Paris, France Day 2 : October 2012

The first thing I saw on my first day in Paris was la Tour Eiffel and it was deeply overwhelming at night. I wanted to see how it is in the day and so at noon, alone, unsure, and scared, I took off with only my blazer as protection from the cold and made my way metro to metro trusting only my instinct to see the Eiffel Tower once more.

Was I lucky or what, the fountain at the Trocadero was on and so my first Paris by day tour was in full blast ! The only thing missing was a companion. I then realized, after sitting by the Trocadero with this lovely sight in front of me while I have my lunch alone, that Paris should not be discovered all alone. Solo travel could be fun in other places but definitely not in Paris. Not long after though, I got to meet with my cours d’été (summer school) friends Manu and Shital.

As the sun begins to descend, so did the temperature. I figured if I was to stay the night outside, I would need more than what I had on. I went back to Fleur’s apartment to simply get my coat, only to find Fleur back from work. I failed to see my friends from summer and instead, had dinner and a long walk in the first, second and third arrondissements with Fleur.

Fleur was the perfect companion. He knew about Paris like a true Parisian (he’s originally from Franche-Comté). He explained every part of the Parisian streets like a fairy tale…but in French haha !

The streets became more alive and even more beautiful with his stories. He was right, there was no better time to explore Paris than at night where its city lights bring out its beauty like no other.

He wanted to stay out later and introduce me to the other arrondissements but I just could not handle the cold any longer. I had two more days to explore the other arrondissements anyway… or so I thought…