Welcome to the part 2 of my Paris, France exploration. I visited Notre-Dame de Paris, The River Seine, and Musée du Louvre in the first part, which I loved, so, let’s see how the second part turns out.
After a rather disappointing visit to the Louvre museum, it was time to visit a place that I had seen only in pictures and movies – Pont Des Arts, we will call it the bridge with the locks. Before visiting this place, I didn’t do research on this place, because, I thought, it originated from one person putting a lock their with their and their partner’s names/initials, and then the trend picking up and spreading it with the other couples doing the same. I am a romantic person, but, not that much that I encourage putting up the locks on a bridge, causing it to oscillate up and down every time you take a step on it, causing yourself to freak out while crossing that bridge. You guessed it right, that’s what happened to me when I was checking this bridge out. The bridge stood out to me in its beauty and you could cross the River Saine with ease and the locks on the bridge looked visually appealing. Everything was going well until a group of 20 joggers showed up all at the same time. I am not sure what was going on in their mind, but, they really frightened me with their coordinated steps, causing the bridge to move in vertical motion. After those frightening couple minutes, the charm of that place was long gone and I was heading towards the next place on my list. By this time, the Sun was about to set and I could see a sliver of darkness taking over this beautiful and romantic city.
The next stop on the list was Champs-Élysées. All the luxurious shops in the world were the reason for me to visit this spot. I have chosen all these spots in such a way that I could get from one to another just by walking. I knew at the end of the day, it would be a lot of efforts for my legs, but, hey it was worth it. On my way to this street, I saw huge architectural monuments in the streets, which reminded me of the Tour de France, which takes place around Paris area on its last day. I was in awe of everything that Paris had to offer and wished I could stay for one more day, but, I knew it was coming to an end and I was looking forward to seeing Eiffel Tower at night, because, I had heard so many good stories about it. Anyway, when I got to this street, it was really dark outside, but, good thing that the street was lit up with so many lights. For the first time in my life, I saw a Renault showroom, an official PSG showroom selling all kinds of stuff, and so many luxurious showrooms selling jewelry and other lifestyle items. I was getting hungry by this time, so I looked for some food around and the only familiar place that showed up was a Five Guys. I was so happy to finally see an American fast food chain in Paris, a sophisticated city. I entered the restaurant and looked at the prices. I couldn’t believe the prices and given that I still have 2 more days in Europe, I decided to opt for something cheaper and got out of the restaurant. It didn’t seem like then, but, I did make the correct choice.
After this spot, it was finally time to see the very thing I wanted to check out in Paris – the Eiffel Tower. When I was researching how to get the best view of this magnificent architecture, I read a blog or watched a YouTube video which mentioned that instead of going to the Eiffel Tower directly, you should head to a place called Trocadora, because, this is the perfect spot from where you can get a great view of the Eiffel Tower. I trusted my research and headed to that spot, and it turned out to be the best decision I made in Paris. I can’t tell you in words how beautiful the scenery was at this place. But before I tell you the experience of this place, I must tell you that I was still hungry at this time, so, the first thing I spotted near this place was a stall selling some savory bougette sandwiches. I just grabbed one and sat down to eat it taking in all the beauty of the Eiffel Tower.
This was the moment I knew that I was surrounded by all the romantic couples, cuddling and kissing each other and here I was with my bougette. This was the first time, I felt like I should have been with someone, but, hey, I had a magnificent architecture right in front of me, so I decided to enjoy the beauty and not think about anything else. When I finished my food and was just sitting and relaxing, out of nowhere, the Eiffel Tower lit up with all the fireworks. This was something I hadn’t expected and frankly I didn’t know that that was the thing. I was pleasantly surprised at this view and only I know how many photos I clicked. That scenery was something I would never forget and has been etched into my memories forever. I think more than the view, it was the pleasant surprise that caught me off guard in a good way. Being at Trocadora gave me a perfect opportunity to capture Eiffel Tower in its entirety and I would love to relive that moment together with my special someone. The light works were wrapped up after some time. People were enjoying, having fun, holding hands, hugging, kissing and there were a few street performers too. I enjoyed listening a couple street guitarists playing some good numbers and they definitely lighten up the mood of everyone present. There was a long line to click pictures before Eiffel Tower from the Trocadaro spot, so, after waiting for 5-10 minutes, I got a chance and clicked a few pictures with this amazing view.
After the Trocadora, experience, it was time to explore this beauty from up close. There were so many Indian tourists on my way to the Eiffel Tower that for a moment, I thought, I was in India. I must tell you that this beauty gets better and better as you approach it. I couldn’t believe it was made of pure steel or whatever material when I saw it from quite far away and couldn’t believe my eyes at the height of this architecture. I was appreciating this beauty more and more when I realized it was finally time for me to head to my Airbnb and get some rest, because, by this time, I was thoroughly drained and I just wanted to laid on my bed and doze off to sleep.
As I was getting ready to leave the area and head to the metro station, I remember it was either Google Maps or some guys telling me that the metro had a strike starting midnight and it was well past midnight, so, I decided to catch a bus to an area near my Airbnb, but, that plan also didn’t work out as the buses too had a strike. With the heavy hart and tired feet, I had to walk all the way from the Eiffel Tower to my Airbnb. If I remember correctly, it took me almost 30 minutes and by the time I reached, I just crashed on the bed and slept without changing my clothes. I was 100% done for the day.
This was my tiring day in what was the most romantic city I had ever visited. Tomorrow, I return to Amsterdam to spend one more day there, before heading back to motherland the day after.
Next stop: Amsterdam, Netherlands.
stochasticity 
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