Thursday, February 14, 2008
TEN DAYS IN (AND AROUND) PARIS FOR A YOUNG COUPLE IN LOVE (a special Valentine's Day gift for whoever can use it)
[One of the waitresses at the neighborhood restaurant where I like to eat breakfast is going to Paris next month with her boyfriend, who now has a little cash in his pocket having apparently given up his dream of becoming a rock musician, and selling his guitars on e-Bay. These are merely my best suggestions: the things that would top my list if I were the one who had sold my guitars, and was taking a beautiful young woman with me to Europe. You might have to shuffle the schedule around a little depending on the weather, when the museums are open, and the like. You can also cut almost a full day out of the road-trip by traveling to Normandy in the afternoon or early evening the day before...which is basically what I have suggested here anyway. Readers, please add your suggestions too by posting them to the "comments" section!]
DAY ONE: arrive, settle in to your hotel, relax, unpack, find a cozy and intimate neighborhood restaurant with a reasonable prix fixe menu and a good vin ordinaire, enjoy a leisurely meal just like the French do, then go back to the hotel and make love until exhausted....
DAY TWO: wake up early, happy and well rested, then discover your neighborhood Parisian cafe and enjoy a typical Parisian breakfast of a croissant and cafe creme. (You should begin every day in Paris just this way). Explore the neighborhood on foot, or visit one of the many other worthwhile sightseeing destinations listed below.
DAY THREE: Ile de la Cite and the Left Bank: Notre Dame Cathedral, Ile St. Louis, the Latin Quarter, Luxembourg Gardens, Shakespeare and Company, whatever. There’s a great walking tour in the Rick Steves guidebook. After dark jump aboard a Bateaux-Mouches (you can catch them at the base of Pont Neuf) for a romantic, late night cruise along the Seine.
DAY FOUR: the Musee d’ Orsay in the morning; Montemartre and Sacre Cour in the afternoon. Explore the neighborhood, or just sit on the steps and watch the people.
Sacre Couer
DAY FIVE: the Louvre. Yes, you really CAN spend the whole day there, and still only scratch the surface. After you’ve exhausted yourself with great art, (and if you didn’t see it on Day Three) you might want to check out the Conciergerie (where Marie Antoinette was held prisoner before they chopped off her head), or visit one of the other smaller sightseeing destinations. Or better yet, gain almost an entire extra day in the city by traveling to Mont St. Michel in the afternoon instead of waiting until morning. (You can also start in Bayeaux and then travel to Mont St. Michel...but plan on spending one night in each place. Pack as light as you can -- which is good advice in general -- and then leave the rest of your baggage with your hotel concierge in Paris. And make your reservations early!]
Mont St Michel
DAY SIX: (roadtrip) -- Mont St. Michel. Hotel: try Le Mare Poulard. Expensive, but worth it. This is truly one of the most amazing (and inspiring) things in France. Don’t miss it! Arrive the day before, spend the night on the island, get up early (before the tourists start arriving from the mainland) and see as much as you can before the place is overrun by invaders. Go to Mass. Take the self-guided audio tour, or tag along with one of the groups. Catch a late morning or early afternoon train to Bayeaux, and try to see the Bayeaux Tapestry that afternoon, before treating yourself to a lovely Norman dinner at one of Bayeaux’s fine center city hotels.
Point du Hoc
The American Cemetery in Normandy
DAY SEVEN: (roadtrip) Bayeaux. Hotel: I stayed at the Hotel de la Gare (right near the train station), which was cheap, convenient, and had the added bonus of running its own D-Day beach tour (which was great). There is also a fantastic WWII museum in Averanches. When you return from the tour, catch the first train to Versailles. This is where you will really appreciate packing light. Don’t just hang around in the Hall of Mirrors. Get out to see le Hameau and the Triton Palaces. Return to Paris in the evening.
Versailles
The Hall of Mirrors
Le Hameau
DAY EIGHT: This is the bonus day you gain by traveling to Mont St Michel in the afternoon, and only spending a half-day at Versailles. By now you should be feeling like you really own the city, so go out an enjoy it like a native Parisian!
DAY NINE: Shop!
DAY TEN: pack and travel home again....
Other things worth checking out (if you can find the time)
The Conciergerie (already described above)
Les Invalides/French Military Museum/Napolean’s tomb
Rodin Sculpture Museum (near Les Invalides)
The French Sewer Museum! (fascinating)
The Arc de Triomphe and the Champs-Elysées, Place de la Concorde, Jardin des Tuileries, and other "Right Bank" attractions. (another great thing to do if you're feeling overwhelmed by the Louvre).
The view from the top of the Montparnasse Tower (Rick Steves says that the view from the top of Montparnasse is the best in Paris because Montparnasse isn’t in it!)
Pere Lachaise Cemetery. Final resting place of Jim Morrison, among others
Don’t Bother
The Top of the Eiffel Tower: long lines and so what? -- unless you simply want to say you’ve done it. Wouldn’t your rather look AT it?
The Bastille: because there’s nothing there. It’s just a stop on the Metro now; the actual prison was torn down during the Revolution two centuries ago!
The Pompidou Center: the building is probably more interesting than the collection...although, of course, I’m no artist. Rick Steves says that the (free) view from the cafe terrace is excellent.
Favorite Guidebooks:
If you haven't figured it out already, anything (and everything) by Rick Steves. I just love this guy! -- another Seattle boy about my age, who has been traveling independently (and on a limited budget) through Europe's "Back Doors" since he was a teenager, and has now turned his passion not only into a career, but an entire industry. You’ll quickly see that a lot of my own opinions were shaped by his.
