12 Jun 11 – Day 10 (Paris)

As per the day before, we woke up late and had breakfast late. As the checkout time was 10am, we only went out after checking out and putting our luggage in the hotel storage room. Took tram and connected a metro to Cardinal Lemoine station and used the map to find Pantheon Paris. Passed by Saint-Étienne-du-Mont and wanted to go in but there was a sign that said no entry on Sunday morning. So moved on to find Pantheon Paris and we found it. Took some photos of the Pantheon, the Pantheon-Assas Paris II University and Mairie of the 5th district (building that houses the Municipal Services of the 5th district) nearby in the open space outside the Pantheon before getting tickets to go in. The website stated 7 Euro but we ended up paying 8 Euro so I guessed the website wasn’t updated.

Saint-Étienne-du-Mont

Pantheon, Paris Mairie of the 5th district

Pantheon-Assas Paris II University Open space in front of Pantheon, Paris

Saw a sign saying that visitors could go up the building for a panoramic view of Paris and so we decided to first walk around the building before queuing to go up. I’m not good at appreciating architecture so I could only describe Pantheon Paris as very big with very tall pillars, a big pendulum in the center hall, sculptures and paintings at the sides, lots of skylights and I particularly like the fact that it doesn’t have too many strong colors like those in Palace of Versailles.

Some photos of the Pantheon, Paris :

Headed to the crypt and the first thing we saw was Voltaire's statue and tomb, tried to take photos but didn’t come out well. There were some rooms that were empty with doors closed and locked. Mag asked me if those were meant for people to sleep in and I couldn’t remember if I replied to her that they were meant to put coffins. Walked further in and saw other rooms that were opened and some were beautifully decorated. If I recalled correctly, I thought I pass by one that has Marie Curie and there were flowers on her grave. A Caucasian lady was inside taking photos and so I didn’t have a chance.

Came out of the crypt and we went to queue up to go up the building. Each session only allows a maximum of 50 persons. There were two guides, one leading and one at the end to make sure no one was left behind. We first made a stop to the top of the hall within the building before climbing more steps to get to the top and more steps before reaching the dome. We climbed a total of 206 steps but the view offered was great and we saw Eiffel Tower, Les Invalides, Notre Dame Cathedral and if I’m not wrong, Basilica of the Sacré Cœur as well. Walked round the dome, taking photos for each other before gathering together to go back down.

Some photos taken during the trip up Pantheon, Paris for panoramic view of Paris :

 

Reached the ground floor and we headed out to hunt for lunch. Crossed the road and we saw a café called Crepe A Gogo so we went in, found a table and placed our orders. Mag and I had sweet crepes while Kim had savory one. Food was good and I don’t remember eating in a café in Paris during my previous visit. After eating, we followed the map to Luxemburg Garden and along the way passed by souvenir shop where Kim and I bought t-shirts, magnet and coasters. Shortly after we stepped into Luxemburg Garden, we saw a school band performing and there were lots of people sitting on the chairs provided or standing around to watch the performance.

Inside Crepe A Gogo School band performing

My lunch - La Belle Helene The audience

Performance ended and we continued to walk around. The garden was huge and we saw a very big, pool where there were ducks, kids playing with toy yachts, people sitting around it on chairs provided doing reading or just chit-chatting in front of the Luxembourg Palace. On the other side were big patches of grassland and there were lots of people sitting on their picnic mats lazing around. Walked on and saw a group of people practicing martial arts I think. We saw playground, tennis court and an open space where kids could rent cars to cycle about. If only there were such big, big gardens back home. The garden was so huge that we didn't really cover the whole place or see the Luxembourg Palace.

Some photos taken while in the Luxembourg Garden :

Left Luxemburg Garden and headed to Galleria La Fayette Montparnasse. The night before Kim was saying that this was the one we went on the first day and I was in doubt. Found it and it looked awfully quiet and very different from the one we saw. Only then we realized that the one we went was Galleria La Fayette Paris, the flagship store and because it was Sunday, the store was closed. So walked around the area to see if there was anything interesting and saw some tents along a road. Browsed around and saw many people selling their artworks such as paintings, handmade jewelry and so on.

