This is the first place I ever visited for my pleasure on a weekend while I was in Stuttgart for work, back in 2011. I recall just wanting to go on a tour of some place other than the city and I came across this person working in the same organization as myself (no longer there) who had plans to visit Paris. I decided to hop on. He had done the itenary, travel and lodging planning beforehand and I was completely new to something like that at the time. So, I just tagged along.
Most cities in Europe are pretty well connected both by trains and buses and we used a Eurolines bus as a means of commuting on that occasion. So, one Friday in early December, late in the evening, both of us set out for Paris. We arrived early next morning.
DAY 1
There was a light drizzle at the time and the hostel we would put up at, was not far from the bus-stop. He had scribbled down some general directions to the hostel and after mulling over it for a while in the first hours of dawn in dim light, we located the intended building.
We had a bath and breakfast but decided it was best in the interests of covering our itenary that we would rest later, not feeling particularly tired. We took a map from the nearest railway station which was also essentially our most used mode of travel through the city.
What followed was as below.
Grande Arche La Defense: It is a huge arche built at a certain angle to accommodate certain structures running underneath it. Apparently, it was the outcome of a national design competition held in the 1980s and was somewhat modeled based on the Arche de Triomphe which we saw later. The only real association with ’defense’ here is that certain military parades happen here to commemorate certain historical occasions like the French Revolution. Otherwise, it’s just a huge arch amidst other big buildings, situated around it. More like contemporary architecture rather than some historical one.
But the whole area makes for good viewing, both from a distance and close up. It was our good fortune that there was also a Christmas market set up close by, at the time. So, we spent some time there while also waiting for an acquaintance of my companion to arrive from London. The market was abound with collectibles, eatables and knick-knacks and good to explore. Having enjoyed our fill of the same, we moved on to our next stop.
Arche De Triomphe: Now, this was more like a historical monument with scribblings engraved here in memory of past French wars including people and battles involved at several places and some beautiful sculptures to behold. Apparently, it was supposed to symbolic of the main sculptors of France and was designed somewhere around 1806, around 60 m high. It was a cold day and we spent some significant time there taking in the beauty of the monument. There was a decent crowd turnout in and around as well.
Taking some nice pictures here, we moved on to have lunch. There was a section of Indian streets in the city and we decided to visit one to have paranthas before we went on to visit the church of Sacre Coeur.
Basilique du Sacre Coeur: This was one of the most beautiful churches I’ve ever visited. It has a great setting outside to support the great interior. Being a central place of visit for many, there are also a lot of hawkers and stalls, situated not far from here. The Roman Catholic church situated on a grassy elevated platform is awesome to look at and we spent some significant time taking pictures here. The elevated park-like platform also enables one to take great pictures of the city from a height.
I later came to know that this supported the Romano-Byzantine architecture rather than the more popular Neo-baroque architecture at the time it was made. Regardless, it was beautiful to witness. After appreciating the exterior for a while, we decided to witness proceedings inside the church. The interior of the church is also quite beautiful and the proceedings were interesting to watch.
Champs Elysees: This was our last stop for the day, in the evening. The avenue supposedly runs for 1.9 km, sporting great shops and luxury cafes on either side. The name is supposed to mean "paradise for dead heroes in Greek mythology". We were there in the evening. Hence, we also got to see the great lighting there which gave it an even greater appearance. Witnessing the hustle-bustle of people going about their business on this large road gives one a different kind of positive energy.
We explored about a bit, some of us making some purchases as well and stopping somewhere for dinner before we headed back to the hostel.
DAY 2
The next day, we decided on making 2 important stops.
Louvre Museum: Like several other famous museums, this is also housed inside a Louvre Palace complex. A large array of connected buildings, it has further classifications like "Old Louvre" and "New Louvre" and even more classifications there on. It was estimated to have been established around 1793 but the palace itself is believed to have come into being earlier.
The array of buildings also has a pyramid in between, in the open ground space with some artifical water bodies with fountains in close proximity. Apparently, the pyramid was built to provide light and air to the housing underneath.
The Palace complex mostly houses a vast collection of artwork, sculptures and many different kinds of antiquities from different periods. The different buildings house different sections. As far as my recollection is concerned, I think we visited ’Hotel du Petit-Bourbourn’, ’Louvre Medieval’, ’Louvre Renaissance’, ’Cour des Cusines’, ’Grande Galerie’ and maybe ’Palais des Tuileries’. There were a few other sections which we may not have visited. There is some interesting history behind when and why some of these different sections were connected through other buildings, over the years.
The collection of the museum is very interesting to go through. The most famous item here is obviously Leonardo Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa painting. The painting was almost always swamped with hordes of people. We too got a picture of us with the painting. The woman in the painting seems to be watching you earnestly.
Entry to the museum is free on the first Sunday of every month. Having spent some quality time here, we moved on to what would be our last stop in Paris - The Eiffel Tower.
Eiffel Tower: After stopping for a bite somewhere, we went on to visit this world famous monument. We reached before sunset, although it was nearing evening. We had booked tickets online for the visit here to avoid the queue that would typically be associated with the same.
Needless to say, it was nothing short of grand in appearance. This grayish-brown 1063 ft. high monument makes for fantastic viewing from all sides and from underneath. We spent some quality time at the bottom before beginning our ascent.
There are supposed to be 3 levels of stops on the way to the top. We took the lift to the various levels and observed Paris from above. Great views. The topmost level is enclosed in glass so we could only observe that through closed doors, although no less spectacular.
The Seine river in the vicinity of the tower offers boat rides for those interested. But we did not avail the same as by the time we came down from the tower, it was quite dark and we had a bus to catch, back to Stuttgart.
Instead, once at the bottom again, we beheld the tower in a different light in the dark. At the stroke of every hour, the lights on the tower come on and blink for a while before going off. It gives it a golden aura and makes for another spectacular sight. Quite different from viewing it in daylight.
Following this, it was time for my companions and myself to return. My companion from Stuttgart bid farewell to his acquaintance from London, who had a plane to catch. We on the other hand, trudged back to the hostel and then back to the bus stop to take us back to Stuttgart, after collecting some souvenirs in close proximity to the Eiffel Tower.
My companion cramped his leg on the way back and was worried that it may be a bone injury. But after we convinced ourselves that it was not, as that would mean unbearable pain for him, he did limp back to the hostel and then eventually caught the bus back to Stuttgart with me.
GENERAL THINGS ABOUT THE CITY
1) The city itself is quite big here. So, it may not be a bad idea to use trains wherever possible to save time and minimize walking.
One of the strangest experiences I had here was on a train, when a guy sanding quite near me, kind of dropped on the floor suddenly, like dead weight with his eyes closed and didn’t get up again. God knows what happened to him, we having left for our intended destination.
2) ’English’ is not a very well known language here, although the important people seem to know.
3) People there are not overtly friendly. But nor are they unduly unkind.
4) The hawkers there can be very persuasive. So, it is best to use your good judgement regarding what is best for you, when encountered with one.
5) There always seems to be someone playing some beautiful music at every stop you make. The frequency of such is quite high in Paris, compared to other cities.
6) If one has the time and desire, one could also visit the church of Notre Damme, St. Chapellle, Rodin Museum, The Catacombs, Versailles Palace, Montmarte, Moulin Rogue and some other markets.
In conclusion, I’d say the time I spent in Paris felt quite nice, spanning two overcast days with a light drizzle every now and then. But memorable all the same. Definitely, one of the more important tourist attractions in Europe!