We flew to Paris from Bristol Airport with Air France on Friday afternoon. As is our tradition, the holiday started the moment we arrived at the airport. After a quick browse of the perfume counters we treated ourselves to a charcuterie platter and a couple of Bellinis while we waited for our flight to pop up on the departures board.

As we made our way through the gate, a brief moment of panic ensued when it was discovered my ticket had been booked in my married name, rather than my maiden name as it appears on my passport. I was on the verge of tears as the attendant asked me to take a seat, but luckily I was granted permission to fly and we made it on to the plane with two minutes to spare. Boy, did I need a glass of wine by the time we were up in the air!

We landed in Paris a little after 8pm and immediately hopped on the Metro using tickets purchased from Tourist Information. We stayed at the Hotel Ampere which was in a great location. Not only were we minutes away from a variety of bistros and bars, as well as Pereire station, but the Arc de Triomphe was a leisurely 15 minute walk away. We didn’t spend much time in our room, but it was clean and very comfortable.

After depositing our bags and freshening up a little we headed out for a late supper at a bistro nearby. I enjoyed a bowl of French onion soup, which tasted more delicious than I can put into words, before devouring a plate of steak frites. The service at the Royal Pereire was curt, but the food and wine more than made up for it. At around 65 Euros it was also fairly affordable by Paris’ notoriously pricey standards. We stumbled back to the hotel just before midnight and collapsed into bed, full of excitement for the following day’s adventures.

We woke at around 7am and headed out as soon as we were dressed. We stopped at a nearby boulangerie to pick up warm pain au chocolat for breakfast, before slowly making our way towards the Place Charles de Gaulle, pausing to admire the odd Space Invader along the way.

Even in the early morning drizzle, the Arc de Triomphe was awe inspiring. 

From here, we walked along the Champs-Elysees in the direction of the Place de la Concorde. It was a fair old walk for me and my broken toe, and as I found myself in desperate need of some painkillers as we approached The Louvre, I was worried I may have overdone things before we’d even begun. Luckily, there was plenty of prettiness along the way to distract me from the excruciating pain. 

We finally arrived at The Louvre, and after discovering the quieter Porte de Lions entrance was closed, we begrudgingly joined the queue in front of the pyramid and settled in for what we thought would be a long wait. We had obviously timed it just right though as we were inside and in possession of our tickets within 10 minutes or so.

I absolutely loved wandering around the gallery and could easily have spent an entire day lost among the fascinating paintings and stunning architecture. We really only scratched the surface. I was also grateful for the opportunity to sit down every now and then!

Visiting the Mona Lisa was quite an experience. I was as mesmerised by the crowds snapping away with cameras and phones as I was by the painting itself.  

With our tummies rumbling, we headed into the Carrousel du Louvre to seek out some food and decide where to head next. Carl was keen to order a ‘Royale with Cheese’ a la Pulp Fiction, so we stopped for a cheeky McDonalds before jumping on the Metro and heading in the direction of the Eiffel Tower…

Love Audrey xxx