Early the next morning, we took a 6:30am train back to Paris on our way to Nice.  We got to indulge in our first 1st class train ride (which are included in our Eurail tickets), and it was so nice!  This spoiled us.  There was a 4 hour layover in Paris, so we made the best of it.  We had never spent time in St Germain/Latin Quarter, so we stopped for lunch in a café. 

Sitting outside, it was really fun to people watch.  I had a glass of wine (my first purchased wine in France), and Chris with an espresso.  We had ordered a “hot dog” for us to split.  The waiter had brought out a pot of honey mustard with a tiny spoon in preparation for the hot dog.   

Then, a homeless man in his thirties walks up to our table and quickly checks out the scene.  He picks up the spoon, swirls it around to pick up more honey mustard, slowly and deliciously licks it, and then puts the spoon right back.  Chris and I were just stunned.  We’re normally rather protective of our stuff, but we were just so surprised, and well…intrigued by this.  And we knew we could always get more honey mustard.  This was a nice part of town, too, right across from the Dior store--so once the waitstaff saw this action, they quickly shooed the man away—of course, he had already gone to another table to receive a cigarette by then.  Parisians never seem to decline giving a person in need a cigarette.  Also worth mentioning, a Parisian “hot dog” is essentially two dogs, with a Baguette for a bun, and some type of cheese baked on top…usually gruyere.  They’re amaaaaazing!

We walked around the area for a while afterwards, and then boarded our train for Nice in the south of France.  This time, there was no availability in 1st class so we re-joined the ranks of 2nd class.  Comfort didn’t really matter, though, when you get to see views of the French Riviera—we rode by Marseilles, Cannes, and Antibes.  There were rolling hills, vineyards, and country homes along the way.  And of course, the beautiful blue waters of the Cote D’Azur (blue coast).  Incredible.

The next morning, we sauntered along the boardwalk in Nice.  The view is just spectacular with crystal clear, salty, blue water surrounded by the old town to the west and mountains to the east.  Beaches are mainly rocky- round rocks, not jagged, but we found a little patch of sand and camped out there.  Chris took a dip in the Med and I just let the waves crash up to my knees.  You could see the very bottom of the ocean, and the water was so clean.  It felt AMAZING to be standing in the waters of Nice.   Chris loved it, too.  He felt so satisfied to be swimming in the Mediterranean.

In the old part of town, there used to be a castle on top of the hill (where most castles throughout Europe were defensively built).  The castle is no longer there, but you can still climb up the steps.  As you ascend, there are gorgeous views of the beach and the city with its orange roofs. 

We walked back towards the beach and discovered that Nice was hosting the Extreme Sailboating championship (which, in concept, sounds oxymoronic to me).  So there were “race sailboats” on the waters with international hosts MCing the event.

A bus ride to Monaco was only 45 minutes away, and I really wanted to check out Monte Carlo before we left.  So, at around 4pm, we hopped on that crowded public bus.  We weren’t exactly sure where Monte Carlo was within Monaco, so we just left the bus at a spot that looked good.  Then, we realized that it was all Monte Carlo! 

The vibe in Monte Carlo was quite different than Nice.  It’s low season in Nice, so the beaches and city aren’t terribly crowded.  As a tourist-geared town, it seems almost bizarre that it’s not packed.  But we found many teenagers and families vacationing there.  In Monte Carlo, it doesn’t seem to have a season or trashy bone in its body.  It’s high class all the way, and business-like, so the two felt a little like polar opposites to me.

Of course, we had to see the Monte Carlo Casino, with Hotel de Paris snuggled up next to it.  Looking outside at the casino, with its gold accents and people just gawking at it taking pictures, it’s clearly the “designer” casino.  It’s what most Vegas hotels aspire to be but with authenticity—the class, elegance, exclusivity, and wealth is unparalleled.  We were able to step inside the building and walk around the lobby, which afforded a quick peek of the casino.  But only high rollers were allowed to actually enter it.  The inside was a tasteful display of extravagance: red carpets leading up the stairs, high arched ceilings, marble floors, suited men waiting to help you.  I felt like I should be wearing a long velvet gown in there.