Done with that and we didn’t know where else to go and we still had a couple of hours left. Suggested that we find a place to drink something and people watch but Mag suggested that we take the tram from one end to the other. Kim preferred to be on the move so she opted for Mag’s suggestions. So found the nearest metro station to get to tram 2. We didn’t manage to sit to the end coz of time constrain and so turned back after a few stops to get back to the hotel. Got back, claimed our luggage, did some repacking and then waited for the coach to bring us to the airport.

Traffic was rather smooth, reached airport and did our check-in before hunting for food. Kim and Mag shared nine chicken wings while I had potato wedges and a drink. Soon it was time to board the plane to fly to Dubai.

Light meal before boarding

Thoughts: My second time to Paris and only managed to do a bit more of what I intended to do the previous round. Nevertheless, I learnt to take things in my stride, explore at my own pace and appreciate Paris more. At least I got to eat in a café this time. I hope to return to Paris again to do more exploration and it would be good if I get to spend more days there.

11 Jun 11 – Day 9 (Paris)

Since today we were on our own so we decided to wake up a bit later than usual. Only went for breakfast at 8+am and we saw Cecilia. Asked her a few questions of getting around and also the hotel for Dubai. She gave us the reference number for the hotel in Dubai and then told us that it would be more economical to get a carnet of 10 tickets to get around. Told her that we would be going to the Louvre Museum today and she said we should have told her yesterday so that she could help us get advance tickets from Galleria La Fayette coz there maybe chances that we need to queue for two hours for tickets and getting in.

The family of 10 left for London and some of the members opted for the optional tour to the Factory Outlet, Notre Dame Cathedral and a couple of other places. We bumped into the family of four and an older couple (Mr & Mrs Tay). They asked where the three of us would be going and they wanted to tag along. So after eating, we went to check with the reception staff how to get to the nearest metro and were told that we need to take tram to get to the nearest metro station. So arranged with the family of four and the couple to meet at the lobby at 10:45am and headed out together.

Followed the directions given and found the tram station, Henri Farman. We needed to get tickets from the ticket machine and it only accepts coins. So we had to pool our coins together to get enough tickets to get to the metro station. Got on the tram and while traveling, we saw Pullman Hotel again and realized that there was a tram station called Suzanne Lenglen near it. Reached the station Porte de Versailles and went to the metro station to get tickets from the ticket counter. After that, we followed Kim’s lead to take line 12 all the way to Concorde to connect to line 1 to Palais Royal Musee du Lourve.

Alighted and we exited to the underground mall. The family of four went their way and the older couple followed us. Saw the place to get tickets and the queue was short but we recalled Cecilia saying that we may take two hours to get into the Museum. So we decided to go check the queue before getting the tickets. The queue was not too long and seemed to be moving quite fast and so quickly hurry back to the shop to get tickets and joined the queue to get in. Had our bags checked and then we were in. Went our separate ways with the Tays and we had a bit of a difficulties finding our way. Saw the pyramid and we took the escalator up and found ourselves inside the glass pyramid.

Finally figured out and we headed for the Richelieu wing first where we saw many sculptures and then followed by paintings. We took some photos while we walked. After that, we headed to the Denon wing and like all tourists do, we hunted for the Mona Lisa. Along the way, we saw people sitting down on benches to draw either in ink or using pencil. Some even brought their drawing stand and materials to paint. Finally found Mona Lisa and it was crowded with people. So could only take photo of it from afar. Last but not least, we went to the Sully wing and saw more masterpieces.

Some photos taken in the Louvre Museum :

We were done in about two to three hours and I wonder aloud why the queue was not as long as what Cecilia had told us. Then we figured out that we actually entered via the group entrance underground instead of the one on ground floor. Walked around the underground mall Carrousel du Louvre where I found Fragonard and bought perfumes while Kim bought bar soap. Then Kim went to another shop where she bought t-shirts. We went for late lunch at the food court and after eating; we went to take photos of the inverted pyramid. Mag saw a blue handbag in a shop that cost 300 Euro. She thought about it for a while before finally getting it and then we came out of the Museum to the garden where Mag found a bench for her to repack her stuff into the new bag.

