We’ll always have Paris…

So Day Two was our mother-daughter adventure – here we come, Mona Lisa!! Ajey and I have both been to the Louvre several times, and Ajey was only too happy to sit this one out – gave him a free morning to enjoy our Parisian pied-à-terre! Back to the Metro – straight to the Musée du Louvre! Now didn’t know this – but there is a shopping mall actually located in the palace right next to the museum – and once we walked past all the fancy shops, Manasi and I were actually right inside the glass pyramid – well, not the big one, one of the smaller inverted ones – but right there, the entrance to the museum! A brief moment of euphoria – we thought we had somehow found a loophole, a shortcut to avoid the long lines outside – but, alas – no such luck! The line outside wasn’t as bad as yesterday afternoon and was moving relatively briskly, and after a cursory baggage check, we were back inside – under the right pyramid this time!

3 wings of the palace – and 4 levels to each wing, the Louvre is a sprawling treasure house of art! Most tourists hit the 3 most well-known – the world’s most famous painting, La Joconde, better known as Mona Lisa, and the marble statues of the Venus de Milo and the Winged Victory – those are also the most crowded exhibits! The Mona Lisa, in particular – you have to literally fight your way through a mob to catch a glimpse of that enigmatic smile! To be honest, there are other paintings in the Louvre that are far more magnificent – my favorite, hands down is the ‘Crowning of Empress Josephine’ – and the galleries themselves are true works of art! Manasi had also done her research though – first on her list was an exquisite sculpture, ‘Cupid and Psyche’ – and the ethereal grace of this sculpture left me truly spell-bound! We finished our visit by walking through the sumptuous apartments of Napoleon III – jaw-dropping, astounding grandeur – must have been good to be Emperor!!

I don’t think I mentioned it – but for our trip, we only had bought the roaming phone/data package for Ajey’s phone – there’s WiFi everywhere anyway, and we hadn’t anticipated doing anything separately. So the plan after our Louvre visit was for us to head back to the Lourmel Metro station near our apartment, and Ajey would wait for us in a nearby café at 1pm. Going old-school here, and Manasi just could not wrap her head around the fact that this was how we lived pre-cellphones, pre-check-in-every-minute – pick a place and time, and believe it or not, it all worked out! Sure enough, there was Ajey – enjoying an espresso, right outside the station! Next on Manasi’s agenda was a baguette and cheese picnic at the Champ de Mars, while gazing upon the Eiffel Tower – but the weather was still drizzly. Added a quick detour to an Indian restaurant – had forgotten the absolute deliciousness of cheese naan in France! – and then it was back to the Tour de Eiffel!

Even with the slight drizzle, it was a very enjoyable walk – in the opposite direction today – from Champ de Mars to Trocadero, stopping for a million pictures on the way! Manasi also bought a quintessential red beret, and then the photos were even better! The trend these days is to get the absolutely perfect picture – and everywhere we’ve seen people taking extraordinary risks to get that one million dollar shot! At the Eiffel Tower, it wasn’t enough to pose at the base of the tower or in the gardens around it – the must-have shot was on the bridge, in considerable traffic – there’s not even a median – you’re literally standing in the middle of the road. And although Manasi got some cute photos – I definitely do not recommend this at all – my heart was in my mouth the entire time these two were out there! Even more dangerous -at the Trocadero fountains, there was a literally a line of people waiting to step onto a narrow ledge between the fountains – very wet, quite slippery, lots of construction, with a sharp drop if you happened to lose your footing – no thank you!! I think my photos – taken with all necessary safety precautions – are good enough to hold their own anywhere – including the holding-the-tip-of-tower photo!

At Trocadero Square, we were headed to a very special place – one more TikTok find – Carette, for the best hot chocolate in the world! And not 48 hours after the Dishoom episode where I had sworn I was never again standing in line to get into a restaurant – here we were, back in line to get into Carette – thankfully, wasn’t as bad as before! It was pretty special – the chocolate came in a little pot, with an absolutely humongous bowl of whipped cream – the real deal, no Cool Whip this! Yes, it was very good. Best in the world, though?!! A short walk away from Carette is Avenue de Camoens – rumored to have the bestest view of the Eiffel Tower in all of Paris! To be honest, walking in the neighborhoods in the area, the Eiffel Tower peaks out between almost all the buildings – add the flowers in the street, the gorgeous architecture, and there’s a ‘perfect’ view almost at every crossroads. Nevertheless, if Av. de Camoens has the best view, then how could we miss that!

