I still can’t believe I’ve arrived in Paris, and in the season that people say is sad because Parisians will be gathering with their families. But whatever, I have my visa and plane tickets. Let’s fly!
Morning roads
After about 13 hours of flying, I arrived at Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris, France on a winter night, marking my first visit to the European land that I had fallen in love with after watching the romantic scenes in the movie "Before Sunset" of the couple Jesse and Celine.
6:30 am, I opened my eyes. Partly because I forgot to turn off the alarm clock to wake me up for work, partly because I was used to the sleep. I was so excited that I sat up and looked outside… it was dark. “Ah, ah, that’s right, I’m in Paris!” - I said to myself and continued to pull the blanket up to cover myself and sleep a little more. When I heard the rustling sound of my American roommate, I also jumped up. I greeted him a bit and then went to the toilet to do the things I had to do every morning. Smelling nice and clean, I put on another layer of clothes, put on the down jacket I bought at the Russian market. Sprayed a few times my favorite 212 perfume. Let’s go out and explore Paris!
In front of where I live is a park full of dry leaves with rows of trees that have lost all their leaves. I inhale the cold smell of winter, the smell of morning dew, the sweet Chanel Allure scent of the girl who just passed by, the smell of smoke from the guys smoking to warm themselves up, the musty smell that the "party kids" last night probably "exhaled" into the tree next to the chair I was sitting on...
The sun is up, let's keep wandering!
I kept walking on the streets whose names I would never remember, just admiring what was in front of me: the walls covered in cool graffiti, the wide streets with only a few people, the rows of bare trees... and absorbed in the quiet morning of Paris.
Paris is so funny!
In front of me now is the largest and most famous fountain in Paris - Saint Michel (Le Fontaine Saint Michel) located on Place Saint-Miche, completed in 1860. If I have a chance to come back, I will sit at a cafe with small tables outside, sip a cup of cafe au lait, eat a croissant to be "stylish" about French breakfast, then watch the people passing by this place. After admiring this place enough, I will take the metro straight to the Metro Champ de Mars/Tour Eiffel station.
This train was so strange, it had two floors (the first time I saw it), it looked cleaner and more interesting than the train I took from the airport. With great interest, I climbed up to the upper floor to feel the difference. Suddenly I heard the sound of a violin, I looked around and saw a man playing the violin at the end of the train, playing the violin while walking back so that… anyone who liked could put some coins in his pocket. Paris is so funny, I have never seen this scene on a train.
Arriving at the station, I followed the signs to the Eiffel Tower. Standing at the exit to the ground, I looked up... A beautiful scene appeared before my eyes with a blue sky, dotted with white clouds, a railing with an old moss green color and a typical "Metro here" signpost around France. It took me a whole minute just to admire that poetic scene.
The Eiffel Tower was breathtakingly beautiful and truly gigantic when I approached the foot of the tower and looked up to admire it. With a height of 324 m, the Eiffel Tower is currently the tallest building in France. But the interesting thing is that in winter, the Eiffel Tower becomes "shorter" by 10 - 20 cm because of the contraction of the steel when exposed to such low temperatures.
Basically, the Eiffel Tower is beautiful, but what's around makes it even more beautiful in the cold winter weather. I like the paintings sold on the sidewalks, I like the sketchers who sell them for 10 euros/painting, I also like the dirt road next to the Eiffel Tower. Looking at people holding hands, cuddling makes me so jealous! It's not the first time I've traveled alone, it's not the first time I've seen people cuddling in front of me, but in this country, in this weather, in this space, I feel... so much love and longing!
I boarded the Bateaux Parisens cruise ship to cruise on the legendary Seine River because this is the fastest way to see famous places in Paris such as the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame Cathedral, d'Orsay Museum... in about an hour. Each seat in the train cabin has headphones with many languages for you to choose from and listen to introductions about the places you will pass by. I like the open space so I climbed up on the roof of the train to sit and watch the scenery and... shiver because it was too cold. It is said to be one hour for each trip, but time on the train passed very quickly. I don't know if it was because my mind was moved or for some reason, but "in a flash" I was back to the starting point...
The Heart of Romance
For some reason, my phone, which had a lot of old French music stored in it, accidentally played the famous song “Belle” from the musical “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” while I was wandering along the Seine River. In the distance was the spire of the world-famous Notre-Dame de Paris (at that time, this magnificent church had not yet caught fire).
