La Ville Lumière – celebrating our 1st wedding anniversary

Ahh… Paris… To me, such a beautiful romantic city, although some would argue it’s crowded, dirty, too touristy and expensive. Then again, what big city isn’t?! Also, my husband would jokingly add “Parisians themselves are the worst thing about Paris”. But whenever I’m there I try to stay centrally, not venture out to the outskirts, and really enjoy the best Paris has to offer. I love the grand, wide boulevards, street cafés and boulangeries, vast gardens and the architecture.

The weekend was HOT and the temperature kept climbing after I got back to London (it was almost 40 degrees on 1st July). We celebrated our 1st wedding anniversary there and Le Grand, an impressive boutique-style hotel where we stayed, surprised us with a bottle of champagne and a box of macaroons. Despite the heat, we managed to cover an impressive distance. We especially enjoyed the walk along Rive Gauche (Left Bank) promenade. It’s full of exciting entertainment:

• Restaurants and bars
• Running tracks
• Cabins for rental where you can chill out in deck chairs or bean bags. That seemed exceptionally nice as the heat did get a bit exhausting…

  

Both, the left and right bank of the Seine were crammed with people who managed to stay stylish and chic even in this sweltering heat :). Everything in Paris is a bit more stylish.

They even manage to make picnicking near the river a bit more stylish. London Southbank is fun and hip but somehow the Parisians do it better :). What they can’t do though, is keep their city clean. I mean:

Sunday, our 1st wedding anniversary, continued to be hot and we made an early morning walk up to Sacre Coeur. I think, leave the furnicular for people less able to walk and make the trek up yourself, it’s not that bad. Also, it is worth getting there early in the summer as the hill gets absolutely packed with tourists  and selfie sticks.   I might add that I was given a selfie stick as a birthday present this year and I still haven’t used it because I’m a bit embarrassed to. It might make its way out on our holiday in Cornwall and Cotswolds next week. Might… Here’s a selfie without a stick:

The hill behind Sacré Coeur is filled with cute little streets and Place du Tertre is a lovely square for resting your feet. Mind you, two glasses of beer would cost you €16. Oh well, when on holiday… The day continued walking around in Montmartre and for the evening we were back on the Left Bank to enjoy the evening sun and rosé. For dinner we found this amazing restaurant on Place Vendôme – Café des Abattoirs. They have a few 3-course set menu options with various prices. Whichever you select, the starters are Chef’s choice and very good indeed. The service was casual yet professional. Interestingly, the majority of the clientele were Japanese and having a Japanese waitress certainly helps. Would like to go back to see what the surprise starter awaits us…

In conclusion, a lovely hot weekend indeed. I got to travel in style – thanks to my husband travelling all the time he can upgrade me to business premier on Eurostar ;). And where else to do it in style but in Paris. It’s worth glamming up in the evening, all Parisians look so stylish all the time. 😬🇫🇷🍷👍🏽❤️