Category: Travel

Paris! I loved the City of Light more than I even expected to, and I was expecting to really love it! I guess I was most impressed with the beautiful architecture of the city and its fashionable residents. It was also easy to get around via the subway system and I felt like everyone was friendly and welcoming.

Since Paris was our final stop, we splurged on a slightly nicer hotel in the Rue Cler district near the Eiffel Tower. I was so thrilled that we could see the Eiffel Tower from our room!

We were hungry when we got in and could not resist trying the Bedford Ave Brooklyn Diner right on our hotel’s street. It was funny to be eating in a Brooklyn-themed restaurant, but the burgers were actually great. From there we headed straight to the Eiffel Tower to walk around its gardens. (And take too many photos.)

We started our first full day in Paris at the Louvre. I have always dreamed of going to the Louvre. But I was also nervous. After being a little overwhelmed and disappointed by the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, I was afraid the Louvre might make me feel the same way. Plus, everyone talks about the Louvre being way too big and hard to navigate. But I shouldn’t have worried. I LOVED the Louvre. I was so happy to be there.

We spent about four hours wandering around the museum, from the Mona Lisa, to the French painters, to the Egyptian and Near East collections, to the Medieval moat. I wish I could have seen the Winged Victory, but it was out for conservation.

Thankfully, I didn’t really feel overwhelmed. The museum was crowded, but there was a lot more room for everyone to spread out, so I didn’t feel boxed in or overwhelmed. The entire complex was lovely and clean and easy to navigate. And ALL the BEST art! Did I mention I loved the Louvre?!

After the Louvre, we headed to Angelina for hot chocolate. We’d heard the line for the famous cafe would be long, but we actually got to walk right in and be seated. We had a delicious lunch, plus the hot chocolate and their signature dessert. Yum!

Next we walked down the Avenue des Champs-Élysées (with a stop at Fauchon for macarons) to the Arc de Triomphe.

We climbed to the top and took in the panoramic views of the city. So amazing! (I took a few iPhone panorama shots like the one seen above.) After getting our fill of the city views, we went to a delicious and lovely dinner at Les Cocottes near our hotel… and then zzzzzZZZZZZ.

Our second day in Paris turned out to be May Day, a major French holiday, which meant most sites were closed. It was also raining. Ick. But we tried to make the best of it. We took the train out to Versailles.

The palace was closed but we were able to walk around the grounds and gardens, which were huge! We couldn’t help but compare Versailles to Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna. Both were gigantic, gilded, and beautiful.

Before we left for our Europe trip, I booked one of our most touristy and most anticipated activities: Dinner at the Eiffel Tower! We felt a little dorky, the dinner was pricey, and the food wasn’t incredible, but we had a lot of fun. There was a diverse mix of diners at the restaurant (tourists from all over the world!) and the staff was very nice and accommodating.

After our relaxed two-hour dinner, we got to go out and explore the Tower. The restaurant was on the first level, but we were able to take the stairs up to the second level. It was after 11 pm and it sort of felt like we had the Tower to ourselves! We took a bunch of photos and then managed to buy two of the last elevator tickets to the very top. It was scary at the top of the Tower — so high! — but it was also magical. It was raining, but I didn’t mind. It was romantic to be up in the Tower at night with Travis. We even caught the final sparkling Eiffel Tower light show on our way back down the Tower. I loved it! So sparkly! Such a perfect night.

On our very final day in Paris, the very final full day of our European trip, we did a lot of strolling around the city. After a stop at the too-crowded Museum d’Orsay, we headed to lunch at the famous cafe, Les Deux Magots. It was charming sitting out on the covered patio watching the fashionable Parisians walk by. For dessert, Travis took me to Pierre Herme for absolutely delicious macarons and chocolates. Such a fancy, perfect shop!

We continued on to Notre Dame. It was crowded as well, so we opted out of going inside. We wandered around outside the cathedral, avoided pick-pockets, took photos, and continued on to Île Saint-Louis for ice cream at Berthillon. I had the roasted pineapple and basil flavor. Very unique and good!

We finally made our way back to the d’Orsay where the lines were a little shorter. We got inside just in time to do a sprint, one-hour viewing of the huge Impressionist museum. The converted train station building was impressive. We saw many Monets!

A little dinner near our hotel, and that was it for our grand European adventure! So much sight-seeing exhausted me. Travis and I had a lovely, romantic, fun, relaxing, exhilerating month traveling together and it was sad that our trip was over, but I was also tired and ready to get home to Crusher. Au revoir, Paris! I’d love to return and see more of the city someday!

