Trip Report: 32 Hours in Paris
For 32 hours, we walked from Montemarte to the Louvre, ate one of our favorite meals, and explored Paris with our friends.
The Logistics
Usually, we have a January trip to celebrate my birthday. For this year, our friend Kathryn picked one of our favorite places in Europe - Paris! Because of the short weekend and great deals on the Eurostar, we opted to take the train from London. While usually one of our favorites, we had slight mis-communication on when Kathryn would arrive in Paris leading us to take the first train on Saturday morning…
For our hotel, we decided to stay close to Kathryn in the Marais area (3rd-4th district). I let Mary Frances pick the hotel, the Prince Albert Lyon Bercy, and it was a really nice stay! To make up for it, since we were taking the 6am train, I picked a close hostel to the train station… She loved it…
- Eurostar:
- Paris Hotel: 150
- London Hostel: 10
- Finding your favorite restaurant: priceless
Before Paris
Because we were taking the very early train, I thought I was being nice and booking a hostel, Keys Hostel, next to the train station to avoid an even earlier wake up and departure time. Thus, we made our way to King’s Cross / St Pancreas just in time for the party hour in the big City…
Safe to say, this hostel experience was one of the worst! Firstly, our room was mediocre at best and we came in with very low expectations. Thank goodness we weren’t staying to explore the city otherwise we would have been very disappointed! Secondly, we shared a wall with the club next door. As we tried falling asleep, we were soothed by the sounds of Sweet Caroline and American Pie… I was in Mary Frances’ doghouse and would have to make it up to her the next day!
Sunrise on the Eurostar
Combined with our lack of sleep, we had a very early morning at St Pancreas! Thankfully, we could drag our zombie-like bodies across the street to secruity and did not have any issues. The entire process is much smoother than an airport as the stupid airport mistakes cannot be repeated and custom checks are performed on this side rather than our arrival. However, it did not take away from the fact we were exhausted and desperately needed a few more hours of sleep before hitting the ground in Paris!!
The sun rising over the French farm fields was really pretty - for the few minutes i saw it before trying to go back asleep! One of the best things about the Eurostar is the arriving in the middle of the city rather than at the airports. Before we realized, we were on the Metro to the Prince Albert Lyon hotel.
A Wandering Around
Bastille
After we dropped off our bags at the hotel, we began wandering around the Bastille area. Mostly, I was searching for a solid bakery!! Because we had not booked any plans, we just kept walking around Bastille as we had not seen that area before. This included in the Canal St Martin, one of the more idealic summer locations. In the middle of Paris is a beautiful canal with plenty of walking and sitting areas. However, in the midst of winter, it was rather cold!
Montemartre
Because we had special lunch reservations, we went to the Montmarte area. Or, did I trick Mary Frances into climbing all those steps?! Between New Years and the 18 January, I definitely prefer this random weekend because the entire artist’s courtyard and alleys were empty.
We found our favorite restaurant - Le Poulbot - and prepared for a feast. Since we had only been here less than three weeks ago, there was the same waitress and chef as our first magical experience! We sat down in a tiny corner of the restaurant and we were only slightly tempted by the daily specials.
To begin our feast, we split the wonderful burrata. The cheese melted in our mouth and definitely one of our favorites! For our main, we obviously had to go steak and frites. Similar to our first experience, it made every one of the 300 stairs worth it!! There were no words spoken during our meal. For the grand finale, I had the jaw dropping hot chocolate cake with vanilla.
Shopping Phase
After stumbling into a food coma outside Le Poulbot, we took a stroll to the Eiffel Tower viewpoint. We weren’t entirely sure on our afternoon plans except we wanted to wander through one of the shopping areas. Since the Lourve was nearby, I made Mary Frances take a silly tourist picture. It turns out she never had taken one before today. I made her take a picture of me and she thought I was referring to the small pyramid….
Wine and Cheese - with friends
Later in the afternoon, we met with Kathryn and Stu at their hotel which is next door to Stu’s dad's new flat. They were gracious enough to host us for wine and cheese! Stu’s dad just semi-moved to Paris from Birmingham and he is fixing up this place in the Marais. It use to be an old artist flat, but he had transformed it into a livable 1 bedroom. If only I could have a flat in Paris!
