Paris! Oolala!
So, picking up from where I left. From Lisbon, Kak Wan and I flew to Paris. Reached Charles de Gaulle airport in the afternoon. My friend, Putra, and his girl friend had already arrived in the morning. Before we departed, he'd already given us instructions through Whatsapp on how to get to our hotel in Opera, Paris. So the minute we landed in Paris, we took the Roissy bus, which took us straight to Opera. It cost us 10 Euros each.
Day 1
When we reached Opera, Putra was at Galeries LaFayette, the Paris-version of Harrods. He told us to meet him there. It wasn't that far from the bus stop. Also wasn't very far from our hotel, Prince Albert Opera Hotel. Also wasn't very far from the Opera building, the setting for Phanton of the Opera. We checked in to the hotel. It was so, so, so different from our 4-Star hotel in Lisbon *grimace*! The room was so small! I couldn't believe my eyes. But then, that was how much my budget could afford. It also reminded me of my trips to Amsterdam. I got the same kind of hotel with more or less the same price. But the hotel in Paris was slightly better than the ones I'd stayed at in Amsterdam. Paris is so damn expensive compared to Lisbon, by the way! Putra introduced us to Wani, his girl friend, and Zamry, his ex-student who is now studying in France.
We went to Lafayette for a short while because Putra wanted to buy a Longchamp bag for his sister in law. Longchamps are so damn cheap in Paris! Well, it is a French brand, after all! I was tempted of course, but since Putra said we were going to the outlet in the outskirts of Paris on the third day, I kept my desire at bay. Hehe.
Having Zamry around was so handy. Since he could speak, listen, write and read French, we asked him to find us a halal restaurant. He found one near our place. A nice, tiny Turkish restaurant which serves really nice food. We ate to our hearts' content before taking the metro to Trocadero, a place where people go to get a view of the Eiffel Tower. It was already night by the time we arrived and so freaking cold. So we snapped pics and left. But not before spending some time at the souvenir shop at the metro. Bloody expensive and all I could afford was some fridge magnets! Before heading back to the hotel, we stopped at a cafe to have some coffee. People say when you're in Paris, you must sit in cafes and sip coffee :-)
Charlie's Angels
Day 2
After breakfast, we took the Paris hop-on hop- off bus to go to those must-sees. It was freezing! First stop was Champs Elysees. A really huge square in Paris. Then we stopped at Trocadero again, this time to see Eiffel Tower in broad daylight. The gift shop at the metro was visited again. LOL! Then we stepped foot at the base of Eiffel Tower itself! It was so surreal! I almost cried because my dream actually came true! There I was, at the magnificent Eiffel Tower! We snapped pics at almost every corner of the tower! Wani, being the camwhore that she is (Putra's word, not mine), asked us to jump. We jumped a few times until Wani got a pic that satisfied everybody. Hehe. It was fun!
Next, we headed to Musee du Louvre, the famous museum in Paris. The queue was so bloody long, inside and outside the museum. So we just walked around. There was no way I was going to queue. Putra and Wani had already been to the museum the day before. The museum is really huge and majestic. Maybe one day, if I were to come to Paris again, I'd make it a point to browse through the museum and check out all the artefacts and displays, especially the authentic Mona Lisa painting!
From du Louvre, we went to the famous Notre Dame church. Again, the queue was really long! It was also freezing so we decided not to go into the 850 year-old church. Some other time. And that some other time had better not be a Sunday - too many tourists!
Had lunch at a Turkish restaurant near Note Dame. It was awesome! A bit more expensive than the Turkish restaurant in Opera but we had no choice! All the walking and jumping and hopping had propelled us into some irreversible hunger games! Hehehe.
There was a row of souvenir shops at Notre Dame and damn, these were much cheaper than the one at the metro! Bummer! The rest of the gang were really shopping, shopping and shopping!
Before I left for Lisbon, I had asked Muse if there was anything I could get him. He mentioned a helmet, a bike shoes and a chamois cream. Portugal isn't a cycling country but France is. So I asked Zamry if he could help me find a bike shop that is open on Sunday. Being the nice guy that he is, he googled and found one. But it is a bit far from Opera. The rest of the gang went back to the hotel to rest. Zamry and I took the metro and had to change trains a few times before we could arrive at the bike shop. The metro system in Paris is so, so, so freaking complicated that I don't think I would have made it on my own if Zamry was not around. Not even my train training in Korea, Japan or Portugal could ever prepare me for the metro system in Paris!