The name of the food court

My lunch

After she was done, we headed to Notre Dame Cathedral since Mag has not been there before and we were hoping to climb the tower. Walked there, passed by Pont des Arts where we saw a lot of padlocks on the railing of the bridge. By the time we reached Notre Dame Cathedral, it was about 4pm I think and we joined the long queue to get in. Walked around and half way through we lost Kim. She messaged me saying that she would be waiting at the entrance. So we joined her shortly and walked around the area. Saw the queue to go up the tower and it was long and also I read that the tower closes at 5:15pm so we did not have much time for it.

Pont des Arts

Lots of padlocks on the railing

 Some photos taken in Notre Dame Cathedral :

Passed by a stall selling crepes with banana and nutella and we were tempted to buy but in the end we didn’t. Walked towards St. Louis Island and was trying to find La Maison Berthillon. Found it but again there was a very long queue so we didn’t wait for it. It was evening and we were getting hungry. Wandered into the 4th arrondissement but we didn’t see many cafes around. So in the end, we decided to take the metro to Balard station which is near to Pullman Hotel to go to the Aquabolevard nearby to get food before taking the tram back.

Got to Aquabolevard and we stood around to see the activities inside the indoor pool. Saw many people in there, swimming, playing water slides and so on. Walked around to decide what food to get and in the end, I bought a piece of pizza and a raspberry tartlet from two different stalls as dinner. Took the tram back, showered, settled down and ate my dinner while sorting out the things I bought. Kim came over and we discussed what to do for the next day. She suggested going for an opera show and asked Mag to check using her iphone. Turned out that the operas were either in Italian or German and they started late and would last for many hours.

Indoor pool in Aquabolevard

My dinner

Referred to the booklet that I had prepared for the trip, I planned that we could explore the Latin Quarter in the 5th arrondissement and so we decided to choose a place in the booklet to visit. We settled on Pantheon Paris and Luxembourg Garden before going to bed.

Thoughts: Well… This is my second visit to Paris and I was hoping to do the things I missed during my previous visit. However, I know how Kim works and so I kept reminding myself to take things easy and just go with the flow. Though we didn’t do much for the day, at least we enjoyed ourselves by walking and exploring at our own pace and appreciate the surroundings in Paris.

10 Jun 11 – Day 8 (Paris)

Today we departed at 8am for a four hour journey into Paris. Cecilia told us that we could place orders of Eiffel Tower key chains with her at 10 for 1 Euro coz she knows of a Chinese guy who sells them cheaply outside Galleria La Fayette. Besides key chains, he also sells mirrors, magnets, clocks, Eiffel Tower display of different sizes. So placed a 1 Euro order for myself while Kim and Mag placed a 2 Euro order each. Oldies were played on the coach and I love oldies, some of them I have never heard before and so took down the lyrics intending to find the title of the songs when I get back home. We had a toilet break at 9:50am for 20 minutes before continuing our journey.

Got to Paris in the afternoon and we entered the same way I did during the previous Europe trip. Kim found some buildings familiar and asked me if one of them was the hotel that we stayed in. Told her yes, it was Pullman Hotel. Headed to a Chinese restaurant for lunch and right after the coach stopped at a no-parking zone to let us alight, traffic police came and a summon was issued. Walked to the Chinese restaurant and both Kim and I realized that it was the same one we been to during the previous Europe trip.

After eating and boarded the coach, some members expressed sympathy to the driver for getting fined and suggested chipping in to pay for it. By the time the envelope reached my hand, I saw some 10 Euro, some 5 Euro and so I put in 5 Euro. Passed the envelope to Kim and heard her digging out her coins. Kind of regretted not putting in less but it was already too late. The envelope was then passed back to the front and Cecilia counted that there was an extra 15 Euro. She then handed the money to the driver and told him that we wanted to help pay for the fine.

Headed to the Galleria La Fayette and we were given time to shop. Kim and Mag wanted to check out the bags from Longchamp but there was a very long queue. So they abandoned the idea and headed to look for Miu Miu instead coz Kim needed to help her sis get a bag from there. After she was done, we headed to the Louis Vuitton (LV) boutique where Kim needed to help her friend get a bag from LV and so had to queue to get in and therefore Mag and I walked other parts of the departmental store instead. Went to the shoes department but nothing caught my eyes and then we proceeded to the bags department. We saw a couple of bags but we found them too expensive and also the designs were not quite to my liking.

