Eurotrip Day 7 – Paris
Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009 :: 11:40 pm
That was a long sidetrack! I haven’t posted about my adventures in Europe in two months! It’s been a busy summer, but now I should get back to processing those travel photos…
Anyways, this is day 7 of Eurotrip, which corresponds to May 4th. Since the next day had been reserved for some of us to go to a side trip to Versailles, we had to visit the No. 1 landmark in Paris. Haven’t figured it out yet? Eiffel Tower of course! We knew that we were going to spend a fair bit of time at the tower so we only scheduled two destinations for today, the other one being Sacré-Cœur (The Sacred Heart Basilica).
The last time we passed by the Champ-de-Mars-Tour Eiffel station was just en-route to the Notre Dame, but this time, we were excited to hop off the train at 9am. The Eiffel Tower actually doesn’t look too tall from the ground (but from the top, the view is quite something), but is probably one of the most recognized structures in the world. That’s one more location off the “must-visit” places in my lifetime!
The Sacré-Cœur is also iconic, built at the turn of the last century on top of a tall hill in Paris. It gives spectacular views of the city, which is probably why it is another “must-visit” location for many, but you’ll see the “work” required to reach it later on in this post :-P
Paris is special, no doubt. The landmarks were very nice, but it’s the culture I experienced, the people I encountered, the food I tasted, and the language I heard and spoke that still makes it one of my favourite cities on this trip. Photos follow – sorry for its length, but I had a hard time choosing!
Mini Eiffel
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Good morning Eiffel!
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Towering over us
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Lining up for the elevator!
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For some reason, the very top floor of the tower wasn’t open at the time we purchased the ticket :-( So we went ahead and bought a ticket to the second highest level, essentially a bit more than halfway up.
€6.40 to second floor!
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Elevators riding up one of the legs of the tower, obviously has to be designed for the slant!
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Here. We. GO!
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Finally some view! It’s a beautiful day!
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Click for the panorama!
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As you can see, there’s still quite a way up
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Looking North towards the Seine River
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Northward Panorama (Click!)
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Looking towards the East – a bit hazy
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Miniaturized buildings!
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Sacré-Cœur in the distance
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North
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I love panoramas up high! (Clicky)
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We then found out that the top floor of the Eiffel Tower just opened up. Sweet! Now I can truly say I was on top of Paris :-P
I gladly handed over €3.50!
Ticket that will take us to the top floor!
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Since the tower gets narrower and narrower, there was a long lineup for the elevators
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Whoa! The view is amazing!!
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I can see far and wide! (Panorama Clicky!)
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More panoramic shots
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We can see the Louvre from here!
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<3 on the grass
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Seine River from even higher (Clicky)
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Arc du Triomphe in the distance
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Gorgeous view to the West (Clicky)
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I hope it’s not too redundant! (Clicky)
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They’ve got a champagne bar for those that want to celebrate (with a big price!)
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One last look towards the East (Clicky)
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Now this is interesting – it’s one of the exhibits part way down to the bottom. It shows in real time how far the tower deviates from its true centre due to winds blowing on it. Pretty cool!
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Thinking back, I should’ve bought a few of these :-(
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We realized we stayed about 3 hours on the Tower itself… skipping lunch :-(
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Then we spent the next 30 minutes doing jumping shots in front of the tower… all because I started it… haha
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I’ve got it!
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And… finally leaving the Eiffel Tower at 2pm heading towards the Sacred Heart Basilica (and also, 8 very hungry people looking for food).
Market place around Chateau Rouge Station
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Finally! Lunch at 3:30pm! Is that… afternoon tea time?
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Let’s just say, it was a really really long walk up. I wish the station was closer!
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Built atop a high hill, it has beautiful views to the south
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Statue of Joan of Arc
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Bronze statue of King Saint Louis IX
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Lots of people enjoying the view of Paris from the steps
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Gargoyles
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Through the fence
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We decided to go on a walk around Sacré Cœur before heading in – I absolutely loved this neighbourhood. It was so.. French!
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Private road (GSM)
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In the small garden just behind Sacré Cœur (GSM)
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Can you say… orderly?
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The owner seems to be off enjoying a drink
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Choo choo transit?
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Back to the steps! Still as crowded as ever
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Stores in the distance
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We finally entered the Basilica!
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Mosaic on the ceiling is called “Christ in Majesty”, apparently one of the largest in the world
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Streets again, this time looking for dinner!
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Lots of talented street artists here
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Paintings for sale
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We finally decided on something French… Crepes!
Though, here in Europe it is common to see that the prices for sitting down and “takeout” are different. We cheaped out and decided to not sit down and just eat right outside the crepe store :-P
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Chocolate crepes in the making
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My dinner – Jambon Fromage Oeuf Crepe for €4.50! It was devoured within a few minutes :-)
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Wo! That’s a long way down!
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We decided to not risk our energy and take the easy route down :-P
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One last look back
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Metropolitain Station
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I have no idea how this is Swatch’s clock outside the store!
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We decided to visit the other popular evening destination this night for some good evening shots… where else than Arc du Triomphe!
Impressive to say the least
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Climbing a set of very tiring spiral stairs to the top
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It’s never-ending…
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Monument dedication
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Eiffel Tower at night. This was totally worth it!
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One of the streets expanding outwards from Place de l’Étoile
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Landmark lighting up Paris evening
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Sacré Cœur at a distance, this time lit up
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Busy Champs-Élysées
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Champs-Élysées busy at night – looking towards the Louvre
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September 26th, 2009 at 1:12 am
Awesome!!! Enjoy your pictures.
September 26th, 2009 at 11:55 pm
Thank you! I hope to get more out soon…
September 30th, 2009 at 7:51 pm
Wow!!! your pictures are absolutely lovely. I was in Paris two weeks ago, I took some pictures but none no where as amazing as yours.
Keep the pictures coming!
Cheers
October 1st, 2009 at 8:44 pm
Thanks for coming by Elsa! It was my first trip to Europe, so naturally I went trigger happy :-P Places like these tend to be photo’ed to death, so I try to take it from some “other angle”!
I’d definitely like to go back again for the more “daily life” shots!
October 5th, 2009 at 2:04 am
Lots of buildings
I like the night shot!
October 5th, 2009 at 12:58 am
Buildings are everywhere! It’s hard to find a green space~
The entire city lights up at night!
October 14th, 2009 at 11:10 pm
oo~~ prettyl!! paris looks crowded XD
October 14th, 2009 at 11:56 pm
It does! I don’t think I saw any empty space except for the lines of streets or parks!