We arrive early morning in Paris and after picking up our bags we search for the downtown train. That was not difficult but then we try to buy tickets and everything gets complicated as the ticket dispenser refuses all our credit cards due to lack of chip (US is behind Europe in this aspect) so we have to identify a dispenser that takes cash and use some euros from our reserve. Finally we are on the train and then after a LONG switch to the metro we arrive at our hotel. We worked really hard the weeks prior to identify a relatively cheap hotel close to the Metro and Hotel Terminus was what we chose in the end. Rooms are really small, almost comically so, but that is common in European capitals however somehow in that cramped space we even have a fireplace. After a bit of refreshing we decide to take a brief tour of downtown Paris before we leave for the south tomorrow.
First stop is the bird market on Ile de la Cité which was one of the things that we didn’t want to miss. Lots of interesting and weird birds but also some common ones like doves and parrots.
Next we move on to the most well known attraction on the Ile de la Cité, the Notre Dame Cathedral. Last time we were here it was overcast and the cathedral was under renovation, today it is sunny and no renovations are in sight. We also do not remember the long line of people snaking in front of the Cathedral trying to visit it as we were expecting fewer people especially as it isn’t tourist season and the museums are free for the day. After some deliberations we decide to skip it and just go round it from the outside.
There are lots of gargoyles and other wonderful details on the outside of the Cathedral, whenever we see how ornate the old gothic cathedrals are we cannot stop thinking how long it would take an artisan to decorate the whole cathedral and then to maintain it.
From Notre Dame we stroll on Quai aux Fleurs near the Seine and cross the river on the way to the Louvre. It is a nice stroll and we want to enjoy the great weather outside.
It seems that most tourists take the metro as the traffic is slightly less busy until we approach the Louvre where it picks up again. Today is free entry at most museums so there is a long line to visit the Museum. From the outside the palace is still as large as we remember but after visiting Vienna and other major European capitals it looks slightly less impressive than the first time we visited.
Here is also the famous Arc de Triomphe, we continue to be surprised at the masses of people that are seemingly everywhere but it is the weekend and the weather is great which likely explains why everyone is out.
We continue to the Tuileries Gardens which are full of people enjoying the sun and lounging on the grass and relaxing. We take a few pictures of the maze and sculptures and as the sun continue to beat down on us we hurry to cross the Seine and visit the Orsay museum, another well known museum in Paris that is housed in an old train station.
Even though we have only about one hour and half till closing time we visit the majority of exhibitions as it isn’t such a large museum but still it has a large collection impressionist painters such as Monet, Renoir and also a few Van Gogh were the majority of visitors congregate. After it the tiredness is catching up with us so we return to the hotel. Close by we stop to buy a few groceries and after a quick dinner we go to sleep early so we can wake up fresh tomorrow.
