This post is titled ‘Paris Light’ because I am not a Francophile or frequent visitor to France like many of you are. If you want to follow a true Francophile, follow Susan B une femme d’un certain age. She is a frequent traveler to Paris and has a lot of French inspired posts.
Now back to me.
I went to Paris for the first time with my best chum in March 2006. I was moving to Dayton, OH and we thought a trip like this was a fitting celebration of our then 40-year friendship. My friend (NS) is more of a French fan than I was at the time. We flew out of Seattle on British Air through Heathrow and onto Paris. We stayed on the Left Bank near the Sorbonne. It was an amazing trip! We walked everywhere and took the Metro with remarkable ease. We were able to walk down to the Siene and see Notre Dame from all angles.
Highlights included:
- Finding a hangout (a local café to frequent)
- Seeing the Eiffel Tower
- Nutella crepes, roasted chicken, hamburgers with French fries and French pain aux raisin
- Le Bon Marche and other department stores
- Monet and the D’Orsay museums
- Sacre Coeur
Since then, my husband and I have had a number of short stops in Paris on our way to or from Italy. I remember the first time we went. I was afraid that he wouldn’t love it. Thank heavens, I was wrong!
After my first visit in 2006, my husband and I have had the opportunity to branch out a bit more. We have stayed on the Left Bank a few times and on the Right bank for the first time in 2019.
We have revisited many of the places highlighted above, but have added to our list:
- The Picasso Museum (my husband is a huge Picasso fan), L’Orangerie, Rodin (thanks MC)
- Printemps and the Galleries Lafayette
- Salad niçoise, omelets, croque monsieur, jambon-beurre
Nothing beats just walking around Paris and experiencing with all my senses. Hopefully, a return trip is in the cards at some point.
“Paris is always a good idea.” – Audrey Hepburn
Allene
Travels with Allene 