Goooooooood morning!
It's been another crazy few weeks, things just down seem to be slowing down. I've not long got back from a trip to Paris for work - it was the perfect time for me to add on some of my annual leave from work and take advantage of the free flights.
After giving the training course I moved to a different hotel closer to the centre of Paris and made the most of my evening!
After giving the training course I moved to a different hotel closer to the centre of Paris and made the most of my evening!
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I caught the metro to the Louvre and it was a lovely sunny evening so I just decided to wander - I walked all the way from the Louvre through the park and along the Champs Elysees to the Arc de Triomphe which if you have been you will know is a good couple of miles!
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It was so nice to not have a schedule to work to and have the time to wander around. I've been to Paris a few times before so didn't actually need to visit any of the obvious tourist attractions. But I had the evening to do what I liked and a walk around one of the most romantic capitals in the world.
The Arc de Triomphe is a great sight in itself, but one of the things I really like about it is the crazy roundabout that surrounds it. 8 lanes or pure chaos and mayhem - no actual road markings for the lanes means that the traffic is pretty hilarious to watch. I have been on a tour bus myself that decided to take a different direct and cut across all 8 lanes of the traffic at once, and it was definitely an experience!
Along the Champs Elysee i did visit a few shops and the obvious choice was the massive Sephora - I accidentally found this of course!
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I was really excited to get there and have a good rummage and spend - however I was really disappointed with what they had on offer.
I've always thought that Sephora contained a whole load of magic products that we couldn't get our hands on in the UK, but actually everything was seemingly the same as everything I can purchase in Debenhams etc back in the UK. I did buy a few things but it came to a total of 12 euros so I really didn't spend much!
I was interested in the Make Up Forever range but at 40 euros for the foundation I wasn't convinced.
I was interested in the Make Up Forever range but at 40 euros for the foundation I wasn't convinced.
Needless to say I was disappointed but it's probably for the best as I shouldn't be spending anyway!
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I then found my way from the Arc de Triomphe to the Eiffel Tower and it was the perfect end to my evening. It was just getting to sunset so i took some photos and then the whole thing began to light up!
It was beautiful so I sat across the road at the Trocadero and people watched, there were many brides and grooms there having photos taken as newlyweds. It's such a lovely thing to have a memento of!
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This was pretty much the end of my evening in Paris itself. I had a whole day to spend there without any agenda so I'd planned to go to the Palace of Versailles on the full day I had there. It was absolutely beautiful so I will be writing a separate post on that - far too many beautiful photos for one post!
I did of course manage to eat a macaroon when I was there, the shop windows of L'Aduree are just so beautiful and the colours are so sweet!
The macaroon I tried was a giant chocolate one - and it was a good thing i was at the airport when I tried it so I couldn't go back and eat anymore!
I'd never tried them before as I absolutely hate meringue and thought they were similar, but actually to my surprise they aren't and now I'm in love. I'd love to try the pistachio and raspberry ones, though I'll wait until my next trip abroad as they can be stupidly expensive!
I'd never tried them before as I absolutely hate meringue and thought they were similar, but actually to my surprise they aren't and now I'm in love. I'd love to try the pistachio and raspberry ones, though I'll wait until my next trip abroad as they can be stupidly expensive!
Have you been to Paris? What are your favourite sights?
The only thing I feel I missed was the Pont des Arts bridge, which used to have the locks attached to it. They were removed in June due to the sheer weight of the locks and have now been replaced by clear panels, so I wanted to see the difference.
I love visiting cities like this just to soak up the atmosphere of being somewhere different!
L xxx