[One of the waitresses at the neighborhood restaurant where I like to eat breakfast is going to Paris next month with her boyfriend, who now has a little cash in his pocket having apparently given up his dream of becoming a rock musician, and selling his guitars on e-Bay. These are merely my best suggestions: the things that would top my list if I were the one who had sold my guitars, and was taking a beautiful young woman with me to Europe. You might have to shuffle the schedule around a little depending on the weather, when the museums are open, and the like. You can also cut almost a full day out of the road-trip by traveling to Normandy in the afternoon or early evening the day before...which is basically what I have suggested here anyway. Readers, please add your suggestions too by posting them to the "comments" section!]
DAY ONE: arrive, settle in to your hotel, relax, unpack, find a cozy and intimate neighborhood restaurant with a reasonable prix fixe menu and a good vin ordinaire, enjoy a leisurely meal just like the French do, then go back to the hotel and make love until exhausted....
DAY TWO: wake up early, happy and well rested, then discover your neighborhood Parisian cafe and enjoy a typical Parisian breakfast of a croissant and cafe creme. (You should begin every day in Paris just this way). Explore the neighborhood on foot, or visit one of the many other worthwhile sightseeing destinations listed below.
DAY THREE: Ile de la Cite and the Left Bank: Notre Dame Cathedral, Ile St. Louis, the Latin Quarter, Luxembourg Gardens, Shakespeare and Company, whatever. There’s a great walking tour in the Rick Steves guidebook. After dark jump aboard a Bateaux-Mouches (you can catch them at the base of Pont Neuf) for a romantic, late night cruise along the Seine.
DAY FOUR: the Musee d’ Orsay in the morning; Montemartre and Sacre Cour in the afternoon. Explore the neighborhood, or just sit on the steps and watch the people.
Sacre CouerDAY FIVE: the Louvre. Yes, you really CAN spend the whole day there, and still only scratch the surface. After you’ve exhausted yourself with great art, (and if you didn’t see it on Day Three) you might want to check out the Conciergerie (where Marie Antoinette was held prisoner before they chopped off her head), or visit one of the other smaller sightseeing destinations. Or better yet, gain almost an entire extra day in the city by traveling to Mont St. Michel in the afternoon instead of waiting until morning. (You can also start in Bayeaux and then travel to Mont St. Michel...but plan on spending one night in each place. Pack as light as you can -- which is good advice in general -- and then leave the rest of your baggage with your hotel concierge in Paris. And make your reservations early!]
Mont St MichelDAY SIX: (roadtrip) -- Mont St. Michel. Hotel: try Le Mare Poulard. Expensive, but worth it. This is truly one of the most amazing (and inspiring) things in France. Don’t miss it! Arrive the day before, spend the night on the island, get up early (before the tourists start arriving from the mainland) and see as much as you can before the place is overrun by invaders. Go to Mass. Take the self-guided audio tour, or tag along with one of the groups. Catch a late morning or early afternoon train to Bayeaux, and try to see the Bayeaux Tapestry that afternoon, before treating yourself to a lovely Norman dinner at one of Bayeaux’s fine center city hotels.
Point du Hoc
The American Cemetery in NormandyDAY SEVEN: (roadtrip) Bayeaux. Hotel: I stayed at the Hotel de la Gare (right near the train station), which was cheap, convenient, and had the added bonus of running its own D-Day beach tour (which was great). There is also a fantastic WWII museum in Averanches. When you return from the tour, catch the first train to Versailles. This is where you will really appreciate packing light. Don’t just hang around in the Hall of Mirrors. Get out to see le Hameau and the Triton Palaces. Return to Paris in the evening.
Versailles
The Hall of Mirrors
Le Hameau
DAY EIGHT: This is the bonus day you gain by traveling to Mont St Michel in the afternoon, and only spending a half-day at Versailles. By now you should be feeling like you really own the city, so go out an enjoy it like a native Parisian!
DAY NINE: Shop!
DAY TEN: pack and travel home again....
Other things worth checking out (if you can find the time)
The Conciergerie (already described above)
Les Invalides/French Military Museum/Napolean’s tomb
Rodin Sculpture Museum (near Les Invalides)
The French Sewer Museum! (fascinating)
The Arc de Triomphe and the Champs-Elysées, Place de la Concorde, Jardin des Tuileries, and other "Right Bank" attractions. (another great thing to do if you're feeling overwhelmed by the Louvre).
The view from the top of the Montparnasse Tower (Rick Steves says that the view from the top of Montparnasse is the best in Paris because Montparnasse isn’t in it!)
Pere Lachaise Cemetery. Final resting place of Jim Morrison, among others
Don’t Bother
The Top of the Eiffel Tower: long lines and so what? -- unless you simply want to say you’ve done it. Wouldn’t your rather look AT it?
The Bastille: because there’s nothing there. It’s just a stop on the Metro now; the actual prison was torn down during the Revolution two centuries ago!
The Pompidou Center: the building is probably more interesting than the collection...although, of course, I’m no artist. Rick Steves says that the (free) view from the cafe terrace is excellent.
Favorite Guidebooks:
If you haven't figured it out already, anything (and everything) by Rick Steves. I just love this guy! -- another Seattle boy about my age, who has been traveling independently (and on a limited budget) through Europe's "Back Doors" since he was a teenager, and has now turned his passion not only into a career, but an entire industry. You’ll quickly see that a lot of my own opinions were shaped by his.
