Paris, je t'aime | Day 1 & 2

The first time I went to Paris (and London), I was with a friend as part of a tour group in 2011. I fell in love with the city and in the years since, I've always thought about going back. The only reason why I didn't was because there were still so many new-to-me places I wanted to travel to. So when Alexa suggested we go to Paris together this year, I was 100% in. And not only was the city as beautiful as I remembered, but it was so much more enjoyable to experience Paris with one of my best friends. I was struck by the architecture (I wish I could see the Eiffel Tower every day!), the history and culture, and the delicious food (you haven't had a croissant until you get one in Paris).

It's funny, but throughout the trip I kept trying to decide which is my favorite city: London or Paris. And by the end, I've realized it's both. With London, it feels like home in a way. Familiar but fresh and I'm just so at ease wandering around on my own. With Paris, I can't see myself living there but I'll always want to escape to it. It is forever this city I equate with being a kind of dream or fantasy. I'm already wondering when's the next time I should go back! 

Today I'm going to share the first half of this wonderful trip and on Wednesday, I'll share the rest. 

Day 1

From the airport, it was straight to our Airbnb (located in a quaint and convenient courtyard) to freshen up after a flight with very little sleep. But after a shower and clean change of clothes, we pretty much hit the ground running. We got lunch at Relais de L'entrecote (good for steak & frites plus crème brûlée) and walked over to the Jardin du Luxembourg. We had never been before and it's a beautiful garden, which we probably would've enjoyed more if it hadn't started down pouring. But we made the most of it and walked around as much as we could. My favorite view though was when you first walk in and just see this simple path with the trees on either side.

From there, we took a cab (fyi: Kapten is the French version of Uber) to Musee d'Orsay – another new sight for us! It was perfect for a rainy afternoon and I finally got to see the famous clock. Which really is breathtaking in person. We walked through all the floors and saw some of our favorites like Degas, Van Gogh and more. Afterwards, the sun came out (the weather is so unpredictable in Paris!) and we just started walking around.

We walked towards Pont Alexandre III, caught distance views of the Eiffel Tower, stopped by the Fontaine des Mers. It was nice to just aimlessly wander and let it sink that we were actually in Paris together. We ended our day by going to Les Artisans by our apartment, which became our spot (no seriously, we ate there three times). The food was delicious and the service delightful. We always had the same waitress so by day 2 she recognized us and laughingly said, "see you tomorrow?" as we left (we totally came back the next day).

Day 2

We got an early start the next day because we had to go to Sacré-Cœur. We google-mapped everything ahead of time (and while we were there), and it gave us the impression that it would take close to an hour by train to get there. That was not the case! Their Metro is quite easy to use and faster than we expected. It did take us some time but not nearly as much as we thought. Once we arrived in Montmarte, we took the funicular up to the church because I was not about to climb those steps. The views of the city were incredible and seeing Sacré-Cœur was at the top of my must-do list because I never saw it the first time I visited. The architecture inside and out was incredibly striking. It made me so happy to finally see it! But I also have to mention the breakfast spot we went to that's very close to the basilica: Hardware Société. The crab and lobster eggs benedict was one of my favorite meals.

After that, it was all about exploring Montmarte. You can easily spend hours just wandering around. We went to the I Love You Wall (and found "iniibig kita" which is "I love you" in Tagalog), stopped by various shops (bookstores, Fragonard and Telle Mère Telle Fille), checked out the famous pink houses like La Maison Rose and visited the iconic Moulin Rouge.

Then it was time for a lunch break at Buvette and finally, the Eiffel Tower! We got a little photo crazy while we were there and while I loved the photos we took, they don't begin to do it justice. We took photos while heavy storm clouds started to make their appearance and we attempted to again from Trocadero even when the rain was coming down (see the middle photo). We decided to dry off in Carette and venture out again after some coffee and croissants. We got lucky because the rain let up by then and we got some great shots. I seriously don't think I'd ever tire of that view!

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So there's the first half of our trip! 

Check back on Wednesday to hear about the rest!