Paris, Part Deux

My second trip to Paris was fast and furious, two days to see the sights I missed in February, when I hurt my knee and spent nearly a whole day in bed. My trip started with good luck at the bus stop – a taxi stopped and offered me the same fare as the bus. I think he was hoping to find more customers along the way, but apparently I was the earliest flier in town. At 4:30, this really wasn’t a surprise to me. Once in Paris, I started at the Place de la Concorde. It wasn’t very pretty because they had it set up for some event. But here’s what the view of Champs-Elysees looked like.


I walked the two miles to the Arc de Triomphe from Concorde and really enjoyed the second half of the stroll. The first half was boring. I should have taken the metro, as my book suggested, to the half-way point. Along my walk, I saw the Disney Store, Sephora, and other fine retailers. After I got to the Arc and marveled at the traffic around it, twelve different roads merging into the circle, I debated climbing it, but decided to spare my knees the 284 steps up and 284 steps down I’d have to do to get the view. I had a great view from Notre Dame last time, and was going to Sacre Coeur which was going to offer a great view as well. So I had a bite to eat and moved on.





Down to the Metro, I went to Ile St-Louis, where I took a stroll around the whole island. It was tiny, so it only took about half an hour. I got a view of Notre Dame I didn’t see last time and caught a guy drinking a bottle of wine on the quay. It was quiet on the island, which was a nice break from the rest of the city’s hustle and bustle.






Back on the mainland, I walked over the Pont des Arts toward the Musee d’Orsay, catching a great view of Cite along the way.



I really enjoyed my trip to the museum. There was an Art Nouveau exhibit and apparently I love Art Nouveau – who knew? Also, the building itself was amazing, being an old converted train station. The Impressionist paintings and sculptures were also a highlight.






After I left the museum, I went to Les Invalides to see the famous little man’s abode. Napoleon’s palace was enormous, not surprisingly.


I crossed Pont Alexander III, and decided to go to Centre Georges Pompidou, which was open late and would keep me from being stuck in my hotel room for too long. The Centre was filled with art, especially of the modern variety, and I enjoyed my three hours there.



I decided it was time to check in at my hotel, so I took a long walk to the Metro and got to my hotel. I couldn’t believe I remembered exactly how to get there. There was a sign on the door saying wait or call a phone number, so I went to dinner at a pizza place down the street, where I had a delicious chicken pizza and some red wine that wasn’t bad either. Full and exhausted, I checked in at my hotel and soon after turned in for the night.

The next morning, I checked out of the hotel and went to Sacre Coeur, where I had breakfast at a café across the street. I felt I deserved a croissant after climbing up a jillion stairs in the Metro. The Abbesses Metro stops at the core of the earth, I think. At the café, it was pretty surreal that just outside my window was a gorgeous view of the church. I thought about taking the funicular up the big hill, but instead opted to walk up the steps. I was glad I did, because I would have missed the ‘vendors’ quickly packing up their cheap goods into bags as they realized the cops were coming. It was so entertaining. The cops were strolling around keeping the peace (and preventing tourists from buying cheap crap souvenirs) the whole time I was up there. The basilica was beautiful, and it drizzled a bit while I was inside, but stopped as I got ready for my walk back to the Metro.




My next stop was Pere-Lachaise, the largest cemetery in Paris, and site of many celebrities’ graves. The man selling maps at the entrance asked me to pay in greenbacks (since I’m American, har-har). The cemetery is over 100 acres, and I was there at least an hour. I saw the graves of Jim Morrison, Edith Piaf, Amedeo Modigliani (an artist) and finally Oscar Wilde, amongst many thousands of others not so famous.






After the cemetery, I took the Metro back toward the city center, and it passed my stupid stop – closed for renovations. So I got off at the next stop and walked an extra mile to Jardin du Luxembourg. Even as the winter approaches, the palace and gardens were beautiful. It certainly helped that the sun had just come out after a bit of rain (just a bit, but enough to make you appreciate the sun).



After a bite to eat, I got back on the Metro and went to Palais de Chaillot, and as I walked to the palace, I turned the corner and saw the million dollar view of the Eiffel Tower.



I took a few photos, hopped back on the Metro and headed to the Bastille and Marais neighborhoods, to the Place des Vosges, touted as “one of the most perfectly designed and harmonious squares” by Frommer’s. It was, indeed, very pretty.




I walked around the square and popped into one of the cafes for a cup of coffee and to warm up a bit. Then I headed for my last stop, the Maison Europeene de la Photographie (house of European photography? I’m only guessing. My French sucks). After a pretty quick tour, I started making my way back to the airport. It was the longest train ride ever. It was loud and crowded, though the crowd thinned out as we hit the stops on the outskirts of Paris.

I had a great whirlwind trip to the City of Light. I’m really glad I went back for a second time. By the way, I stayed at the same hotel as my trip in February, and I even walked down the very same steps on which I hurt my knee. Brave, no?