Europe Trip. Day 1: Paris, France

On the second trip to the European continent, we chose to visit France and Belgium for a week's stay, although I feel that Paris alone deserves a week. We still keep the 3-day-per-city rule for each trip; even so, we reserved for Ghent and Bruges during our stay in Brussels.

Belgium is a small country, yet there are many places that are worth visiting in the Flemish region or you may extend further to Amsterdam or Cologne. But hey! We tried to avoid '6 cities in a week' or '10 countries in 2 weeks' of the frenetic and restless kind of travelling. Let's travel leisurely!

Our outbound flight to Charles de Gaulle International Airport departed at half-past eleven at night. The flight touched down at half-past six in the morning. We had booked a private limo transfer to Timhotel Gaite in Montparnasse to avoid chaos in the early morning. As our room was not ready yet, after letting our luggage be kept safe, we started the day with the Montmartre art attack tour!!

Yeaahhh!! Dah sampai Paris...

No. 8, Rue d'Odessa, Montparnasse

It is advisable to get a Paris Museum Pass that covers most of the museums around Paris, including the Louvre. A separate ticket is required for the Eiffel Tower, though. We also bought the 2-day Visit Pass for the Paris Metro. Embarking on metro No. 12 at Montparnasse-Bienvenue station, we headed to Pigalle.

The friendly staff guided me in purchasing the metro pass.

Err... nak masuk jap bole tak?

From Pigalle, we walked northwest to recognize the red windmill, the trademark of Moulin Rouge. To the right is the Musée de l’Érotisme. Hahahahah... that's how we started our Paris journey. :-P

Nope! We didn't go into that museum!

The famous cabaret in Paris

Down to Rue Lepic, we searched high and low for Van Gogh's house. Then, we walked up until we reached le Moulin de la Galette, where a windmill caught our attention.

Wiki: In the late 19th century, working-class Parisians would dress up and spend time there dancing, drinking, and eating galettes into the evening.

Hint: The unit no. 54 is exactly at the Rue Lepic corner

Van Gogh lived in this house with his brother, Theo

Moulin Blute-Fin windmill built in 17^th century

Then we continued to walk along Rue Norvins towards the east until we reached the Rue Azais junction. In between, Place du Tertre has many souvenir shops, cafes, and a lot of art galleries/shops; hence, this walking tour is named Montmartre Art Attack!

Street performers who busk for money

Cobbled square, a hangout for buskers and artists painting visitors' portraits.

We bought some of the art paintings.

A lady selling flowers while doing music performance

Finally, we reached our final destination in Montmartre, the Sacré-Cœur. However, long lines at the entrance deterred us from hopping in. Rather, we had packed Turkish kebab while enjoying the stunning view of Paris from the stairs.

Church of the prestigious Montmartre Abbey built in 1147

Visitors spend time enjoying the scenery

This man displayed the skill of weighing the ball while climbing the pole

We embarked to an inclined railway station using a funicular downhill before going back to the hotel to rest.

Inside the Funiculaire de Montmartre

The day isn't ended just yet. We continued to explore other parts of the city, Champ de Mars and Challiot, before getting into the line for the Eiffel Tower tour in the late evening time slot.

We embarked on the Paris Metro M6 to stop at Cambronne station instead of Champ de Mars. We walked northeast to Ecole Militaire and wanted to stroll along the grassy field Parc du Champ de Mars and enjoyed the breathtaking view of the Eiffel Tower.

Jom jalan-jalan...

Jom main gelongsor...

Viewing the École Militaire a vast complex of buildings housing various military training facilities

Facing the opposite site to get Eiffel Tower in the background

Get something for snacks... ice cream?

A long line for buying tickets; luckily we bought ours online

Sculpture of Alexandre Gustave Eiffel, who inspired this tower

While waiting for the Eiffel Tower time slot, we hopped on the Bateaux Parisiens boat along the Seine River for about an hour cruise, passing through several recognized structures, such as those located by the riverbank. They do provide lunch and dinner cruises for 1.5 and 2 hours, respectively. Even so we had torayaki and crepe for the dinner after the cruise and walked across the Seine River towards Palais de Chaillot at Trocadero.

I must say this experience was among the magical

Our cruise boats begin their journey as the sun sets

Located at the foot of Eiffel Tower

Eiffel Tower at night

We bought online tickets to climb to the second floor of the Eiffel Tower. To go to the top, we bought lift-access tickets on the second floor. After spending around an hour to enjoy the view, I went back to the hotel by taxi. Even though we were too lethargic, the moments on the first day in Paris were truly precious.