Sorry for the last few days without updates, Happy New Year!!
Today I wandered around, weaving in and out of streets and into cafes and then into any random little shops. I had a fresh croissant in the morning with my coffee, and it was the most brilliant thing I have ever eaten. If you have never had an authentic French croissant fresh from a bakery, you need to put it on your bucket list right now. No one here seems to half-ass their job here, the bakers, restaurateurs, coffee makers, the hotel staff, the drivers—they all seem to know what they’re doing and are thorough in their craft. It is truly inspiring to see this kind of dedication to one’s profession.
I also jumped on the Metro today and got to people watch, hear all the French subway musicians and look at what paper everyone is reading. I went around and didn’t really have a destination in mind, I feel like in order to understand a city you sometimes need to get lost in it.
Some tips for riding the metro: Make sure you know where you’re going, use a map, most people probably just pull it up on their smartphone but they have little maps available as well. Also, be careful of your belongings, when people are going or coming to work it can be a little jam-packed in there, so know where your stuff is. Some of the lines go above the ground too so you can get a nice view of the city.
When you’re buying a Paris Metro ticket, most of the kiosks only take debit or coins, so if you’re using paper money you better head to the Vente (Sales) booth instead. The information desk won’t be of much help unless you have a question about getting around.
I’m quite curious about Disneyland Paris or EuroDisney, so hopefully that will make it into my itinerary alongside going to the Eiffel Tower, Palace of Versailles, Notre Dame, the Louvre, and the Catacombs. I sound like such a tourist, but you know, if you don’t do this stuff, you’re missing out, even if it’s terrible and full of horrendous tourists. I like to balance my trips with tourism and exploring local surroundings, that’s what makes it fun and exciting! There’s an endless amount of cool things to do in Paris, where do I even begin?