There was always a line of people lining up at the side of the church, waiting for their turn to enter the gate to climb up to the roof of the church. Seeing the city from above is always something that attracts me whenever I come to a strange city. Standing in line in the cold weather, moving step by step, longing for a hand to hold like the briefcase standing in front of me. It took more than 40 minutes for my turn to enter the gate.
The path up is quite small and spiral, just enough for one person, if not careful you can slip and fall or get dizzy. After climbing about 387 steps, before I could catch my breath, I was overwhelmed by the beauty of Paris from above. So beautiful! I kept praising what was in front of me. Every corner of the church has half-human, half-animal chimera statues that are both architectural highlights and drainage systems. Perhaps the most photographed statue is “la stryge” - a creature with bird wings on its back, its hand resting its chin like a human, looking into the distance, very absorbed in the beauty of Paris. If it weren’t for the large crowd in a cramped space, I would probably have stood still, resting my chin like “la stryge” and admired the beautiful city of Paris.
And this is also the place I visited most often in Paris. I visited almost every day, sometimes in the morning, sometimes in the evening - just to admire the beauty of the church at different times. I was attracted by the empty yard in front of the church where flocks of pigeons flew up and then landed under the direction of the old man controlling the pigeons; fascinated by the small stalls selling paintings of churches, prints of famous people of the past, old and rare books; watching wandering artists paint colorful pictures of Paris; or visiting the Shakespeare & Company bookstore - an interesting English bookstore in the middle of Paris, where you can find rare books and is also a familiar setting in many famous movies such as "Before Sunset", "Midnight in Paris"...
I wandered around the streets around this place to see if I was lost in Paris like Gil in “Midnight in Paris”. The Champs-Elysées is famous for its bustling crowds and brightly lit shops along both sides of the street. I climbed the old stairs to the top of the Arc de Triomphe in the center of the Étoile square and had a panoramic view of the surrounding streets, the Concorde square in the distance and the famous Obélisque stone column of the Luxor temple.
With slow steps, I enjoy the bone-chilling cold of the European winter. If it is too cold, I stop by famous museums like Louvre, d'Orsay... to cool down and then go out again. I prefer to walk on the open streets, watching other couples holding hands, hugging each other on street corners to enjoy the romance of Paris on winter days.
MORE INFORMATION
Visa:You need to apply for a Schengen visa at the French Embassy or Consulate to enter France. With a Schengen visa, you can explore other countries in the European Union (EU). However, you should note that if France is just a stop on your journey to many European countries, you must apply for a visa for the first EU country you enter.
Trip:To fly to Paris, you have many options, you can take connecting flights to reduce costs or fly direct to save time. The direct flight time is about 13 hours.
Transportation:To save money and time, you should buy a Paris Pass according to the number of days you plan to stay in Paris so you can take the metro, high-speed train and visit tourist attractions without paying any extra fees. Some places even have their own entrances so you don't have to queue.
Weather:European winters are very cold, temperatures can drop to -10 degrees Celsius and some places will have snow.
Accommodation:Paris is one of the most famous tourist cities in the world, so the hotel system is very diverse. However, the hotel rooms here are quite expensive, about 1.2 million VND/night for a normal room.
Cuisine:Considered the culinary quintessence of the world, French cuisine is worth enjoying, even though it is quite expensive. If you do not have enough financial ability to taste luxurious meals at fancy restaurants, there are still many popular dishes at affordable prices that contribute to the reputation of French cuisine that you should enjoy such as: croissant, croque monsieur, macaron, Madeleines...
Skin:If you travel to Europe in winter, you need to prepare enough warm clothes, including: thermal clothes, normal clothes and a thick warm coat, gloves, thick socks...
Money:France uses the common European currency, the euro. Each euro is worth about 26,100 VND.
Other notes:
- Visa/Mastercard cards are very popular so always carry your card with you for convenient payment when needed.
- If you intend to explore other countries in the European Union, you should buy an additional Eurail Pass to save maximum travel costs.
- The trains in France are quite old and some people on the trains are quite aggressive and unfriendly. So, avoid looking sideways or up and down while on the train, wear headphones, read a book… if you don’t want to be provoked.
Reference cost:
- Round-trip airfare averages around 20 million VND for a flight with a transit leg and around 22 million VND for a direct flight to Charles de Gaulle airport.
- Each meal costs about 7-10 euros, a cold sandwich is about 5 euros, pho is about 12 euros.
