Day 2 - Paris

March 15 -

It's always difficult planning a vacation, even if you do it way in advance. With Paris, I found that there was such a wonky schedule for what is open and closed on certain days that I would have to plan accordingly. Today, would be a visit to the Eiffel Tower and the Catacombs.

First off, gorgeous day. The down coat didn't last too long on my body. A cashmere sweater and dressy scarf would suffice throughout my entire stay. I left Europe sunburned in March.

The Eiffel Tower
Seeing the Eiffel Tower, like any world landmark, is at first an "Oh wow, that's finally it!" experience. All your life you see something on television and in other various forms of media. So, to finally see it up close and in real time always produces minor shock and awe. I took what ended up being some great shots from the park. I don't really think it takes a bad picture. There were several lines to get up, and the one for taking the stairs was shorter, and cheaper. I chose this option. I'm used to stairs! All 650 steps of them.

I walked up to the first level, took a break, bought some water, and contemplated whether it would be worth it to walk to the second level. Not because of fatigue, but because I wasn't really impressed with the views. I ended up convincing myself this was Paris and so needed to experience as much as possible. I ascended the stairs to the second level. The weather was beautiful, but I still wasn't really impressed with the views. It was a lovely experience but I don't see myself ever visiting the Eiffel Tower again, unless I were with someone going their first time.

Place de la Concorde
After walking the gorgeous Pont Alexander III, taken with the beautiful statues on the bridge, and both the Petit and Grand Palais, I walked towards Place de la Concorde to see the Egyptian obelisk and the spot where Marie Antoinette lost her head - literally. Place de la Concorde is interesting because it's in direct line with both the Louvre and the Arc de Triomphe. You could argue that it's a direct line showing the history of France - the Louvre with Kings, Place de la Concorde with the Revolution, and finally, the Arc de Triomphe with Nationalism. The fountains were on and were beautiful.

The Catacombs
I headed next and lastly, to the Catacombs. The line was wrapped around the block. Since I arrived an hour before closing to visitors, I fretted a bit. Surprisingly, I got in much quicker than the long line suggested. The Catacombs were an amazing experience and one I shall not forget. I really thought I would be creeped out by all the bones, as I had never seen human remains in such a way. Walking down the labyrinth of a maze into the actual Catacombs, I kept bracing myself for what would be around each corridor. When the time came, surprisingly, I kept my composure and wasn't frightened at all. It was sort of peaceful as well. The formality of death right there in front of you, with skulls arranged in heart shapes or geometrical patterns. I'm not going to lie, having other tourists walking along side of me also helped keep the spookiness to a minimum!

That night, I ate for the first time a croque monsieur, washing everything down with a glass of wine at the hostel's restaurant/bar. During my entire stay in Paris, I noticed a lot of meal items included ham, which I'm not a huge fan of. The hostel had a private sauna and I was looking forward to relaxing. It wasn't the same intense heat as my sauna in Estonia, but it was still relaxing. Little did I know that I evaded a serious accident.

A person at the front desk brought me down into the room, which is away from the action, and showed me how to use everything. Inside, there is the sauna room and another room for the shower. I went upstairs to get my towel and came back down to find an employee in there pulling inventory from the closet that is next to the shower room. He explained that he closed the shower room door because the lock was broken and it anyone who closed it would be trapped inside. My stomach dropped. I got the chills thinking about this and was glad this employee showed up at the last minute to pull stock from the closet. If he hadn't been there to tell me this, I most certainly would've closed that door behind me and would be stuck until someone showed up to rescue me, and who knows when that would've been.

Avoiding tragedy, I still managed to have a relaxing sauna experience and went back to my room all de-stressed from my travels.