Finding Dinner
Since we were in their neighborhood for dinner, we relied on their local knowledge and decided to go to Chez Janou. Stu’s dad recommended it because it was simply great Parisan fare and perfect for a night out! Plus, they had great French wine!
Because we did not have a reservation, we had to wait, but did not mind it since we could catch up in the corner. However, the intial wait time of 40 minutes became 1 hour, then another 30 minutes… We kept getting passed over for others, which was fine, until the it was nearly 1.5 hours later and it was getting rude. Thus, we made an early exit! Warning to the wise - Saturday nights are always popular in Paris!
For our backup, we went to the restaurant that Stu’s dad had gone to nearly 2 hours ago. They seated us straight away and we had our food within 30 minutes! Imagine that! I had yummy lamb that melted in my mouth - it was well worth it!
After Party
To keep the party going, we went to one of the top bars in Paris - the Sherry Butt. Extremely hipster and cool, it was the perfect place for a nightcap! The drinks were very creative and tasty! I believe it was one of the latest nights that we had done in awhile, but the after party was a success! I would highly recommend the Sherry Butt!
Sunday Scaries
As our last day in Paris began, we realized Mary Frances had the Sunday scaries - or perhaps was just sick!
Not a Good Morning
Due to our late party evening, we obviously slept in very late and only had plans for a late lunch with Kathryn and Stu. To make matters worse, it appeared that Mary Frances was getting sick. It was not a good morning!
Jardin de Luxembourg
Because our lunch spot was in the St Germain district, we decided to first take a stroll through the famous Jardin De Luxembourg. In the spring or summer, I imagine this is much more pretty (and warm!) and full of people. On a cold January morning, it was very empty!
Since we had the park to ourselves, we found a nice bench and just sat and relaxed. The park was very peaceful so we just pulled out our books and read while enjoying the fresh air. If only it was warm with a nice glass of wine or perhaps some meat and cheese…
FREDDY’S
For some quick background, Stu’ owns and operates one of the trendy and upcoming restaurants in Birmingham called Freddy’s. Little did we realize, but it was inspired by a Paris restaurant, also called Freddy’s, that Stu and his family would visit during their holidays. Obviously, we had to go to the original and see how it was!
Since we had not yet been to the American Freddy’s, we had to rely on Kathryn’s word that it was very similar. It is Spanish/French tapas with fun drinks and chalk board specials! Because of our large group, we opted to try about 1-2 items per person and it worked out really well! In no particular order, we had...
- Sweet potato beignets
- Chimichurri Steak
- Squid
- Fish and chips
- Duck
- Tuna
- Lamb
- Risotto
We all had different favorites, but I think Mary Frances and I enjoyed the steak and risotto the best! I would recommend Freddy’s and would eat there again! I enjoyed the intimate atmosphere and obviously the food!
Walk It Off
After our lovely lunch, we wandered through the streets of Odeon and St Germain. I had never really been in these neighborhoods so it was interesting to see them. They are more known for being touristy and posh so we hadn’t really thought to stay there. That being said, we found a LaDurree and what could be wrong with that??
Because we did not have set plans, we decided to walk back to the Marquis district. This would walk us past many famous sights such as Notre Dame, along the Seine, and other pretty neighborhoods. However, Mary Frances was fading fast. Earlier, I thought it was a hangover related sickness, but she was warmer than the Sahara despite the outside temperature in the 30s! Thus, we decided to go the Eurostar terminal early to allow her to rest. We said our sad goodbyes and went our way!
UnChartered Tips:
- Stay in 3rd or 4th District in Paris (just “above” the Notre Dame on the map). It is the local’s district or the old Jewish quarter. This area feels more original and often does not have the same level of tourists.
- For those restaurants where you really want to eat, just go ahead and book a reservation. While I love finding the random restaurant, if you want to eat at that place, it’s okay to be semi-spontaneous for food!
- January in Paris is awesome!! No crowds, no heat waves, and more importantly, friends can visit a lot easier.