One last trip to Paris

This year I've been to Paris quite few times. Unfortunately, these visits consist of getting off one train and straight onto another before arriving at the airport, so all I've seen of the city are the dingy underground metro stations. On the few occasions that I have stayed for a bit longer, I've felt that, for me, Paris has lost its romance. While the Eiffel Tower will always look impressive, and the view from the beautiful Sacre Coeur will never fail to make me smile, I no longer felt that thrill of excitement you get when you visit somewhere.

This week, I fell back in love with Paris.

First stop was the Place des Vosgues, which was full of French hipsters relaxing in the sunshine in the old square. After a wander round Le Marais district we stumbled upon the Pompidou Centre, with its colourful exterior peeping out above the grey roof tops, and stopped for some lunch.

A walk along the Seine is always a nice way to see the city. We ended up at the Hôtel des Invalides, whose golden dome glistened in the afternoon sun.

Last stop before dinner was 31 Rue Cambon, a place I've always wanted to see. Chanel HQ was just as beautiful as expected (but would have been a lot more exciting on a bigger budget!)

What are your favourite things to do in Paris?

Beach Party

Sometimes we need to get out of our little room in the tower block, away from the city and into the sunshine. So on Tuesday we took a trip to Lion sur mer for a beach party. 

The weather was beautiful, with enough breeze to cool us off when the sun got too hot. We sat on the sands all afternoon, watching volleyball and heading to the sea for the occasional dip. 

In the evening as the sun set we went back to our lovely little wooden chalets to prepare for a barbeque, and wash away the sand and salt before heading to a bar, complete with palm trees and a beach terrace. Hazy memories of running into the sea at around 3am suggest we all drank far too much, but despite the horrible hangovers the next day, it was a wonderful little trip away. 

A day in the park

As the sunshine continued, we took a trip to the Collines des Oiseaux. It felt like the most tropical place on earth with it's colourful flowers, perfect blue water fountains and even palm trees, but seeing the tower blocks over the trees and hearing the distant roar of traffic reminded us we were still in the city. After a wander round the park, successfully completing the maze and having a picnic in the sun, we played a lovely game of crazy golf. Finally we went the visit the animal park, met some very friendly goats and saw the most beautiful display of a (slightly angry) peacock, before heading home with rosy cheeks and smiling faces. 

One naughty peacock even managed to take off with someone's lunch...