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A Certain je ne sais quoi: Our unforgettable Parisian adventure
- juliaspellman18
- Mar 28, 2024
- 7 min read
Updated: Jul 5, 2024
Living abroad, we have the definitive pleasure of excessive amounts of readily available……PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION. What an antiquated idea…for the states. I'm just kidding, but if the states had access to public transportation like Europe did, wowza. Nevertheless, from where we live, we can be in Paris by morning, have lunch and a glass of wine, and be home for bed. Granted, we took the opportunity to stay an entire weekend, and thank the gods we did.
We are generally not huge fans of significant cities, nor am I one to be convinced that if everyone loves something, I should, too. However, we were utterly and irrevocably impressed by the city of love. We live close to Frankfurt, and after a quick one-hour car ride to Kaiserslautern train station, we could park for eight euros a day and a two-and-a-half-hour train ride straight to Gare de l'Est Paris train station. Easy peasy. All aboard our quick whirlwind of a weekend in a city that never lacks the je ne sais quoi we are all looking for.
While I will not admit that Paris is an affordable city, my scanning, scouring, and deduction skills will always help me find a great place to stay that does not break the bank.
Where We Stayed
Apartments WS Louvre – Richelieu
This adorable apartment was snug for the four of us. Still, it had everything we needed and was in the perfect location for everything we wanted to do. It was a quick jaunt from the train station, easy to find, and simple to access. If we ever revisited Paris, I would stay here again. Click the photo or the link below to take you to the booking!
Left: View from our apartment. Drool.
Day 1 in the city of love
Quickly after checking and dropping our stuff, we left the apartment to explore our surroundings. Going to Paris in mid-December comes with all of the charms of Parisian life, Christmas vibes on every corner, sunny skies, and COLD weather. We made the most of it, though, and moved! We went on this trip with dear friends from the States who had come to visit, and the poor hubby broke his foot a week before he came! But this hubby wifey duo RALLIED. He wowed ALL of the Germans, Parisians, and any European who happened to notice with his ankle scooter. He root-scooted his way all over Paris and was a champ. We walked-scootin' our first night out, promenading slowly along the Seine, stopping to embrace the idyllic 19th-century baroque buildings and the meandering people of the city.
A book I read once shared a story of young lovers during WWII based on a true story. The young lovers took a sunset walk along the Seine, the city slick leading man convincing the love of her life of his undying feelings by taking her for her first walk along the river. The way the author talked about the view, the warm light on the promenade, the city's people, and the ever-constant lure of the Eifel Tower -I knew I wanted to see this someday. And we did. On our first evening, we caught this one-in-a-million view.
A crisp winter breeze, my love's hand in mine, the quiet kisses of the Seine along the riverbank, the company of our friends, and the dark contrast of the intricate Eifel Tower set against the fiery pink and purple hues of the night's sunset. I was breathless. It was pure magic. I was convinced.
Day 2
Suppose you plan a trip to Paris and want to visit the infamous Louvre. In that case, I HIGHLY recommend you book advance tickets to the Louvre. We went in December, and I booked tickets for a tour in October on Get Your Guide. If you are interested in art, history, culture, and world-renowned beauty, visiting the Louvre Museum is an absolute must. Every detail, from the ornate exterior, baroque facades, and the notorious pyramids to the iconic collection of canonical works of art. The museum contains more than 380,000 objects and 35,000 of art. Our tour guide told us it would take over 100 days to see everything! We opted for a tour because how could we pick what to see?! Did you know the Louvre was originally Philip II's palace built in the late 12th century? You can see the remnants of the palace in the basement level. We spent about four hours meandering through what felt like the world's history through thousands of artists' eyes. Seeing the Winged Victory of Samothrace up on its massive granite pedestal dominating all eyes to its presence, and the Venus de Milo softly glowing as the late Parisian afternoon sun streams through the window. Goosebumps. Raw, unfiltered emotion. Beauty.
