Days One and Two: Montmartre and La Tour Eiffel

Our trip to Paris was so smooth, it was weird. No delays, our flight to London landed an hour early and our baggage in Paris was the first off the carousel. Plus we had no responsibility anyway, so we were stress-free.


Our emergence from the Metro up into Montmartre was a shock to the senses and confirmation that Paris is exactly what we thought it was. We came up the steps and saw a 200 year old city hall, a 400 year old church, three cafes, a horse carousel lit up and playing old French music and as I looked around, an old man walked by with a baguette under his arm. As we stood and stared, our jaws dropped.

In Paris, everything consumes you: the smell of the air, the smell of people, the look of people, the sounds, the architecture, the history ... I can't describe it.

This was the view from our hotel room:


After spending our first night walking around Montmartre, we got up early and did the same thing again. The heart of Montmartre is the Sacre Coeur. Around the base of the hill are some really, really old cafes and houses.



And atop the hill sits the beautiful Sacre Coeur. There's also an incredible view of the city up here.


This carousel was at the base of the hill, and they're all over the city. Just in random squares and for no special reason:

We did Paris cheap. And why not? We chose a hotel that included a free breakfast, and our lunches consisted mainly of small stuff from markets, like a baguette and cheese. Which is pretty normal. And we ate it like this:


And our first Parisian coffee:


Markets are usually set up in the morning and shut down by early afternoon.

Our first full day was a long one. We spent the morning and early afternoon in Montmartre, and planned to go to the Eiffel Tower for the afternoon. The Metro system is pretty easy and quick, but it's the walking that can kill you. Paris is a grand place. Big boulevards and parks, so if you don't know exactly how to get where you're going when on foot, you'll get some exercise. But it's no problem ... because you're in Paris. There's a lot of history around the Tower. We came across Les Invalides, where Napoleon is buried:

And Pont Alexandre III, which is a bridge that connects Champs-Élysées with Les Invalides:

Amongst all this incredible history are people's homes and businesses. Imagine that.


And then we found this:



When you get to the Eiffel Tower, you just kind of stand there and stare. And then you just sit there ... and stare. And then take some pictures and drink wine.



And that was it. Our first 24 hours.