We were not dressed up at all.  Our outfits still incorporated our bathing suits from earlier that day.  In the land of extraordinary wealth (Monte Carlo is one of the richest cities in the world), we didn’t quite fit in.  So finding a place for dinner was challenging.  After asking 5 café-type restaurants if we could eat dinner, they said they only served food at lunch.  That could have been true, especially since we didn’t see any plates with food around, but we were paranoid that it was because of our unappealing wardrobe.  We finally found a pizza/pasta joint that was a little pricier than we wanted, but the food was excellent.  And he seated us right in front of the window, so that appealed to our vanity a little. :)

The public transportation isn’t really posted, so we were terrified of missing the last bus back.  After failing to catch one bus as we ran up, it seemed that was, in fact, the last one.  But thankfully, one more did come after that, and we arrived back in Nice. 

After 2 nights/one day each in Epernay and Nice, we felt really satisfied at seeing the beauty of the French country.  It’s a completely different environment than Paris and each has its own personality.  We were ready to take on Switzerland the next morning!

We have been extremely fortunate and grateful for this opportunity to travel Europe.  Our experiences have been amazing and unforgettable.  There is always something to do and explore--we constantly see incredible, intricate, unique, and beautiful places/structures/things. 

You can go around these cities all day…and we have.  Although we’ve committed to not having a strict itinerary, our days just evolve into discovering each place for over 12 hours a day.  So…yeah, we’re pretty tired.  Wiped out.  How can you NOT check this stuff out?  We’ve loved every place we’ve visited and almost 2 weeks in, we’d soaked in as much as we could, but also exhausted ourselves in the process!

Perfect timing for our next locations—the French countryside and then Riviera.

For our last morning in Paris, we visited the Pere Lachaise cemetery.  Opening in the early 1800’s, it houses the remains of many upper class French families and famous notables (Chopin, Edith Piaf, Jim Morrison, Oscar Wilde, Balzac! etc).

It may sound strange that cemeteries are tourist destinations, but it’s a way to get an understanding of different cultures and see a glimpse of their history.  For example, the French bury their dead above ground (unlike most other countries, including what we saw in the UK).  Instead of gravestones for each person, they erect small memorial houses for the family.  These little peaked structures normally just have the name of the family with a locked door, which may enclose pictures, flowers, or other memorable items.

Most of the “celebrity” dead had their own gravesite and were sometimes buried with members of their family.  Chopin had a very tasteful (and well maintained) remembrance and seemed to always have a tour group or someone paying their respects.  Jim Morrison’s was quite modest and fans had written mementos on a nearby tree.  Edith Piaf’s had fresh flowers around with notes from those stopping by.  Oscar Wilde’s gravesite most disturbed me (Chris somehow found it very “Wilde”).  It was a large cream colored slab…with graffiti from those wishing to pay “tribute” to him…on his gravestone!  Apparently, this was an ongoing problem and there was a note asking people not to deface the memory of Wilde, since the gravestone had recently been cleaned to remove prior marks.  People wrote notes to Wilde, thanked him, quoted a line of his (did anybody read anything other than Dorian Gray?), or even just randomly put a heart with a couple’s initials. 

After leaving Pere Lachaise, we enjoyed our final outdoor café visit with a commemorative croque monsieur and an espresso (café).  We hadn’t done any shopping on this trip at all, which with our budget and my general disinterest with extended shopping, was totally fine.  Unfortunately, I won’t be bringing back many souvenirs at all.  But, I did try to look around for a few minutes and found a little boutique.  I tried a few things on and after a quick internal debate, decided to splurge on a shirt.  No can do, though…like many shops in EU countries, they did not accept American credit cards (need a Euro chip set).  Oh well.

We boarded our 5:30pm train to Epernay, which is in the Champagne region just east of Paris.  We arrived at 7pm, and utilized our “just wing it” mindset.  Thankfully, it was a small quaint city, so we only walked around the area for 45 minutes with our backpacks before finding a budget hotel.  During dinner, we found ourselves a little giddy at having very little to do the next day.  It was a beautiful town, but it was a little refreshing to only have a few options and mainly just relax!

The next morning, we didn’t set our alarm (yay!) and just leisurely got up.  We realized that we’d basically spent over 3 weeks constantly together (including pre-trip) 24/7.  While that’s awesome in many ways, it also meant that we were overdue for some needed “me” time. 

I went to do a champagne tour (“when in Champagne!”) at Moet & Chandon headquarters/cellars.  It was interesting to see their process for making the champagne, and the low-lit, 100+ year old cellars cellars were pretty groovy.  Even better, the one hour tour ended with a glass of their champagne!  While I was off boozing it up, Chris elected to go by the river and read (which he said was “perfect”).

