Paris 2014
Fri, 29 - Sat, 30/8/14
Pantin
Who isn't familiar with Paris right? For this post I'll just write some brief notes of our travels around the City of Light (la Ville Lumière) and Capital of Fashion. The weather at Paris was pleasant at around 20 deg C, compared to the blistering hot sun in Spain just a 2.5 hours ago.
We arrived at CDG around 6.40pm, then took the RER to Pantin, located in Zone 2 (EUR 10.60) one way which we chose because of its vicinity to halal eateries. We had to change line at Gare Du Nord. We stayed at the Ibis Budget hotel at Pantin which cost EUR 42 / night (RM 175). For dinner tonight, we had a set of rice with adana (EUR 9, comes with soft drink) and set of chicken chika with rice and fries (EUR 9 with soft drink) at the nearby halal Restaurant Le Palais D'Istanbul.
Notre Dame Cathedral
It was a pleasant day today in Paris with the temperature around 20 deg C and cloudy; a stark contrast to the scorching heat of Spain and Morocco. We started the day with Notre Dame cathedral, taking the Zone 1 -3 Mobilis Day Pass (EUR 9.05) with access to the Metro and RER. Beware of the people asking for your signature / interview for a survey or something, just politely decline (we pretended that we didn't speak English) and move on to take pictures of the beautiful building. We didn't go in though, only taking pictures from the outside.
From Notre Dame, we walked along the calming river Seine towards the bridge where people professed their love and padlock their vows.
Louvre Museum
We then walked back to the Cite Metro station and went to the next destination - the Louvre museum, alighting at the Metro Palais Royal-Musée du Louvre. We again only took pictures from the outside as we didn't have enough time to visit the museum (a friend told me you need at least 2 days to cover the museum!)
Eiffel Tower
Now, a visit to Paris would not be complete without visiting its most famous Eiffel Tower via the Metro Bir-Hakeim, built in 1889 for the proposed 1889 Exposition Universelle to celebrate the centennial of the French Revolution.
Champs Elysees / Arc De Triomphe
We then proceeded to the Arc de Triomphe via the Charles de Gaulle-Etoile Metro. Again, we only took pictures from below and did not climb the monument. Then we just walked along Champs Elysees for some window shopping (nothing bought!) and more photography.
Sacre Coeur church
From Champs Elysees, we took the Metro to the Anvers station to visit the Sacre Coeur church which is perched on top of the Montmartre hill. The church is unique with its dome, and a political and cultural landmark, built between 1875 to 1914. It offers a fantastic view of the Paris city from the top of the hill. We stopped by at a halal fast food - Chicken Spot near the Sacre Coeur to refuel.
Invalides
Last spot of the day was Les Invalides (or The National Residence of the Invalids) which contains museums and monuments relating to the military history of France. We alighted at the Invalides Metro. No visit to the museum though, just more photography and some frolicking ;)
After all the frolicking around at the esplanade, we made our way back to the hotel to retire for the day. Not too bad, we covered most of the must see places in Paris, which are part of the Unesco World Heritage site. More exciting travel tomorrow to Versailles. Stay tuned!
Pantin
Who isn't familiar with Paris right? For this post I'll just write some brief notes of our travels around the City of Light (la Ville Lumière) and Capital of Fashion. The weather at Paris was pleasant at around 20 deg C, compared to the blistering hot sun in Spain just a 2.5 hours ago.
We arrived at CDG around 6.40pm, then took the RER to Pantin, located in Zone 2 (EUR 10.60) one way which we chose because of its vicinity to halal eateries. We had to change line at Gare Du Nord. We stayed at the Ibis Budget hotel at Pantin which cost EUR 42 / night (RM 175). For dinner tonight, we had a set of rice with adana (EUR 9, comes with soft drink) and set of chicken chika with rice and fries (EUR 9 with soft drink) at the nearby halal Restaurant Le Palais D'Istanbul.
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| Paris RER |
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| RER ticket from CDG |
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| double decker RER |
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| double decker RER |
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| Pantin RER station |
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| Ibis Budget hotel Pantin |
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| you need to punch in the access code to enter your room |
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| our basic room |
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| halal Restaurant Le Palais D'Istanbul |
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| adana with rice and fries |
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| halal sandwich at a supermarket in Pantin |
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| halal boulangerie in Pantin |
Notre Dame Cathedral
It was a pleasant day today in Paris with the temperature around 20 deg C and cloudy; a stark contrast to the scorching heat of Spain and Morocco. We started the day with Notre Dame cathedral, taking the Zone 1 -3 Mobilis Day Pass (EUR 9.05) with access to the Metro and RER. Beware of the people asking for your signature / interview for a survey or something, just politely decline (we pretended that we didn't speak English) and move on to take pictures of the beautiful building. We didn't go in though, only taking pictures from the outside.
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| Notre Dame cathedral Western side |
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| Notre Dame cathedral view by the river Seine |
From Notre Dame, we walked along the calming river Seine towards the bridge where people professed their love and padlock their vows.
 |
| river Seine |
 |
| river Seine with Notre Dame at the back |
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| padlock your love |
Louvre Museum
We then walked back to the Cite Metro station and went to the next destination - the Louvre museum, alighting at the Metro Palais Royal-Musée du Louvre. We again only took pictures from the outside as we didn't have enough time to visit the museum (a friend told me you need at least 2 days to cover the museum!)
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| arch outside the Louvre |
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| the famous pyramid at Louvre museum |
Eiffel Tower
Now, a visit to Paris would not be complete without visiting its most famous Eiffel Tower via the Metro Bir-Hakeim, built in 1889 for the proposed 1889 Exposition Universelle to celebrate the centennial of the French Revolution.
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| the famous Eiffel Tower |
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| Eiffel Tower from below |
Champs Elysees / Arc De Triomphe
We then proceeded to the Arc de Triomphe via the Charles de Gaulle-Etoile Metro. Again, we only took pictures from below and did not climb the monument. Then we just walked along Champs Elysees for some window shopping (nothing bought!) and more photography.
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| Arc de Triomphe |
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| Paris St Germain store at Champs Elysee, we didn't go to the stadium |
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| the famous Laduree cafe with macaron and other menu available |
Sacre Coeur church
From Champs Elysees, we took the Metro to the Anvers station to visit the Sacre Coeur church which is perched on top of the Montmartre hill. The church is unique with its dome, and a political and cultural landmark, built between 1875 to 1914. It offers a fantastic view of the Paris city from the top of the hill. We stopped by at a halal fast food - Chicken Spot near the Sacre Coeur to refuel.
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| Sacre Coeur |
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| on top Montmartre hill |
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| Sacre Coeur |
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| Paris city view from Sacre Coeur |
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| Chicken Spot |
Last spot of the day was Les Invalides (or The National Residence of the Invalids) which contains museums and monuments relating to the military history of France. We alighted at the Invalides Metro. No visit to the museum though, just more photography and some frolicking ;)
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| Les Invalides |
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| Esplanade de Invalides |
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| frolicking around the Esplanade de Invalides |
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| more frolicking |
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| the grass looks too tempting ...beware of dog poop though |
After all the frolicking around at the esplanade, we made our way back to the hotel to retire for the day. Not too bad, we covered most of the must see places in Paris, which are part of the Unesco World Heritage site. More exciting travel tomorrow to Versailles. Stay tuned!
Labels: Travelogue
posted by aiyda at 9:00 PM
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