that time i went to the eiffel tower and it was closed due to a strike
The first of my (many) travels this year was to a little country called France. I’ve always wanted to go (but only learned after the fact that it’s a place of much conflict and pain for me according to my astrocartography chart. That explains why I fell on my ass in the middle of the street. Yikes.)
Regardless of any hokey beliefs, I had a grand time. As the title says, tourist-y wanderings were NOT well-rewarded and I had a better time exploring the 40-minute walking radius around my hotel in the 5th arrondissement.
the first impressions
Charles de Gaulle is massive, the lines are too long, wasn’t a fan. Air France was great though!
All thoughts about winter fashion flew out the window as I landed in the coldest place I’ve ever been too. Save me Aritzia Super Puff, save me!
The hotel I booked was pretty great (shout out Hotel Pilgrim + Booking.com)! The breakfasts were a solid 8/10 every single day and the staff were super kind about my terrible French.
The rooms are quite small, so if you’re travelling with loads of luggage, be sure to look into that.
the sights
Most of my days were dedicated to shopping and I’m not the best picture taker. But I did have a lot of fun peeking into stores and seeing what little trinkets I could swing.
I was very close to the Notre Dame (15 minute walk), so I saw it A Lot on this trip. I only recently understood the tragedy of its burning on this trip because it’s a truly magnificent sight, marred by steel poles from the reconstruction (?)
I popped into the The Musée Carnavalet for a rundown of French history but was treated to some of the most elaborate art I’ve ever seen.
As the title literally states, the Eiffel Tower was closed the day I went to visit due to a strike, which is Very French, so I felt like I got what I needed from my brief visit.
This was okay because I took a 40-minute walk to the Musée de l’Orangerie for Monet’s Water Lilies, which led to a new discovery.
the burning love for impressionism
I love Impressionist art. I also love museums. That was the one solid conclusion I managed to reach about myself on this trip.
After wandering around the two or three rooms dedicated to the Water Lilies, I explored the rest of the museum (but not before dipping into the gift shop for a key ring and fan with said Water Lilies – oh capitalism).
Some recurring themes of the art that caught my eye were: nature, flowers, water, boats, buildings, landscapes (urban or otherwise).
If you ask these quizzes I took while writing this, I have a strong leaning towards realistic works with visible brushstrokes – sounds about right.
the food
I managed to spend 7 days in Paris without touching French food once (please clap). Thank heavens this isn’t a food blog because I don’t have much to report.
My favorite places to eat were:
Whatever was closest to my hotel in walking distance (mostly Asian food)
Any highly rated restaurants near my jaunt of the day
Sandwich places
the verdict
Overall, I give Paris a 6/10 for being 2-6 degrees during my visit.
Maybe if I go back during a summer/fall it’ll be nicer.
