Metropolitan French Capital Paris is known for French romance, art, culture, fashion, music and french cuisine. It's a famous city worldwide, so many people have different opinions about it. History lies in every corner of Paris city. You will see fashionistas on the streets of Paris. Some people see Paris as a honeymoon destination or a romantic city where lovers express their love. Some see Paris city as a life-changing place and go there to find the opportunities. Immigrants and refugees want to make money in Paris while others are into exploration of arts and fashion.
But this glamourous city also has a dark side which is completely hidden and you can't see when you are in Paris. When I learned that Paris built on 6 million people's graveyards and those tunnels, and graveyard still exists, that scared me the most. Obviously, every city has more or less deep dark secrets but don't know why, the secret of Paris kinda stayed in my mind. I guess I had a lot of expectations about Paris because I only knew the glamorous part of Paris.
Paris trip was also planned by my sister, our apartment was booked by her and the travel plan was done by her. The only thing I did was book the transportation. Paris was never one of my must-see places. I mean I liked Paris but never felt an urgency to go to Paris. So when my sister planned our 2-night stay in Paris, I was happy. Basically, my sister's fascination with high-end luxury brands like Dior, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, and Hermès inspired her to visit Paris. I asked her once what were the reasons for her visit to Paris. She clearly told me that she wanted to visit luxury brand shops and want to see the Louis Vuitton outlet, the Dior museum, and so on. Well, even though our mentality was so different, I thought it was okay to go with her since I hadn't been to Paris before.
Paris - France
Paris trip is not my recent trip, I went there last year, 2024. But it took me a long time to write about it. Anyway, I didn't go to Paris alone, I took my dog (Gigi) with me. The first unfortunate thing that happened during our Paris trip was, I didn't find the direct train to Paris from Amsterdam. I guess it was peak season or I was too late to reserve the ticket. We got the direct train from Paris to AMS but from AMS we had to take the train to Brussel-Zuid and from there to Paris. As I thought to take my dog with me, I talked to @erikah about my plan. I remember Erikah clearly telling me not to take my dog with me because Paris was not a good choice for my dog. She was absolutely right even though I didn't listen to her 🤣 for obvious reasons. I was actually forced to take my dog with me because I couldn't find an appropriate pet-sitter for my dog and my sister also assured me that she would help if something went wrong. Still, I am grateful to Erikah for all the information about Paris.
So, on the scheduled date, we got on the train and everything was fine until we reached Antwerp, Belgium. The train was fully packed and crowded so it was a little bit difficult to find a place for my dog Gigi and I paid 30 euros for the pet ticket. When we reached Antwerp, we heard the announcement saying that the train wouldn't go further and we had to find another way to go to Brussel-Zuid. From Antwerp, there was no direct train to Brussel-Zuid that day and another big problem was we had no idea about the route to reach Brussel. Antwerp station was so crowded and meanwhile, my dog went crazy. She started throwing tantrums and started moving like a snake at the station.
It was so hard to handle her while holding my luggage and my sister was asking around what to do next. Later, we took a metro to Ghent and from Ghent then again train to Sint-Niklaas. I was already tired because my hands started feeling numb because of my dog pulling. Here to mention that my dog is a labrador; even though she doesn't bark at people, she does certain things in public areas that always give me panic attacks. I know it's my fault that I didn't socialize my dog in public spaces but like I mentioned, crowded places were not for her.
When we reached Brussel-Zuid, we had already left and our train already left for Paris. We started talking to the conductor of Eurostar to find a solution and nobody was ready to give us seats for the next train even though we faced such a hassle throughout the day. Later, one conductor agreed to let us on the train and finally, we reached Paris, Gare du Nord station. It was quite an experience. To be honest, in my mind, I had already given up on reaching Paris and I would have gone back to AMS if my sister had not been with me. Also, Blind-Spot joined us later...
Outside of the station was a nice, typical French architectural building. I was familiar with French architecture but the exterior of these buildings was so fascinating to me. The perfect cityscape with a feeling of city life I would say. Seeing the outside atmosphere, and diversification of culture and races made me believe that finally I was in Paris.
We took a Taxi to reach our apartment. This story you have to believe on the basis of writing as I don't have photos.
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Due to the delay, we had decided to spend our evening in front of the iconic Eiffel Tower. We were tired so we thought after our walk near the Seine and Eiffel Tower, we would have our dinner and come back to the apartment. We took a taxi to go to the Eiffel Tower. The taxi driver was from China and he gave us a lot of information about Paris.
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We were expecting to see the sparkling famous light show of the Eiffel Tower but we were not lucky. As it was our first night in Paris, we were hopeful that we gonna see the light show later.
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Our day 2 in Paris went so quickly. Our day had started with visiting the Louvre Museum. Then we had our breakfast near the Louvre and directly went to Galeries Lafayette. It's huge and there is nothing you can't find. I said before that my younger sister is into fashion and luxury brands and because of her, I know a little bit about luxury brands. She was not into visiting museums, art galleries, or landmarks, she basically went to Paris to explore the fashion world and luxury brands. I had no other choice except to follow her because this trip was planned by her. Everyone has their own preferences so I let her enjoy her moments in Paris.
Have I been able to see Monalisa? Nope...
The astounding interior of Galeries Lafayette really amazed me, an incredible example of architecture...
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The next destination was Rue de l‘universite, a very popular spot to get good photographs of the Eiffel Tower. Well, it's not a spot, it's a huge street in Paris near the Seine River. So, that was my time to explore the French architecture in Paris. I have seen so many cities so far and witnessed some incredible architectural examples. But every time I feel like I am exploring architecture in a new way whenever I visit somewhere unknown.
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Paris is known for the French Renaissance, middle-aged architecture, and the birthplace of Gothic architecture. Elegance and blending artistry with functionality are what make French architecture so popular. People take inspiration from seeing mostly the key features of French architecture but many don't know the function behind each architectural element. If you ask me what truly amazes me about French architecture, I would say Balconies, decorative cast iron railings, and French windows and doors. French windows and doors are very famous in the world now.
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Our time in Paris was short but in the short period of time, I have seen a lot.
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I genuinely have zero idea how to explain my experience in Paris...
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We spent a long time strolling in Rue de l‘universite and the Seine River's nearby areas. It was nice to be able to see the Eiffel Tower from different areas...
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I know I haven't experienced the flavor of Paris properly or a genuine Parisian life but that was fine by me. I was able to spend time with my sister after 5 years and those moments were precious and I still cherish them.
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Paris is a city of colors so everybody is welcomed in Paris. Whether your interests are in fashion, art, history, or in exploring French cuisine; you will find your place in Paris. I think that's the advantage of the metropolitan city, you will find something according to your taste.
Some people's lifetime dream can be doing romance in front of the Eiffel Tower; some people spend their lifetime saving on buying a Chanel bag in Paris and some want to see Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa.
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As for me, Paris is an experience, a story which I am gonna share over and over again in the future...
Love
Priyan...
I am @priyanarc.... An architect, a dreamer, and a passionate writer who loves to write about life. I try to present my own perspective and experiences. Please leave your feedback and criticism because it's the only way I can know and reach your mind and thoughts easily...
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