There were a few shops around town, so we decided to make our first purchases for ourselves.  I got a shirt from Naf Naf (a French Charlotte Russe type store), and Chris…well, he got a man bag.  He tried to pick the most “manly” purse for a dude, and it actually isn’t too bad.  It’s since carried our camera, snacks, water, etc, so selfishly it’s worked out well for me.

We closed our day in Epernay with a pre-dinner gelato.  Desserts here are way too tempting!  And then, yes, we did have dinner.

Next up...the French Riv!

We began the day with another freshly baked, scrumptious pastry from our favorite boulangerie.  Trying new ones each day is such a great way to kick the day off.

Up the street is an area called Montmartre.  It’s about a 15 minute walk uphill—the last half of which is quite steep.  On the way, we saw a large family picnicking on the pathway up.  We were envious.  The sight was incredible.

We made our way to the Sacre Coeur (Sacred Heart), which is a cathedral at the top of the hill.  It was built in the early 1800’s and provides an exceptional view of the city.  The area was packed with some people going into the cathedral and others outside taking pictures.  We opted to cop a squat on the grass out front and just hang out for a bit.  This Montmartre area, including the Sacre Coeur, didn’t use to be part of Paris city limits.  It later got integrated.  From many places around the city, you can see the white peaks of the Sacre Coeur smiling at you.

Enjoying this organic day, we walked around Montmartre a bit more and chose to eat at a creperie and enjoy a coffee.  It’s interesting that in most areas in Paris, beer and wine are usually just as much (if not cheaper) than a cappuccino.  A simple café (espresso) is around 2-3 euro, but cappuccino or sodas are about 4-5 euro. 

In the Montmartre area, we fell upon the Moulin Rouge with its red windmill and promotions for the upcoming show.  This is the “red light district” of Paris, which can sometimes mean sketchy.  However, this area was full of tourists and not at all a “red light district” feel.  I was a little disappointed about that, but seeing the Moulin Rouge was pretty cool.  Of course, there was a Starbucks across the street.  They have been predominant everywhere, and we’ve been a little impressed at their ability to be such a global brand.

At this point, it was late afternoon and we had decided to join a night bike tour.  The event met at the Eiffel Tower, so we checked it out once again.  Once we had our bikes, we rode around Paris for about 2 hours.  It was absolutely incredible to breeze through the Latin Quarter and see the shops whizz past us.  Other cars were aggressively driving around us, and it was impressive how these cars, motorbikes, and other cyclists all navigated around each other.  We didn’t see any accidents.

We rode along through a forested area and through monuments.  It was a magical way to see and experience Paris.  The weather was perfect, too!  We pulled into the Louvre rectangular entrance surrounded by the Royal Palace, where Napolean III once lived 150 years ago.  This area is usually filled with tourists and so you can’t ride your bike.  But, at night, it’s much more sparse—couples romantically in a corner or walking around holding hands.  Our group of 20 basically had the place to ourselves.  It was very freeing riding around there on our own—something felt a little wrong about weaving your way around statues and historic buildings, which made it even more exciting and fun. 

Finally, the group went on a 1 hour cruise along the Seine River.  This was included in the tour and even supplied 2 glasses of wine.  I had wanted to ride on the water, so this adventure was perfect…and the wine made it even better. J  Both Chris and I were really smitten with this evening and enjoyed every second.

After seeing all the little markets with fresh fruit outside, we decided to make a breakfast at “home.”  We bought fresh pain (bread) from our favorite boulangerie, along with an obligatory chocolate croissant, marmalade, butter, and fruit (peach and pear).  Our feast was incredible.  The fruit just exploded with freshness and juice, and the dressed bread melted in your mouth.  Yum.

We then took our momentous trip to the Louvre.  Only paying 10 euros each (so cheap!) we were a bit overwhelmed at the size of the place.  There are 3 wings/large buildings each containing thousands of artwork.  We chose to begin with the Denon wing, which houses the infamous Mona Lisa.  After passing some marble statues, we found ourselves in a large group of people gawking at her.   

This showed the behavior of people with one common goal (seeing the Mona Lisa) and different tactics to get there.  I thought that I would make my way up in my turn with the crowd, but some other tourists had a very different idea and shoved their way past, using their backpacks as bulky weapons.  I also had a man behind me that reached around my chest to take a picture of Ms. Lisa in front of my face.  Chris and I both gave him a “really?!” face, and with a passing “pardon” he went along his way.  Others simply camped out at the front for 7 minutes taking 400 pictures.

