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| Eiffel Tower at night |
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| Autumn in Paris (overlooking the Seine) |
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| La Giocanda (aka MonaLisa) |
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| Musee Du Louvre |
The idea of traveling to Europe alone was pretty daunting to me but I did it. I chose London, Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam as my “cities to visit”. Having no working knowledge of French, I was feeling really nervous as to how I was going to survive with just a few French phrases at my disposal. So on October 22, 2007, from London’s Waterloo Train Station, I boarded the Eurostar to Gare Du Nord in Paris. When I arrived in Paris, all my apprehensions (the whole “not knowing enough French and being alone” situation) quickly disappeared. It was a real cliche but Paris took my breath away. It was indeed the most romantic city (albeit the highly unfortunate 1st night in Montmartre). My first night in Paris was definitely catastrophic because I committed the #1 sin novice travelers are guilty of – I didn’t research my hotel well enough. I did love the vibe in Montmartre. I felt like I was walking next to Edith Piaf and sitting with Henri-Toulousse Lautrec when I was dining at the Abesses Bistro. That magical feeling was almost squashed when I saw my hotel. I will not name it but it was a dump. Thankfully, since I was still working for the Marriott at the time, I was able to get a last minute reservation at the Rive Gauche Marriott for the rest of my trip. I had to forfeit my 2nd night at this god-forsaken motel but I didn’t care. I didn’t want to spend my 27th birthday feeling miserable in Paris. That would have been a waste!
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| Place de la Concorde |
Going back to why Paris is perfect, being an art enthusiast, this city was just perfect for my thirst for all things renaissance and pompous (really). I visited Musee Du Louvre and Musee D’Orsay. I felt foolish for not having enough time at the Louvre. It only has 4 gigantic galleries and cannot be viewed in 1 day. I decided to spend most of my time at the Denon Gallery since that was where most of the Italian and French renaissance paintings were being housed. I was able to see Mona Lisa in the canvas-flesh. Amazing! It was like an out-of-body experience. Musee D’Orsay on the other hand, has a gargantuan collection of mannerist, surrealist and modernist paintings by Manet, Monet, Renoir and Cezanne to name a few. Plus a great selection of Rodin sculptures. Coincidentally, Rodin’s museum was nearby but I didn’t have the chance to visit it.
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| Interior of Musee D’Orsay |
Aside from art and architecture (Notre Dame, Ste. Chappelle and Eiffel Tower), it also was not bad being in a highly gastronomic city like Paris. I recommend for travelers to walk around Montmartre at 4am to have a taste of freshly baked croissants and madelines at the boulangerie close to the Abesses Metro. It was heaven! I also must have eaten a million macarons from Laduree when I was there (this did not include the macarons from Laduree in London) not to mention Berthillion ice cream in Notre Dame. Just perfect! I spent a good amount of time in the Latin Quarter as well. I let myself got lost in the labyrinthine alleyways of Latin Quarter only to stumble upon terrific little bistros for lunch and dinner. I only wished that I took more notes on this trip so I would’ve remembered these bistros that I dined in.
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| Notre Dame |
For all those single women out there who keep thinking twice about traveling alone – don’t hesitate and experience it! It was an exhilirating experience and I will do it all over again. (and I did)
