Ok, 2nd post on my trip. So from London, we took the Euro rail to Paris. Trip didn't start too well. Firstly, it started snowing heavily in London, and our train to Paris got delayed by an hour and a half (Which wasn't too bad as I have been stranded at the Adelaide airport for 12hrs before...So an hour and a half was a breeze). When we reached London, it was dark already, and we got lost looking for our hotel. Didn't help that no one spoke English, so I had to keep speaking in French, which wasn't very effective as my French is sad. We ended up walking with our huge luggage and backpacks in the cold (and it was really cold in Paris), and finally found it after an hour!!!

This was the hotel in Paris, Villa Brunel. Near the metro, about a 5 mins walk. Much smaller hotel, and much cheaper than the London one. S$900 for a 5 night stay.

 Our first full day in Paris. We went to Rue Cler, highly recommended by Rick Steves for its shops and cafes and had breakfast here. Cost an arm and a leg. 2 croissants, an omelette, 1 hot chocolate and 1 juice- Euro $15!!  But yummy though the croissants. I am not a croissant person cos of the sheer amount of butter in them, and the ones made in Singapore are majorly smelly. So this was a pleasant surprise for me. I had a croissant (and sometimes 2) every single morning.

 Our first stop was the Army Museum. I was really excited to visit this museum as it had a lot of WW1 and WW2 artefacts, and being a History buff, I was so excited. This was the back of the museum.

 And this was the front. :) Majestic looking.

Napolean's tomb

There was a military procession at the grounds of the museum. So we managed to watch the whole process. Interesting. The soldiers were freezing their asses off, Im sure. I felt cold just looking at them!

 On our way from the Army Museum to the Eiffel. I was wrapped up, and it wasn't warm enough, so I had to cover my head and face!! Urgh....I was in pain!!

 The Eiffel in the day. It's better at night. In the day, when you get near...it's like a piece of metal... Very unimpressive. But at nights, with the lights....Beautiful.

 Notre Dame Cathedral. Snowing by the time we were here. We wanted to climb up to the top, 400 steps, but it was closed!! I was so sad!!

 Crepes from a cafe near the Cathedral. Travel guide books actually informed not to sit in the Paris cafes as prices double, and to just do take aways. But cos we were so cold, and the snow was making us uncomfortable, and I was not wearing a thick enough jacket, we had to stop in here. Had a chocolate and banana crepes, as well as a cinnamon crepes. Take away would have been 7Euros. The price we paid: 15 Euros. Expensive country. But worth the heating we got for 30 mins. lol!!

 Church of Saint Chapelle.

Metro Station near the Cathedral. We went everywhere by the Metro. Very convenient.

 Galleries Lafeyette. The ceiling of the shopping centre. Very lit up, and adorned with lights and decorations. My God, the plan was to go to Galleries once, but cos the designer goods were so so cheap, we ended up going twice!! Ok, what was the damage done?

1. A Miu Miu bag. I have been eyeing the Miu Miu bag for a year in Singapore!! Would have set me back 1.8k! And then I saw what it cost here, and I hyperventilated!! So much cheaper. Let's not go into how much it was....But let's say it was much much cheaper.

2. A Long Champ limited edition bag. Im not a Long Champ person, but the bags were so much cheaper here, and the one I bought was simple and classic looking, so I got it.

3.Got Jay a Long Champ wallet for Xmas!!

4. A Prada wallet for sis. She has been eyeing it for ages, but never dared to enter a Prada shop. And it was cheap there!! So got one for her.

5. A Skalli bag for my younger sister.

So yes, a lot of damage done but I reckon it's worth it cos of the fact that it is much cheaper, and I got a 12% tax rebate!!!

 My favourite place in Paris- Avenue Champs Elysees. People say it's magical especially during Xmas, and it truly was. The lights on the trees, the Xmas markets, with the smell of hot chocolate, cinnamon, crepes, the snow falling......I fell in love with Paris here....

