Paris is always a good idea

I'm genuinely starting to think I have some sort of holiday-deprivation-problem; too long in one place and it sends me a little stir crazy. So I'm back to feeling super happy again as I have just got back from the most amazing trip to Paris! Me and Laura had been trying to plan a trip for ages and so earlier this year we finally booked a long weekend (Sat-Tues) in Paris, staying in an air bnb right near Gare du nord (which was such an ideal location and the apartment was lovely). When travelling, my go-to outfit of choice is culottes so on Saturday I wore these bird print ones with white t-shirt and my trusty espadrilles. PS. Can we also please appreciate my god-tier standard of meal deal choice?

We arrived in Paris early afternoon and I instantly fell in love! Every single building is beautiful with wrought iron balconies and cute little flower displays, there's amazing architecture everywhere you look and you can't move for amazing food (the patisserie on the corner of our road was especially amazing). So instead of unpacking, we headed straight out - after a quick outfit change of course. I was feeling all Carrie Bradshaw so I wore this pink pleated midi skirt, monochrome striped top and my espadrilles for an evening spent sailing along the river seine. We had pre-booked a river cruise and I'm so glad we did because the queue was massive but it was so lovely. It was a great thing to start with because we got to see everything briefly in the 1 hour round-trip; the Eiffel Tower, the d'Orsay, the Notre Dame, the Louvre and the many beautiful bridges. It also helped that despite the big black cloud hanging over us, the weather remained lovely all evening. Once we were off the boat, we had a closer look at the Eiffel Tower and we were both actually pretty underwhelmed by it. Yes, it's quite striking but as a giant metal structure, it lacks a lot of prettiness that the rest of Paris has to offer. We hadn't booked to go up it and I'm glad in the end since we were starving by the time we were off the boat so we headed off in search of a restaurant. Obviously we didn't have to search long before we found a lovely one; I had roasted chicken and Laura had beef carpaccio and we both balked at the price of the drinks everywhere - about £9 for a large wine or pint of beer! Then as the sun started to set, we had one last look at the Eiffel tower (which was actually nicer from further away) while we got a nutella crepe from a guy on a cart, and then we headed back to our apartment to get ready.

After treating ourselves to a bottle of wine considerably cheaper than those in the restaurants (although still more than usual at €8 for the cheapest bottle of white), we got ready to go out for a few drinks. I've only bought this playsuit pretty recently and was waiting for the perfect opportunity to wear it. The tropical print, bright red colour and amazing maxi skirt-train at the back makes it the perfect holiday outfit! I completed the look with gucci belt, lace up sandals and red lipstick and then we headed out to a few bars near us - there was an american-style one literally round the corner from our apartment which we really liked, where they were spraying champagne from the bar.

Then despite not getting in until 2:30am, we were up bright and early on Sunday for a full day of exploring! I had modelled my Paris wardrobe very much the same as my New York wardrobe and so I wore pink tailored shorts, black crochet top with white collar and my espadrilles. We figured out the metro system pretty easily (we are London pros now after all) and so after successfully making our way to the Notre Dame, we stopped for some breakfast outside a cute little cafe. We both went down the French route; Laura got (another) crepe and I got a croque monsieur and despite the fact I don't normally drink it, we both got coffees because it felt like a fancy thing to do and I actually quite enjoyed it. Then we crossed the road for a closer look and I swear the Notre Dame is right up there with some of the prettiest buildings I've ever seen. The detail is incredible and it held such charm; I love the architecture of old churches. We didn't go in for a look around because the queue was ridiculous but we did get to hear the bells ringing so obviously Quasimodo was hard at work.

The sun was shining and the birds were singing (probably) so instead of getting the metro to our next destination, we decided to walk it. The walk along the river was gorgeous, as was the Louvre museum when we finally got to it (40 minutes later rather than the 18 it should've taken because we kept stopping for pictures). This one we had actually booked to go in so we headed into the pyramid to soak up some culture. We're not really arty people so we enjoyed about an hour of sculptures, artifacts, furniture, trinkets and paintings before we were all arted-out. We did have to go and see the famous Mona Lisa though which I have to say, I have no idea why it's so famous. It's not remotely impressive - it's not even on a big canvas it's like the size of a postcard! The crowds around her were crazy too and everyone was queuing up for a selfie with her (ah, 2018). So at about half 1, we headed outside in search of some lunch and enjoyed a baguette (checking another french food item off the list) in the Louvre courtyard.

