Paris on my Mind, Part 3 (and the last, at least for a while . . . )

Well, I couldn't conclude my reminiscing about Paris without sharing some of our better travel decisions that we made which greatly enhanced out time there.

1.  I loved that we rented an apartment for the week and didn't have to bother with hotel issues, maybe getting a cheaper hotel that didn't have a bathroom in our room, or not having a kitchen in which to cook.  We originally were going to rent an apartment in the St.-Germain-des-Pres area of Paris off of VRBO (Vacation Rental By Owner) which was all good and well until 1 week before our departure, the owner e-mailed, very apologetically I might add, to say that the last guest had broken the toilet and there was flooding and no repair person was available to fix it that quickly.  So, at the last minute, we had to rearrange our plans and find a new apartment, which we did with a vacation rental company in Paris.  The studio was located on Ile St. Louis in an area with a less vibrant nightlife scene than St.-Germain-des-Pres, but definitely not boring by any stretch of the imagination.  We were a 3 block walk from Notre Dame and I couldn't imagine a better location for my hubby and I to have stayed.  It was lovely to be able to walk past the Cathedral on a daily basis, and over the bridges to the lovely little island on which we were staying.  It was also great that we were able to grocery shop and cook many of our meals in our own apartment, thereby staying within budget on our travel plans and not having the pressure of looking for a place to eat out at every moment of the day (especially with a 12-month-old baby in tow).  The studio, like many apartments in Paris, was very small, but sufficient for our needs.  We had a bed, bathroom, kitchen, and dinette set which is all a tourist really needs when spending the majority of the day out and about sightseeing.  I would recommend this idea to anyone and will look for similar accomodations in the future on other vacations. 

Enjoying a morning cup of French press before heading out for the day.

2.  Buying the Paris museum pass (not online before we left which may cost more or be the wrong one, etc.) in the Louvre (and for sale at other sites, as well) was great!  It allowed us entrance into almost all of the major museums, sites, and monuments.  Because we already had it in hand, we were able to bypass some lines because we didn't need to purchase tickets and also revisit favorite locations at our convenience (such as the Louvre, which is too huge to even get a small glimpse of in a day - we went back 3 times).  It was nice that place such as the Arc de Triomphe and Versailles (absolutely worth the trip & worth of many pages of blogging on its own) were included on the pass, too.  Of course, the Eiffel Tower was not included in this because it is such a major tourist money-maker, I'm sure. 

In the gardens of the Rodin museum.

Me and #4 in front of the Arc de Triomphe.

The Petit Trianon, given to Marie Antoinette by Louis XVI.

3.  It is very tempting while in Paris for a limited amount of time to try and do as much as possible, see as much as possible, etc.  And in some ways, we did do this because we wanted to immerse ourselves in the Paris experience as much as possible.  But, I am glad that we also were able to give ourselves permission to leave Paris for a few and very worthy side-trips.  The first was to Versaille which is absolutely decadent and amazing in its size and furnishings; just being in the building brings images of the time period to life very vividly in my imagination.  This trip can also include seeing the Trianon (a summer house for kings), the Petit Trianon (Marie Antoinette's special house), and all the surrounding gardens and re-created buildings from this time period that are equally as beautiful and breathtaking in their simplicity.  The second day trip we took was out to Chartres to see the spectacular stained-glass windows in the Chartres Cathedral.  It was delightful to ride on the train through the French countryside, visit a smaller French town that is not connected to Paris, and slowly meander our way through the Cathedral and gaze at the intricate windows through which centuries of Christians received instruction of the Biblical narrative. 

Livia watching the world go by on the train to Chartres.

#4 in front of the Trianon.

One of the many beautiful windows in the Chartres Cathedral.

The Chartres Cathedral in the town of Chartres.

4.  And lastly, I was glad that we did not buy an expensive train ticket for the Metro because we ended up doing so much walking anyway that it probalby wouldn't have made much sense for us.  Rather, we just purchased a 10 pack of tickets (twice over) and used them when we wanted, either on the Metro or the bus when we were either tired of walking or wanted to go somewhere that was quite a long ways away (the Sacre-Coeur Basilica, Montparnasse Cemetary).

Being in Paris for a week in 2009 was an incredible gift and as you can see, I am still enjoying my memories of it as we speak.  Thanks for coming along for the ride.