When we arrived at the place, to our surprise, a big, big, big street demonstration was going on! In French it is called manifestaciones. There were so many people around, carrying flags and banners, opposing gay marriage in France. It was pretty similar to the Bersih 2.0 demo. There were policeman aorund, and many places and streets were cordoned off. It was pretty scary. I had thought it would be impossible for us to pass through the thousands of people but Zamry was determined enough to get to the bike shop. We somehow managed to push our way through the throng of people! It took us quite some time and I prayed whole-heartedly that we would be okay. Luckily we were okay but when we arrived at the bikeshop, it was closed. I couldn't believe my eyes!!! Zamry said maybe because the shop was too close to the demonstration site. Otherwise, it would be open. I was so disappointed but Zamry said, at least we tried, didn't we?
The Against-Gay-Marriage Manifestaciones (Street Protest)
That evening Zamry headed back to his campus. I thanked him a lot for accompanying me. The rest of of us had dinner at a French restaurant. It was nothing great, really. I prefer Turkish food! Hehe.
Jump! Jump! Jump!
Day 3
Disneyland day. For Putra and Wani. But Outlet day for Kak Wan and me. Hehe. We took the train to Disneyland. 35 mins ride from Paris, if I'm not mistaken. We snapped some pics. Then Kak Wan and I went to La Vallee Village, just a station away from Disneyland. This outlet is much better than the one in Lisbon. Even though it's not that big but at least it has brands that I'm familiar with. e.g. Long Champ, Kickers, Lacoste. Plus, adjacent to the outlet is a long mall. At least if you don't enjoy the outlet or can't afford to buy stuff at the outlet, you have the mall to look forward to. I spent quite some time at the outlet. Bought Long Champ bags *guilty*. A Ralph Lauren sweater. These are about the only branded names at the outlet that were quite affordable. Then I went to the mall and browsed through. Kak Wan bought a lot of stuff at the mall, I was surprised. She is not the shopping type. Hehe. But I guess she really treated herself this time. Nothing wrong with that, right? I was happy that she let her hair loose. And her purse as well. LOL!
Surprisingly, I found a sports discount shop at the mall. It was so huge! The shop had a big bike section. I was happy, and thought maybe I could find some things for Muse here. Saw some shoes and helmets. Some of the brands sound familiar. Prices were okay too, I guess. But to my horror, there was no reception! I looked at my useless hand phone and couldn't believe my eyes! How was I going to communicate with Muse? There were a lot of things I needed to ask him! Unfazed, I asked the guy at the counter about the chamois cream but unfortunately he couldn't understand what I was talking about. Bummer. I left the shop totally dejected.
Surprisingly, I found a sports discount shop at the mall. It was so huge! The shop had a big bike section. I was happy, and thought maybe I could find some things for Muse here. Saw some shoes and helmets. Some of the brands sound familiar. Prices were okay too, I guess. But to my horror, there was no reception! I looked at my useless hand phone and couldn't believe my eyes! How was I going to communicate with Muse? There were a lot of things I needed to ask him! Unfazed, I asked the guy at the counter about the chamois cream but unfortunately he couldn't understand what I was talking about. Bummer. I left the shop totally dejected.
We met Putra and Wani back at the hotel. Nothing is more fun than comparing the damages we had done for the day! LOL! Putra had gone to the outlet too, after spending some time at Disneyland. We went to the Turkish restaurant again for dinner. Ya-ba-da-ba-doo. The best thing about Turkish restaurants is they serve really delicious rice! Hehe. After dinner we went back to the hotel. Putra and Wani prepared to take the bus to Amsterdam. So Kak Wan and I were left on our own that night. Packing time!
At Paris Disneyland!
Day 4
Last day in Paris. Kak Wan and I had breakfast at the hotel. Then we went to Lafayette again so that I could buy the Clarins Body Lotion set, one that I'd set my eyes on the first time I went to LaFayette. It was really cheap - they had a 30% discount on! Can't get the same price in Malaysia! Also went to Printemps, which was next to Lafayette. I nearly went crazy! But didn't buy anything. Although I saw my much-coveted Cambridge bag, I restrained myself. Literally. Maybe I will get it some other time *drool*
Took the Roissy bus and took off from Paris in the afternoon *sob sob*. Got to see different parts of Paris whilst on the bus. Nice.
*****
In terms of landscape, I could see that Paris is a really planned and customized city. Nice, especially the intricate details that adorn the gates and windows, and most buildings in Paris anyways. But unfortunately, the buildings have the same, pale colour all over the city. Which kinda make them look boring. And lifeless. I prefer Lisbon's landscape. It's more colourful and vibrant. I prefer the guys in Lisbon, too. They're simpler in appearance. The guys in Paris are too LV. LOL!
I enjoyed the short Paris trip, nevertheless. Maybe it's because the more, the merrier. It's really fun if you go travelling with friends who are as crazy as you are. Hehe.
Would I go there again? For Long Champ, yes. *wink wink*
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