We kicked off our five year anniversary trip to Paris by hoping on a plane out of Sacramento via IcelandAir/Alaska Airlines that took us to Seattle, to Iceland, and then finally to Paris (we also hit Iceland and Seattle each for two nights on the way home). Between the time distance and travel we arrived sometime the next day. We did our best to try to adjust our bodies to the time change, but in reality I was just too excited.
The flights went well and we did not have any issues. And with each just a carry on, we traveled light. We got off the RER (the Paris train) literally to the doorstep of our hotel, Citadines Tour Eiffel Paris. For not having any experience with traveling in Paris, my research and our intuition got us successfully to our hotel. But let me tell you, as first timers it was a little scary and nerve racking at times. We clung to our luggage (for pickpocketers) and hoped for the best.
And we were quite delighted to settle in to our hotel, breathing a sigh of relief, that we successfully made it to Paris!
And because I was so meticulous about staying in a hotel near the Eiffel Tower, wherever would we go on our first day? The Eiffel Tower of course!
We headed out to the streets of Paris for a short walk to the Eiffel Tower. The french people, the cafes, the flowers...I was in heaven.
We walked through the Champ de Mars to get there, stopping every so often to take pictures.
Which we then finally arrived.
We took so many pictures, videos, and a few photos on my phone to Instagram later. It was completely crazy and surreal to be there. As the days went on, being in Paris began to feel normal. But that first moment of seeing the Eiffel Tower just hours after getting off of our plane was completely unreal.
When we finally finished taking photos of ourselves (and I apologize in advance, there are a ton more to come!) we headed over to see it up close.
While my heart longed to continue lingering the streets of Paris, my jet lagged husband did not share my same enthusiasm! We had a full day planned the next day to see the Eiffel Tower so we headed back to our hotel for a little nap.
We later headed out to dinner at a restaurant by our hotel. It was quiet and empty as the Parisians do not eat dinner as early as these 5 o'clock old people dinner eaters!
But they were very welcoming as we sat in the corner and shared our pizza.
As we finished our first day of Paris I was overwhelmed by all that we saw in just a short few hours. Watching the children play in the park and walking side by side a sea of black clothing, I could not help but wonder what life is like to live in this different country as well as found myself desiring to jump right in and pretend I was a part of it. I know when traveling other people's lives seem to appear to have a slower pace. But I wanted to take note of what we saw and experienced to take home with me.
A beautiful first glimpse of Paris, we feel fast asleep, dreaming of what was yet to come.