It was turning out to be a beautiful evening – and even though we had made it through all of Manasi’s itinerary for the day, we still lingered by the river – just drinking it all in. And then Ajey had an absolutely fantastic idea – why not go on a river cruise! There are several ferries that operate from the marina at the foot of the Eiffel Tower – we literally chose the closest one that was ready to depart in a few minutes. It wasn’t very expensive – the one we were on was a regular sight-seeing cruise, about 15 euros, 5 euros more if you wanted a glass of champagne on the boat. There are also longer dinner cruises which would probably run a little higher. The cruise was the best way to end the day – the slight breeze on the water, the cloudy sky giving way to a gorgeous sunset and the dazzling lights of Paris! Truly, doesn’t get any better than this!

Our last day in Paris – and we still had one important thing left to be checked off Manasi’s list! Climbing to the top of the Eiffel Tower!! Again, a lot had changed here – last we visited, we could walk straight to the door of the tower to the ticket windows, ant then stand in line, maybe about 20 minutes to get to an elevator. Now a huge barricade marks the periphery, there is advance booking for tickets and the only way in is through a bag search and a metal detector. Plan ahead if you want to take the elevators – the tickets sell out many days before! Or climb up the stairs to the 2nd level, and then take the elevator to the top! Having checked out that morning, we were hauling our luggage around – so I opted out out the climb – my turn to chill on a park bench with a book and the view! Unfortunately, the very top 3rd level was closed that day, but Manasi and Ajey climbed up to the 2nd level – and took a picture at almost the same spot we had stood at on her 1st birthday!

Back on the ground, beware of the scammers – there are seemingly innocent young people who walk up to you and ask for a signature on a petition for a cause – anything from ‘Save the Whales’ to ‘Prevent Domestic Abuse’. As soon as you sign, they turn aggressive and demand money as a ‘donation’. The more interesting one was the ‘cup’ game – three cups with a ball hidden under one. The three cups are shuffled rapidly, and then you guess where the ball is. Of course, to reel in a mark, there’s an accomplice in the crowd who bets 100 euros, guessed the correct location, and doubles his money! Seems lucrative, right? Once someone makes a real bet though – the ball is removed skillfully, making it impossible to win! It’s a pity, though – because for so many visitors, this is a trip of a lifetime – and unfortunate incident like this could cast a shadow on the entire experience. So beware, and remember – if something sounds too good to be true, it probably isn’t!

The area around Rue de l’Universite and Av. Rapp has tons of restaurants and souvenir shops – and as we were browsing, we accidentally stumbled upon the the second best view of the Eiffel Tower – not second-best, but also the best, but second location we saw – I know, it’s confusing! Anyway, here it was, Rue de Monttessuy – there was this beautiful flower shop at the start of the street, and the lush, abundant blossoms were straight out of ‘Mrs. Harris goes to Paris’! Lunch was at a pizzeria around the corner. We still had a few more hours before we had to head to the airport, so we took a taxi to the very last thing on Manasi’s ‘maybe’ list – Jardin de Luxembourg. Built in the Italian style, the Luxembourg Palace is surrounded by beautiful gardens – lots of shade and plenty of walkways, too – and a large pond surrounded by benches and chairs. This is the perfect place to relax with a book, bring a picnic or simply rest your feet! Added attraction? The RER C has a stop right outside – making it very easy for us to get to the airport!

More than 15 years later, Paris once again enthralled us. So different and yet, still eternally the same! So many more tourists – and even more surprising the locals being tolerant, even welcoming of the tourists! I remember our attempts to speak French met with haughty disdain, and English met with stubborn incomprehension – and now – everyone, everywhere switching to English at the drop of a hat! Although a relief, I must say, I did miss the attitude – it’s what makes France so French after all!! In an astonishing feat, Manasi was able to check every single thing off her list – we really cranked up those miles, hitting almost 30,000 steps on the Louvre day! But so completely worth it to see the joy on her face!! And no matter where life takes us next, one thing is certain – we’ll always have Paris!