Whirlwind Weekend in Paris

Bryan and I headed off to Paris last weekend and had a whirlwind trip of sightseeing and air travel. We started off by taking the train to the Leipzig airport. We arrived 2 hours before our flight (the first of two) and it took approximately 5 minutes to get through security, which meant we had about 2 hours to kill in an airport terminal that had a convenience store and about 5 other travelers in it. It was the most empty airport either one of us had ever seen. We had snacks (really healthy ones), watched the news, and read.

Finally some other passengers showed up and we were on our way to Frankfurt. Our flight was awesome! Luftansa treated us well and we had a ton of room. During our layover in Frankfurt we enjoyed some awesome panini sandwiches and then read some complimentary newspapers while drinking complimentary coffee. Seriously, guys, Luftansa is where it's at! We finally arrived in Paris at about 11 p.m. on Friday night.

We were planning on taking the train to Paris directly from the airport, but part of the track was closed, so we took a bus to a train station and went from there. We stayed with Bryan's friend Cecile; her apartment was in a great part of town and had a view of the Eiffel Tower from the street. By the time we got to her apartment, we were grateful to sit down on a comfortable couch!

We were up early Saturday for a French breakfast at a nearby cafe. Croissants, bread, and coffee were necessary fuel for the day ahead. We crammed all of the must see sights of Paris into one day. It was intense and definitely a cardiovascular workout!

The sights:

Eiffel Tower:

Arc de Triumph:

Leading up to the Arc de Triumph is the Champs-Élysées, which is the Michigan Avenue of Paris, only a lot nicer and expensive. However, everything is expensive in Paris. From there we went to the Alexander III Bridge, which is one of the nicest bridges anywhere. 

 

Garden of the Louvre:

Then, it was time for lunch. I tried foie gras,but I wasn't a big fan. After lunch, there were more sights to see.

Moulin Rouge (which is in a shady part of town):

Sacré-Cœur Basilica and Montmartre:

Notre Dame and the Seine:

After all of the sightseeing, we took another ride on the Metro, ate dinner, and hit the Irish pubs around town until the wee hours of the morning. We were exhausted on Sunday, but managed to have another excellent French breakfast and visit the Eiffel tower one more time before heading to the airport. Paris is a beautiful city and we are so glad that we were able to visit, but it is also an incredibly expensive city. Returning to our adopted German city was a relief to our bank accounts! I would recommend a visit to Paris for any traveler. There is so much history and so many beautiful areas; we didn't have the time to completely explore, but we gave it our best effort!

We had another layover in Munch and were delayed due to some severe thunderstorms in the area. We flew to Leipzig on a tiny propeller plane and then collapsed due to exhaustion!

Here is a final Paris photo for you:

This weekend is the only weekend we won't be traveling from Leipzig. Bryan is under the weather, so we plan on enjoying a relaxing weekend in Leipzig, possibly visiting the zoo and Bach's church and watching USA play in the Women's World Cup Finals!