Waited at the entrance and Cecilia was there with the Chinese guy who sells Eiffel Tower merchandise. Kim and I shared to buy six mirrors for 10 Euro while Kim and Mag shared to buy magnets and other members bought clocks and some other stuff. It was very crowded at the entrance of the Galleria La Fayette and the Chinese guy was kind enough to remind us to watch out for pickpockets. Boarded the coach and went to pick up the local guide for a city tour where I saw the Lancel and LV flagship stores, some monuments that I have seen before and a few that I have not. The sky darkened and it started drizzling heavily. Reached L’Arc de Triomph, took some quick shots and hurried back to the bus. Just after everyone got in, it started to pour.

The Lancel Flagship Store Gilded Sculptures of Pont Alexandre III

The LV Flagship Store Opéra National de Paris

Fontaines de la Concorde

L’Arc de Triomph

We then headed to the Trocadero where we got very good view of the Eiffel Tower. It was raining and Kim didn’t want to get down the coach so Mag borrowed the umbrella from Kim and both of us went down to take some quick shots. Got up the bus again and by the time we reached Les Invalides, the rain stopped and we took some photos.

Eiffel Tower taken from Trocadero

Les Invalides

Canons near Les Invalides

Louvre Pyramid (Pyramide du Louvre)

Returned to the bus and Cecilia informed us that we had to do the river cruise next instead of at night coz they couldn’t find a local replacement driver and the current driver has to complete his service by 8pm. So next was to river cruise and it was drizzling again. We didn’t sit on the open top and neither did we sit indoor. We ended up sitting at the end of the boat outdoor. It was windy and wet so much so that Mag started to have a headache.

Some photos of the Eiffel Tower taken during the river cruise :

After the cruise, we headed back to Galleria La Fayette where Kim went to do the tax refund while Mag and I walked around. Tried taking a photo of the dome ceiling but the photo didn’t turn out well. Either because the light wasn’t on or the sun wasn’t shining brightly enough or it could due to my camera problem. Took the lift to the top floor and climbed the stairs to reach the open area on top of Galleria La Fayette to see Paris. Took more photos and then headed to the Chinese restaurant for dinner. Kim didn’t come for dinner till we were almost done coz it took her ages to get the tax refund done due to the china group in front of her.

Couple of photos taken from top of the Galleria La Fayette :

View from top of Galleries Lafyette Paris - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9uADVWkTU8

After that, we went to the Eiffel Tower. It was very crowded and we were subjected to bag checks. I almost panicked coz I forgot that I had my Swiss Army card in the bag. Fortunately it was manual checking and I was let into the Tower and took the lift to level two. Stayed for a while and had to queue up to take the lift down, by the time we reached ground floor, most of the members were already there. Then Cecilia told the three of us that the elder son of the family of four walked down the stairs to reach ground floor and got a good scolding from the mother. The mother and younger daughter of the family of three came down and said they couldn’t find the elder daughter. After sometime, she appeared from another direction. Apparently, she had also climbed the stairs down.

Some photos of the Eiffel Tower and the view it offers :

Headed to the hotel and we were told that the hotel doesn’t provide triple sharing and so the arrangement was that those in threes would get two rooms, one single and one twin. Kim was again very quick to take the single and I was left with Mag again.

We went up the rooms and Mag collapsed onto her bed. I got worried and told Kim to bring some flu medications over and Mag took it. Went for my shower while Mag rested and after I came out, Mag took her shower. She took an awfully long time and it turned out that she was letting the steam to unblock her nose which was clogged up with blood. Kim came over to discuss the plan for the next day and we decided to do Louvre Museum.

Thoughts: Well… The day was similar to the one I had during my previous Europe trip minus the more in depth explanations. Paris in summer was different from Paris in winter and I much prefer winter coz at least it didn’t rain so much. Before the trip, I read a lot about the pickpockets in Paris and the constant reminder from Cecilia made me even more paranoid that I was practically holding my backpack like a shoulder bag pulled to the front. Wanted to find out and get advance tickets to Louvre Museum but didn’t have the chance.