After exploring the worlds at the Louvre, we stopped at a random hole-in-the-wall wine bar called Le Willi's Wine Bar off Rue des Petits Champs, located in the same area we'd been hanging out all weekend. This place made my heart immediately warm. Exiting the hustle and bustle of Parisian streets, you are immediately transported to a peaceful and eclectic scene. Imagine your favorite pub mixed with your grandmother's kitchen; sprinkle in a bit of 1980s flare, sunlight corners, and a timeless collection of poster art –and you're set. This place was such a reprieve from the chaos of the city that we instantly felt like locals. The wine- decadent. The food- exciting and delicious. The art- is curated by talented artists to celebrate every new vintage (you can shop their poster collection on their website!). You can also read about the bar's history, including the real Willi, the dog it's named after, peep their menu, browse their Rhône's wines, and much more. I don't want to give it all away, so I highly recommend this place if you can visit! Click the button to explore Willi's place.
The waitress at Willi's was also kind enough to give us a fantastic list of places to eat in Paris. Quick side blub: I want to talk about people before I talk about food. I don't know about you, but I had mixed expectations about Paris and the Parisians. They are the loveliest people, and many do not care for the Parisian's demeanors. I have been to France multiple times and to various areas, including the southern coast, the eastern border, a bit of the north, and now Paris. I have never encountered a Frenchman or woman I did not like, and I have actually made good friends with a few. Here are my brutal and honest tips for ANYONE traveling to a different country:
Learn AT LEAST a few pleasantries of the language
Do NOT assume everyone speaks English
Respect other people's cultures
It will not go well for you when you don't and take advantage of others.
Okay, and let's circle back to the magical city of Paris, where every.single.person. we met was kind, warm, welcoming, and helpful. Down to the two adorable gentlemen who ran the cheese shop on the corner and had even been to Wisconsin to enjoy our excellent cheeses! Everyone is from a different walk of life and has a different story and perspective on life. When you travel, you have the most magical opportunity to learn about others, their stories, and their cultures and to make memories with incredible people worldwide. This is one of my favorite things about traveling.
We ended the evening with a quick jaunt to the Arc de Triomphe while navigating the metro system haphazardly. Don't worry, no injuries ensued. The Arc is incredible to behold and breathtaking. My brilliant idea of walking the steps up to the top and watching the sunset over the city was also everyone else's brilliant idea. We learned quickly that you needed to book a ticket to go up the steps like three days ago (facepalm). So, we just walked around the permitter and took pictures of The Arc with golden sinking sun set against the blue-black night sky. At the same time, the shimmering Eiffel Tower was peaking over the facades of the Parisian cityscape.
A final stop at one of the restaurants recommended to us by our waitress at Willie's, a rustic stone-walled tapas place called Jones.
Day 3
The last few items on our to-do list were to visit Monet's Water Lilies at the Museum L'Orangerie, glimpse the Notre Dam as you still cannot visit it after the fire, and explore the Latin District. Word to the wise, if you'd like to see Monet's pieces, we again recommend booking tickets in advance. Fortunately, we got our butts up super early and were one of the first people in line. I'm not going to lie when I think our dear friend with the broken foot might have aided our early access.
I cannot recommend Monet's pieces more if you love art or art history. The sheer vastness and profound combination of colors will leave the viewer surrounded by their own emotions and reflections. These pieces are iconic for many reasons; one of them I find most enrapturing is his lack of vantage point for the viewer. There is no horizon line for the viewer to orient themselves; thus, they are eclipsed by the depths of the ponds and the flowers above. You almost float along the breeze as the unique pattern of brush strokes takes you along the water's surface.
Fortunately, we got on a late train back to Germany. After our gallery visit, we still had a whole section of the city to traverse. Suppose you are ever in Paris and are trying to decide where to store your luggage. In that case, we highly recommend using Nanny Bag. They have lockers and centers all over the city, so we found one close to Notre Dame. In this small tourist center, the loveliest woman was so happy to see us, help us, and give us fabulous recommendations for brunch. I mean, it appeared like we made her day, but little did she know she was the one that made ours. We stored our luggage for super cheap and took off for our next adventure.
The Notre Dame is still under construction and is set to reopen in December 2024. It was heartbreaking to see this historical building, built in 1345, reduced to rubble, burned banisters, and lost treasures. The city has set up a superb series of panels discussing the diligent effort of hundreds of groups and people committed to restoring this iconic structure to its original glory.
After we visited the massive cathedral, our last stop was meandering around the Latin Quarter, one of the oldest in the city. We perched ourselves in the corner booths of an outdoor café, sipped espressos, basked in the sunshine, and watched the beautiful people of Paris drift about their day. It was honestly one of my favorite moments from the trip.
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