We saw some incredible pieces of art there—David’s “Coronation”—and statues—Michaelangelo’s “Captive” and Vera de Milo (Aphrodite).  It struck me that these people dedicated years of their time on a single work of magic.  Some of them were even skilled in other, related arts professions like poetry, music, etc.  I wondered where they would be if they had TVs and smartphones to distract them.

Finally, we encountered the Naploean III apartments.  Around 1850, he decided to use this section in the Richelieu wing of the palace for his minister’s office and entertaining centers.  Many of these still remain and it was fascinating to see this wealth displayed.  We both noticed that many items, including Napolean’s bed, were very tall…perhaps to compensate for his short stature.

After 5 enriching hours at the Louvre (we actually closed the place down), we went to the Pompadeu modern art museum.  The structure is made of glass—affording incredible views of the city on the way up--and large, white PVC pipes on top.  It’s actually a uniquely beautiful building, but it apparently caused quite a stir when they first put it in a few years ago.  The whole town is very historic, so large modern buildings stick out a bit.  We got to see the Edward Munch exhibit, which was so interesting to get a deeper insight into his early 20th century works.

We closed our evening with dinner at a nearby café, followed by…yes, it finally happened…a nutella and banana crepe.  I had restricted myself from indulging in it, and I love, love, LOVE nutella (especially in a crepe) so this was a delectable event for me.  Especially when they have dedicated creperies to make it perfectly.

On our way home, we stopped by the Arc de Triomphe and took a brief walk along this end of the Champs Elysees—where all the ritzy stores reside.  We had wanted to go up the Eiffel Tower, but we followed our own logic on that one…we didn’t want to cram anything in and feel rushed.  We have actually filled our days with many experiences and culture sites without running around.  There was a quick decision for us where we realized that going up the Eiffel Tower would be cool but not a must do…reserved in the “next time” bucket. J

Total estimated miles walked in Paris: 12 miles

We awoke bright and early the next morning (5:45am) to catch our 6:52am Eurostar train to Paris.  It was a little terrifying that we might sleep through the alarm and miss the train, but thankfully we got up and got it done.

The Eurostar train is quite nice.  It’s only a 2 hour ride, and the seats are comfy with reasonable legroom.  In our area, 85% of the people were American or Canadian, so there was plenty of English speaking in our car.

When we arrived in Gare du Nord (North train station) in Paris, we were totally stoked.  It’s PARIS, which we’d both been craving to experience throughout our lives.  We even thought we’d up the stakes by being adventurous and figuring out a place to stay once we got to Paris.  No plans.  Well…we were hounded in the train station to sign petitions and offer donations, so we were eager to get away and find WiFi.  The closest hot spot was in a McDonald’s across the street.  We set up shop there and looked at hotels.  No luck (ie Katie kept searching for deals and wouldn’t commit, and then we lost the WiFi connection).

Off we went to the metro station and found what looked to be a popular stop near the city center.  So, we got our ticket and rode to Les Halles with no problems…until we tried to get OUT of the metro station.  There were many signs saying “Sortie” (Exit) but they had different numbers attached to them.  When we tried to follow a few of them, they just led to other tube stops.  We basically took about 10 minutes before we were able to escape the metro station.

Heavy backpacks loaded, we aimlessly wandered around—should we look for hotels right away by just walking up?  Should we find an internet café to search for them?  Should we eat, since we’re also hungry?  We ended up at an internet café and after an hour, decided on a hotel across the city. 

By now, we were starving and ready to start enjoying the city we’d been so excited about, so we stopped at a café.  After ordering 2 cokes, we realized they were 4 euros (roughly $6 each)!  Chris got a french hot dog, which is a fascinating use of baguette for a bun, and oven baked cheese on top.  And it’s two hot dogs, not one.  Extraordinary!  Katie indulged in a quiche (so appropriate) with side salad.  This meal invigorated us to continue our 3 mile hike to the hotel, where we checked in, and quickly passed out for a few hour nap.  This slumber was briefly interrupted by a stranger opening the door and quickly shutting it after realizing his mistake.

We stopped for dinner at an upscale area of town near the hotel.  Because of the price, we tried to split a meal, which was still worthy of odd responses.  This time, we were even asked to at least order a side.  We did, and also got dessert—our first Bertillons ice cream!  It was so delicious and would pave the way for many desserts ahead. :)

On day 2, we checked out of the hotel.  Paris hotels (and even French ones in general) are notoriously tiny, and this was no exception.  But, we felt that it wasn’t a good value for the money, so we found an alternate option through AirBnB.   The owner would be out of town for all but our last night there, so it was a nice mix of privacy, value, and local feel.