After that, we headed down to the famous Champs-Elysées and we must've somehow timed it amazingly because the whole street was cordoned off to vehicles so the whole thing was pedestrianized, meaning we could walk freely down the middle with a perfect view of the Arc de Triomphe. Before we made it all the way to the end though, we admired Tiffany's, Elie Saab and Louis Vuitton and then headed in to Pierre Hermé. As you may know, French macarons are my favourite treat and Pierre Hermé are renowned for doing some of the best (where better to get some than in paris?) I got a box of 7; a passionfruit and rhubarb, a rose lychee & raspberry, a lemon, a pistachio, a salted caramel, a blackcurrant and an apricot & pistachio. They were incredible! So after treating myself, we headed up to see the Arc de Triomphe (which was again very impressive and a beautiful piece of architecture). The roads around there were absolutely mental (on par with Marrakech) - everyone just drove wherever they felt like it, regardless of other cars or pedestrians!

To finish off our crazy-busy day, we headed north to Montmarte and to see the Sacre Coeur which was again (surprise surprise) completely impressive and beautiful. The hill was a bit of a killer, especially with all the stairs. In fact we did so much walking all weekend; not only are almost all the metro stops stairs (rather than escalators like in London) but our apartment was also on the 6th floor with no lift so we were up and down 120 stairs each morning, afternoon and night! If the view from the top of the Sacre Coeur wasn't reward enough though, I treated myself to yet another macaron-based treat at the bottom in the form of this amazing ice cram shaped like a rose! I went with coconut, melon, passionfruit and raspberry sorbets.

We had loved the area surrounding the Notre Dame (where we were in the morning) so much that we decided to head back there for dinner. On night 2, I wore navy culottes, white frill bralet over blue and white china print bandeau with black lace up sandals. Despite the outrageously expensive drinks everywhere, the restaurants in that area were all offering really good deals on food so we got 3 courses for only €10! I had charcuterie, followed by grilled fish, followed by tarte aux pommes - another french delicacy to tick off the list! Then we headed off in search of a bar a little off the beaten track and ended up walking along the river, watching the most beautiful sunset. And we actually stumbled upon the lovelock bridge by accident which was a cute time to see it! Then we settled in for a couple of drinks at a bar just around the corner before heading back to ours for another drink at the american bar from the night before.

It was another early start and busy day on Monday because after getting a pastry for breakfast (a 'dropsy' which was a pastry with chocolate chips and pastry cream which was amazing), we headed off on a double decker train to Disneyland! The magic kingdom was just as incredible as the one in Orlando and I always love the buildings and all the extra details. Because we had gone on the monday after half term, I think we had timed it pretty well as it wasn't even that busy. We only waited like 15 minutes for most of the rides so we had got on everything in the Disney park by about 2, when we stopped for mexican food in the sunshine. The day had started off cloudy but quickly brightened up and we had another glorious day of sunshine - which was lucky because I'd dressed for sun in floral shorts, pink top and espadrilles (and minnie mouse ears of course). So once we'd eaten, we went over to the Disney studios side of the park and worked our way around the rides in there - the Aerosmith rollercoaster was the favourite for both me and Laura!

We were done at Disneyland by about half 5 so after getting the train back again, we got ready for our last night. This playsuit was one that I bought recently from boohoo (with 15% off woo) and I loved it instantly but it's not the best designed thing in the world. Despite it fitting me perfectly once it's on, there's no zip down the side or back, so you have to get the neck hole over your hips and shoulders. So after a bit of light body contortion activity, I was ready to go; I love the flared sleeves and floral embroidery and I finished the look with gucci belt, black lace up sandals and red lipstick. We decided to have dinner back near the Arc de Triomphe and found the loveliest restaurant. I finally treated myself to some french red wine and then I had steak, Laura had duck and we finished with the biggest creme brulées I've ever seen!

Then after a jam-packed few days, this morning (horrendously early this morning) we waved goodbye to our apartment, packed up our stuff and then had pastries at the airport before waving Paris goodbye. It may be known as the city of love but it's the city itself that I fell in love with and it's certainly one that I'll be adding to my must-return-to list!