————

We are STILL working on compiling our photo highlight album, but I did manage to put together a complete set of all of our Selfies of Europe. Check us out at all the major sights!

————

Read Travis’ posts about Paris HERE, HERE, and HERE.

————

Prior to our trip, we had grand plans of traveling to the Berner Oberland in Switzerland and getting to the top of the Jungfrau… but we hadn’t totally looked into April weather in the high Alps. The temperature is still in the teens and they are still getting snow. We didn’t pack for those types of conditions, so we changed our plans to make a lower key (and lower altitude) stop in Lausanne, Switzerland.

We didn’t have much on our Swiss itinerary, just view the alps, eat fondue, and change out our Euros for a few Swiss Francs. Success on all fronts!!

The weather was overcast and rainy, so I didn’t take many photos, but Lausanne was lovely, fancy, and sophisticated. Very quaint and clean, with an adorable subway system. The population of Lausanne is only 132,000 and it is one of the smallest cities in the world that has an underground subway system. They speak French in Lausanne, but German, Italian, and English are also common. We had a bit of trouble code-switching to French, even with our very limited set of conversational phrases. Travis is much better at languages than I am.

Our hotel, Agora Swiss Night, was cool and modern. It had all kinds of fun Swiss details, like the cuckoo clocks seen above, plus fun rooms and pretty good interent.

Because the weather was icky, we didn’t do too much in Lausanne. We only had one full day there and we spent it relaxing and eating. We went to a California-themed restaurant for lunch called the Luncheonette Cafe. We thought it was funny to be at an American restaurant, but more than that, we were craving vegetables. Eating in train stations makes you miss healthy food! We downed a giant salad and burrito quickly! It was exactly what we needed.

For dinner we sought out the best, traditional fondue in the city. Travis found Pinte Besson, a 200+ year-old tavern with some of the best-rated fondue in town. We shared a cheese fondue and a sausage dish. It was HEAVY, but absolutely delicious.

And other than mailing a few postcards, that was about it for our trip to Switzerland. Most of our Alps mountain views were seen from the train to and from Lausanne. I’d love to go back some day and actually hike in the higher Alps!

Read Travis’ post about Switzerland HERE.

Florence is a beautiful and elegant city. It might be the opposite of Naples. The population feels older, fancier, and more sophisticated. There are designer shops all over the city center, not to mention the amazing museums and churches!

It had been a life long dream of mine to visit the Uffizi Gallery and to climb the dome of the Florence Duomo.

On our first afternoon in Florence, we went straight to the Duomo. It is so beautiful, with its pastel colors and intricate decoration. The giant octagonal dome was higher and wider than any that had ever been built in the 15th century and it is still a marvel.

I couldn’t wait to climb to the top of the dome! (We bought the expensive, but worthwhile, Firenze Cards and were able to skip the very long general ticket line.) The climb was long, with more than 400 steps in very narrow, slanting stairways, but it was thrilling!

The view exceeded my expectations! It was amazing. The red tile roofs of Florence spread out all around us and we could see the green hills and even the Alps in the distance. Once again, we were blessed with perfect weather and a very clear day. I was so happy on top of the dome!

On day two in Florence, our Firenze Cards once again saved us from the major line at the Uffizi Gallery, but it couldn’t save us from the crowds within the museum! Prior to visiting I thought the Uffizi might be my most favorite museum in the world, but instead I felt frustrated and overwhelmed inside. It was extremely crowded, hot, and it was difficult to find/see all of the masterpieces. Also, no photos inside the Uffizi. Boo!

Despite the crowds, it WAS lovely to see so many Renaissance paintings. I especially loved the Raphaels, like this Madonna of the Goldfinch. But I didn’t spend as much time in the Uffizi as I expected.

We also went to the Academia to check out Michelangelo’s David. It is huge! Seventeen feet tall! You weren’t allowed to take photos, but I snuck a quick one. There were big crowds at the Academia as well, but the Firenze Card allowed us to get in quickly. The David is so large it is easy to appreciate it even while surrounded by hundreds of other viewers.

It was fun to just stroll around Florence. I loved crossing over the Ponte Vecchio bridge over the Arno River. We grabbed sandwiches three times from I Due Fratellini, a little sandwich and wine stand near the Duomo. They were so quick and tasty. We also loved our dinner at Trattoria 4 Leoni and gelato from Gelateria Vivaldi. So good!

Overall, Florence was lovely, but I think I was overwhelmed by the tourist crowds and I don’t know if I totally absorbed it all or explored it to its fullest extent in only two days. Oh well, I will just have to return!

Read Travis’ posts about Florence HERE and HERE.