysées is way longer than you think it would be when you are looking at it from the end of the street. Louise also made us go back to Sacre Coeur to get photos of the Cathedral in the sunshine, so our feet were very sore by the time we got to the station.

Then it was time to head back to England!

We got back to England just fine, sleeping for most of the train ride home. However, once we got to Paddington we discovered that our train to Exeter had been delayed (at Reading again) for several hours. We finally got home at 2am and were absolutely shattered! Unsurprisingly we both skipped uni the next day.

What an awesome weekend! Can’t wait to do it again!