A Few Days in Paris

Shortly after I arrived in the UK, a friend of mine from DC e-mailed to tell me she would be in Paris in October for a work conference.  Since her hotel was already paid for, she wanted to know if I'd like to meet her for the week.  I had to really think long and hard about it...NOT!  I immediately looked for flights.

I didn't know it when I booked the trip, but it turns out that this trip was only a couple of days after we moved out of our temporary house and into our more permanent house.  So, the timing wasn't perfect, but it was really nice to get away for a few days and come back refreshed and ready to unpack.

I've been to Paris once before when I was 18 and backpacking around Europe.  Dan has never been though, so it is definitely on our must-do list while we're here in Europe.  These two facts meant that I got to see Paris in a really fun and interesting way.  There was no pressure to see the tourist sites since I knew I'd be back soon.  It meant that I was free to wander the streets and just take in the Parisian life.

I did, however, spend an entire day in the Louvre.  I love museums and Dan has a very short attention span for them, so I treated myself to a nice leisurely tour.  I loved it!

Of course, strolling through Paris means that you will see the sights like the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, Hotel de Ville, and the Luxembourg Gardens.  I just got to do it at my own pace.  Here are some of the highlights from my walks:

Hotel de Ville

Notre Dame

Petit Chocolat

Luxembourg Gardens

I was also lucky enough to get to spend some quality time with my friend Dani.  Her conference organized an amazing night out at a carnival-turned-museum.  We had a blast playing old-school skee ball, "racing the waiter," and riding on the carousel! 

 

On our last night in Paris, we treated ourselves to hot chocolate at Angelina.  They serve you a pot of melted chocolate with whipping cream on the side.  You put in as much or as little cream as you like.  It was super luxurious and delicious!  We also found a cute little sushi joint so I could get my fix before heading back to Harrogate where sushi is unheard of.

It was such a fun, relaxing trip and I'm so glad I got to spend time with Dani.  Dani...let's do this again soon!