Europe Travelogue - Paris Day 1

Itinerary for Day 1

• Zürich to Paris CDG Airport
• Eiffel Tower
• Notre Dame Cathedral
• Lourve Museum

Hey all, before 2013 ends, I better churn out all my travelogue entries before I forget them lol!

Here's the entry for Day 1 of my trip to Paris at the end of November this year :D

Actually my main aim for going to Paris was for Infinite's concert 'One Great Step' on 1 December at Olympia Hall.

I was really feeling damn upset that I couldn't attend any One Great Step concerts because they came to Singapore in October when I was in Germany.

So I tried to search for their Europe stops - I mean I'm in freaking Europe so.... just go even though I'll be going alone.

And Paris was the only stop on a weekend (I mean... wow, Wednesday night in London for a concert is just so shit. I have to take so many days leave just to go for it please! Chao Woollim! *waves fist*).

So yeah I took Friday off and left on an early flight from Zürich to Paris CDG airport.

Selca in the morning hehe

My lovely host Eva sent me to the nearest train station at 6am so that I didn't have to walk in the dark and cold. She even made me breakfast, mad love her.

Airline of the day was Swiss Air! It was quite cheap for my ticket to and fro Paris - 88CHF to Paris and 85CHF back to Zürich.

Quite cheap in my opinion, didn't expect it to be so cheap given that it included 20kg of baggage already and taxes.

Breakfast served on the flight

Flight was pleasant and comfortable! :)

We reached Paris in about 45 minutes so it was an extremely short flight - kinda like from Singapore to KL by plane.

It's my 2nd time in Paris so far, the last being 13 years ago when I was 11 years old.

That time we took a bus from Switzerland to Paris so I hadn't been to any of their airports before.

CDG's Terminal 1 is very simple, not as fantastic as Changi Airport but I can't really complain.

As long as my baggage comes out on time and intact can already haha.

Went to Relay (a convenience store) when I exited to get a prepaid simcard.

I'd read online previously about people buying Lebara simcards there in Relay for use in France and since I was also using Lebara in Switzerland I thought they'd be quite good in terms of their network in France too.

Same company shouldn't be that bad right?

Wah lau I was so damn wrong please!

I paid 9,90€ for the simcard with 7,50€ credit inside and 100MB free data.

Used my nano sim cutter to cut into the nano sim because it's only available in the normal sim or micro sim card.

Activated the number via the internet (CDG only offers 15 mins free wifi!! take note!!).

Then I waited... and waited... and waited...

After 20 minutes still not activated so I gave up and left to catch the train into Paris city area because I had to find my friend Carol during her lunch time.

So on the train (45 mins to Paris' Gare du Nord map here) I kept waiting for it to activate. My Swiss Lebara sim card activated on the spot the moment it was registered when I bought it so I was very frustrated when it wasn't activated at all because I couldn't contact Carol at all.

And despite being stuck on the train for an extra 30 mins on top of the 45 min journey because the train just stalled there wtf, it still hadn't activated then.

So I had no choice but to use my SG sim card to contact Carol and because of that I had incurred quite alot of extra phone costs.

/FLIP TABLE AT LEBARA FR/

Finally met Carol at République station and she brought me for lunch.

We had duck steak in a tiny bar but the fries were... so yummy!

Plus the lunch set came with a glass of wine and the rucola salad was just to die for to be honest!

I loved the fries in Paris - it was always flavoured with spices - yummy like hell! :D

She went back to work while I left my luggage in her office and I went off to explore on my own.

Bloody YOLO I tell you - I've never travelled on my own much and this trip to Europe has just made me step out of my own comfort zone to take on challenges that I never thought I would ever do.

Heck,  prior to this trip I've never met Carol in person before - she's Xuanzhi's secondary school friend and we just chatted on LINE because I needed to find a friend in Paris once I'd decided I was going to OGS Paris. But thankfully we got on like friends who've known each other for years and I'm just really glad to make another precious friend :)

Ok, too much digression.

First stop - Eiffel Tower or Tour Eiffel as the French would say!

Inside the metro - see the handle there? The doors are opened manually! Only the newer trains had automatic doors but just in case you're on an older train, remember that the doors do not open automatically wait the French laugh at you lol.

I alighted at Trocadéro station because when you exited from Exit 1, you'll get an awesome view of the tower even though technically the nearest metro station is Bir-Hakeim station.

Sortie means 'exit' in French

It was sooooo gloomy the weather booooo D:

Bonjour Tour Eiffel! I'm here :)

Walked down towards the tower to get a closer look while the rain drizzled on me. My luck with shitty weather OTL

The River Seine where you can take a boat ride and see all of Paris' icons

Didn't ride it because the weather was crap plus it was a round trip so if I boarded near the Eiffel Tower, it would end at the Eiffel Tower. Plan was to go from Eiffel Tower to Notre Dame to the Lourve so no go for the cruise haha.

Hopped onto the metro again to go to the Notre Dame Cathedral. Alighted at St-Michel Notre Dame station. By then it was getting dark already.

Went in (free entrance) and it was so filled with the presence of the Holy Spirit.

Wonderful place to go for Christians!

After that was to get to my final stop of the day - Lourve museum.

I attempted to walk there with a map in hand from Notre Dame but despite walking for damn long, I hadn't reached there.

Maybe I was just mad tired given that I had woke up at 4am that morning and all.

FYI, chao Lebara sim card was still not activated by then - I kept trying on and off, switching from SG sim card to the Lebara sim card.

It was about 5 hours after I had bought the card by then.

 

Anyway finally reached the Lourve via metro (I cheated hahah and took 1 stop) Musee du Louvre station.

Didn't enter because... I wasn't really one for museums haha. I just went for the sake of going because... HOW CAN YOU NOT SEE THE LOURVE WHEN IN PARIS?!

I did walk around the garden area outside where you can see a tiny Eiffel Tower all lit up.

Got quite exhausted by then plus probably digested all my lunch by then haha so I went to McDonalds to have an ice cream.

Tried the Kit Kat McFlurry - not very nice :( sadded!

But nevermind, good to try all the exotic McFlurry flavours that aren't available in Asian McDonalds! 

Switzerland's has Toblerone, M&Ms and Ovomaltine flavours while Germany's one was something similar too.

Oh yeah, at McDonalds which was like 7pm by then, my sim card was finally activated -.-"

Thanks loads Lebara Fr, you officially suck!!

I went back to Carol's office to meet her and to join her with her co-workers for some wine (the French really love their wine!) and we cabbed back.

And halfway through the journey, my Lebara Fr sim card could not be read, further cementing my hatred for this bloody telecom company!

Anyway afterwards we went back to cook some gyozas for dinner before watching Heirs!

HAHAHAHA we bonded over our love of Young Do and Kim Tan along the months to be honest :P

Next day was an exciting one too, wait for my post okay! :) It involves some jewellery from a brand starting with 'C'.

Till then, as the French would say, Au revoir!