This time, we did a 2 mile trek with our backpacks (I’m a big fan of just walking at the beginning of a trip to get a feel for your surroundings) to the 18th arrondissement—just outside of Montmartre.   Thankfully, our host had a phone with VOIP, so we made a free call to Orbitz where it took one hour to sort our previous hotel situation (we had booked 2 nights and needed a refund for the 2nd night).

In the area around our apartment, there was an artisan boulangerie & patisserie.  We picked up a pastry which was incredible!  We wanted to explore the city, so we found a central metro stop.  Getting out (immediately, without delay!) of Chatelet, we meandered over to the Seine River and followed it along to see some famous, historical sites.

We walked by the National Palace (mainly used for exhibitions now) and Invalides (where Napolean is buried).  There are a few things we immediately learned/further drove home for us:

1.       As we saw in London with the Thames, the central river was important to the city ever becoming a hub, and is therefore famous within itself. 

2.       French structures are lavish and ornate.  At each site (which is always across from a bridge off of the Seine), there are large pedestals with gold statues marking the entrance.  No expense seems to be spared in making the structures—even everyday ones, like train stations—into magnificent displays.

3.       Parisians are not generally courteous or warm—to anyone.  If they bump into you anywhere, don’t expect an “excusez-moi” or “pardon.”  If you bump into them more abruptly, expect an angry Parisian.  We witnessed one young girl get very upset when another Parisian accidentally tripped over her on the bridge.  They also have no problem cutting in front of you in line.  However, I had heard that most Parisians are rude, especially to Americans.  I really didn’t find this.  It wasn’t rude, and it wasn’t targeted to us.  Just a general sense of indifference to others.

4.       Parisians tend to dress very well and about 95% of them are gorgeous.  You don’t see many jeans or sloppy clothing.  Instead, many dresses and skirts, and well-put together outfits—no matter the person’s age.  The women are especially beautiful…even I found myself staring at them!  And almost ALL of them smoke, which makes eating outside difficult without a side of nicotine. 

5.       While many Parisians can speak English, and appreciate you trying to speak French, they will answer you in English.  They apparently want to practice and show it off.  But, then I end up feeling silly and so “American” when I don’t get replies back in French. J

We then spotted Notre Dame majestically peering over at us across the Seine.  Crossing the bridge (which contained many locks to symbolize couples’ love) we got a better look at the impressive Gothic architecture.  After staring at it for a few minutes, taking in the beauty of the building itself and recognizing its remarkable historical importance (248 years old), we decided that we were up for paying the large fee we expected was required to go inside.

We found ourselves into a long but fast-moving line and discovered that it was free to go in!  Once inside, we were both quickly impacted and awestruck with the emotion this cathedral inspired.  The sight of the magnificent stained glass and archways so high they seem to reach for the heavens; the smell of incense; the sounds of choir music; and the un-ignorable feeling that you are in the presence of something powerful—it was all incredibly intense and in an unexpected way, important.  Both feeling completely drawn in, we decided to stay for Vespar’s.  It was all in French, so we didn’t understand much, but it didn’t matter.  Much like the opera, you don’t really need to understand to understand.

Continuing along the Seine, we came upon the entrance for the Louvre, which is situated inside the Royal Palace.  The famous glass pyramid is in the palace courtyard, which is brilliant really.  A gigantic glass pyramid in the playground of Kings.  The entrance is extravagant (as is everything here) and we were dwarfed by the surrounding buildings.  We stopped and just enjoyed the courtyard, did some people watching.  As it seems to go with globally popular locations, the Louvre is an amazing people watching experience.  The people here are truly from all over the world.  You can’t visit Paris without going in the Louvre, right?  We agreed and decided that we would come back to go inside. 

We had seen the top of the Eiffel Tower at times, but now she fully came into view.  And was she beautiful.  The sun was setting at this point, so we saw it light up and sparkle for 10 minutes, which it does every hour on the hour.  Standing underneath the Tower, you realize just how big and architecturally brilliant the structure is.  Hell, we’ve seen this thing four thousand times in pictures, TV, movies, but only seeing it in real life captured its true magic.

This had been a full day of walking and seeing so many places (many of which we had wanted to see our whole lives), so after about 12 non-stop hours, we headed back, grabbed pizza at a café and quickly passed out.  Within 48 hours of being in Paris, we went from completely overwhelmed and lost to feeling much more comfortable.  Sure, there was a big language barrier, but we figured out how to figure it out.  This put us in a position to truly appreciate this incredible experience.