Solo Wondering in Paris!

I never thought I would say this, but I’m ready to come home. I have left Paris and I’m now en route to Bruges, Belgium. One of my connecting trains arrived 10 minutes late and I missed my last train to Bruges. So I am stuck at the train station for the next few hours. Overall my trip has been amazing, but at this point the missing trains/getting lost/nobody speaking English has lost its glamour. I’m more than ready to see my family, friends, bed and country!

Okay, my rant is over. Now I must tell you about beautiful Paris! After getting much needed rest in Switzerland I arrived to Paris on Monday super energized and ready to see as much as I could. When the receptionist at my hostel gave me the map of Paris I quickly learned just how big this city is. As this was my first time in Paris, I of course made the Eiffel Tower my first stop. You can either pay €4 to take the stairs or €13 to take the elevator. Anyone that knows me knows that I love a bargain and €13 to take an elevator ride is certainly not a bargain! So I took the 40 flights of stairs to the second floor of the tower and boy was it a breathtaking view of Paris from up there!

After taking the journey back down the stairs, I walked around the Champs de Mars, which is the park in front of the Eiffel Tower. There were a lot of people but I was starting to feel like I was the only person there alone. Traveling solo undoubtedly has its pros and cons but this time was one of the more discouraging ones. In a crowd of people I noticed a guy that looked about my age that was also alone and speaking English. I immediately walked over his way and started up a conversation. Before long we were exploring the streets of Paris together. Damon is from San Francisco and is actually on his 20^th month of traveling! He has been Couchsurfing for close to two years while visiting over 40 countries. For those of you that don’t know what “Couchsurfing” is, it is basically a network of people that share their couches with travelers for a night or two. It’s a great way to save money on accommodation, get to know the locals and have a genuine experience wherever you are. I do have a profile but I have yet to use it. The website also has “Couchsurfing Meet-ups” in every city. Damon was headed to a meet-up at a pub close by and invited me to come along. After getting majorly lost for a couple of hours, we finally found the pub and spent the rest of the evening hanging out with over 100 Couchsurfers. I was having such a good time that I forgot to snap some photos! But it was definitely an amazing experience!

I arrived back to my hostel quite late so I attempted to get ready for bed in the dark so I wouldn’t wake anyone up. During my attempt to “be quiet” I flung my phone from my top bunk to the bottom bunk, where a large, older woman was sound asleep. I’m not sure why I thought this was a good idea but I began searching for it. She must have felt my hands in her bed and quickly woke up. I started to explain what happened and she said “No, I don’t think so” and fell back asleep. I figured I would just wait until the morning so I got back into bed. And then I realized I needed to go to the bathroom. I didn’t want to disrupt her again so I decided to jump from my top bunk onto the floor, completely disregarding the chandelier hanging in front of me. As I jumped I smacked my head on the light fixture VERY hard. Within seconds the chandelier was hitting the ceiling and I was on the floor.  When I finally got back into bed this woman under me was snoring so loud it sounded as if she was hanging on for dear life. I didn’t get a wink of sleep that night but I did find my phone the next morning – in her bed, under the blankets. I requested a room change for the following night.

Despite my lack of sleep I woke up at a decent time and went out to explore the city. I was supposed to meet up with Damon again but we just couldn’t get on the same wavelength so I found myself solo yet again! I’m not going to lie, strolling the streets of Paris alone was a very gratifying experience and I loved every second of it. I indulged in a French treat every time I passed a pastry shop, took a tour of Notre Dame, walked along the Seine and visited some more famous sights. For dinner I went to a traditional French restaurant and had probably the best meal I’ve eaten yet! I started with Medaillon de Bloc de Foie Gras de Canard and then Tartiflette and finished with Tarte Tatin.

I had plans to explore more of the city but I found myself in food-coma after this meal and decided it was best to head back to the hostel. I got a good night’s sleep and started my day bright and early! I will be in Bruges for one night, Amsterdam for two nights and then back to Dublin for a couple of days before my flight leaves on Monday to come HOME!

                                                         Notre Dame 

Although my shoulders hurt, my feet are throbbing, I haven’t had a proper shower in weeks and I’m overall just exhausted, I am going to suck it up and enjoy my last few days in Europe! A week form now I will be relaxing on my parent’s couch sipping my coffee and being waited on hand and foot, right mom? =)