 Arc De Triomphe, which is at the end of the Avenue Champs Elysees

We did a day of Museum tour as well, where we visited 2 major museums: Orsay Museum and Louvre. Orsay Museum houses Impressionist paintings, so you get your Da Vinci, Monet, Manet, Renoir, Van Gogh.....I had a really good time here. Almost 3 hrs, and had to go cos we had to proceed on to the Louvre.

Inside the Orsay used to be a train station. Interesting.

Our walk from Orsay to Louvre took us across the Seine River, seen here, and further into the Tulleries Garden. The garden was just white, cos of the falling snow.....Stunning.

 Tulleries Garden

 The Arch leading to the Louvre

 The very famous Louvre Museum. But I was kind of disappointed by it cos it was really crowded, and the paintings were not as impressive as the ones in Orsay, but oh well, you can't go to Paris without seeing the Louvre!

 The very famous Venus De Milo, Goddess of Love.Obviously Angela and I had to see this, to get blessings from her for our very sad love life!! lol!!

And ta da!!!! The Mona Lisa. Disappointing, seriously. Im like..'What? This is it?' Heaps of people around her portrait....

 One of my favourite places as well...Marais Street. Very quaint, with quirky shops and cafes. Found the best boulangerie selling macaroons..Yum!! We went back here just to get more macaroons to bring home!!

 THE MACAROONS!! YUM! And Im not even a macaroon fan!

 The strawberry tart from the same boulangerie. I had a tart or an eclair or a cake every single day. Desserts there were to die for. And I have a sweet tongue, so it was a carnival for me there! And every single dessert I ate was amazing. I had a berry cake, a strawberry tart, an apple tart, a chocolate eclair, a coffee eclair, macaroons, croissants, almond danish, chocolate croissants....Fatty right?? lol!! I didnt care. Too yum!

 Preparing to leave for our climb up the Arc De Triomphe and Eiffel. We were so scared of the old that we had 4-5 layers on!! Plus my Michellin man jacket!!! See? I look like an eskimo girl right? lol!!!

 240 steps up the Arc De Triomphe. Not bad. And the view we got was worth the climb.

 TA DA!!! View of Champs Elysees

 View of the Eiffel from the top of the Arc

 Then we walked down the stretch of Avenue Champs Elysees, had a hot chocolate crepe, and armed with that, we trudged down to the Eiffel. Here, we went all the way up to the summit. I dont have a fear of heights, but God, the elevator up was scary as I could see all the metal under me...

 And on our last day in Paris, we took a trip down to Chateau Versailles, the Palace of Versailles. So much History here that I just had to take the 45mins train ride there. And as we got there, it started snowing lightly and then the snow became crazy! But I loved it, cos it was just so beautiful and I kept putting my face up to let the snow hit it!!

Palace of Versailles- The entrance

 The Garden, which is supposed to be spectacular in summer where there would be fountain shows!

 Hall of Mirrors where the Treat of Versailles was signed. So exciting....Where History was made..:)

 After trudging through the snow, we went back to Paris city by train. Tiring.

 And that was me in Paris. Paris is definitely beautiful. City of lights and love. Where people are beautiful, and the sights are gorgeous. I can see why people choose to go for their honeymoons there. It's just so romantic and you are really in the mood for love. And coming during Xmas, with the snow falling makes it even more magical. They have everything there, museums and palaces for those who are into history and culture, shopping for shopaholics, sights and stunning scenery for scenery lovers, and the best desserts in the whole wide world. Definitely my kind of city. :) I can't wait to go back again.....

That's us on our way home to Singapore, 13 hr flight. We paid more to sit on the SQ A380 Upper deck where we get more leg room. And it was so worth the extra we paid. Not as painful as it usually would be. :)

And that's it for updates on my Europe trip! Next up: Krabi with my family. So from snow and cold weather, where I was wrapped up like a snowman, it's now to the sun and the sea and my sun dresses and bikinis! Update when Im back!!