Paris

One of my favorite European capitals is definitely Paris. Unfortunately, it has been quite a while since I was last there, but I can still remember the trip well and would like to hold on to the best parts and share my experiences with you.

Of course, one of our first excursions was to the Eiffel Tower, or rather to the 'Tour Eiffel', and we went up there as well. After a while, we realized that not all pillars have an elevator that goes all the way to the top. You can only go up to the top of 330 meters at pillars B, C, and D. At pillar A, you can use the stairs, but only up to the 2nd floor, which is about 674 steps. And now you can guess three times which pillar we stood in line at. However, since it was quite crowded, we decided not to queue elsewhere and not to go all the way to the top. But the view from the 2nd floor was really, really beautiful.

Another excursion took us to the village of Montmartre. There were street artists at every corner, many of whom spoke to us. In the end, we did have a painting done of us, and some artists there really have talent. In general, especially there, you get approached a lot by people trying to sell you something, which can become a bit annoying at times. In Montmartre, we of course also visited the Basilica Sacré-Cœur. From up there, you also have a very nice view of the city, as you can see in the pictures above. The direct ascent there goes up a staircase of 222 steps. It starts at the foot of the Montmartre hill and leads up to the basilica. There were also many tourists there. However, you can also take alternative routes to Sacré-Cœur that have fewer steps if you use the surrounding streets, for example.

Another place we visited was the Arc de Triomphe de l’étoile. This is located at Place Charles de Gaulle, and we took the tour bus along the Champs Élysées to get there. At the Arc de Triomphe, there is also the famous large roundabout in Paris, which has no officially marked lanes. About 8 to 12 vehicles can fit side by side, which makes it very chaotic. Despite that, we also drove through there with the tour bus, and the fact that there was no accident is almost a miracle. The cars were really driving in all directions.

We couldn't miss the Musée du Louvre. Unfortunately, we didn't get to go inside the museum, but even from the outside, it looked very majestic to me. We saw the glass pyramid, which is said to symbolize the contrast between historical and contemporary architecture and serves as the main entrance to the museum. What I also learned is that you would need several days to explore everything in the Louvre in detail. There is another triumphal arch at the museum, the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel, which our tour bus also drove through, just barely fitting. The bus driver seemed to be open to adventure.

One of our last excursions was to the famous Notre-Dame Cathedral. We took a boat tour along the Seine through Paris and went around Notre-Dame. I can recommend such a boat tour to anyone visiting the city, as it simply has a special vibe.

Paris is definitely back up high on my list of travel destinations for the near future. This city simply has something special for me. There is so much to see and so much history and culture that is palpable at every corner, and I think that is why it pulls me back to the City of Lights so much.