The posts are going to be really really really long. There are definitely more words than pictures. Read on if you like, but you have been warned...
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We flew Turkish Airlines to Paris with a layover in Istanbul. I also flew Turkish Airlines to Italy and like last time, service and accommodations were fantastic. We got Turkish delights, two meals that were surprisingly yummy, batman/superman movie themed menus and bag of goodies (eye mask, slippers and socks), and free water and snacks (sandwich and brownie). They also had lots of movies that we didn't get to see in theaters, like Imitation Game, Spectre, The Martian, Interstellar, and The Good Dinosaur.
The flight was really cheap so I'm assuming that is why it was so long - 12ish hours. It was difficult to sleep because both of us sat in the middle and the guy in front of me reclined so far that I could barely move my legs. He was literally on top of me. Ugh, INCONSIDERATE PEOPLE.
After some tossing and turning, we finally arrived in Istanbul and had 10 minutes to get to our gate to Paris. We ran and were 10 minutes late, but 10 minutes late to boarding time. Phew. We actually had to take a bus on the airside to board the plane. It's just like thte pics of when the POTUS boards/leaves his private jet, waving. It was crazy cool. On the second flight, we got breakfast #2. So crazy that we got fed so much.
When we finally arrived in Paris, we were already crazy tired. No sleep, and it was 10am in Paris, so we still had the whole day. Yeah, we could've slept, but who does that.
Looking back, not sleeping right away helped us overcome jet lag.
We took the train from the airport to the metro, and then to the hostel. It took us a few minutes to figure out how their transportation worked. It's complicated just like NYC's metro. Lots of different lines and there were subways and trains that crossed paths at certain points. But! We figured it out!
The train ride to the metro was uneventful and actually underwhelming. I couldn't help but compare it to when I took the train through Italy, which was really scenic. In Paris, it was industrial and slummy.
Our hostel, Les Piaules, was in the 20th arrondissement, in a neighborhood called Belleville. In brief, I would say the neighborhood is pretty multicultural, though kind of seedy (because of homeless people only a few metro stops away) and actually right next to a Chinatown (I think, because there were lots of Chinese/Asian restaurants a few blocks away). The hostel was surprisingly clean and had a very young/bro' vibe... lots of young people, video games, and a big bar.
We checked in around 1pm and dropped our stuff in the dorm's lockers. It was pretty convenient, though we had to pay for locks, which is pretty dumb. We also had to pay for adapters even though TripAdvisor said it's free. I mean, we didn't have to get one because I have one from my Italy trip, but still.
I asked the receptionist about how to get to River Seine, which runs through Paris. I wanted to see the bridge, but there are multiple bridges on the river, as I came to find out, and they all looked different. I think I wanted to see Pointe Alexander, but I don't remember what I saw online.
Anyway, after finding that out, we went to a cafe called Le Metro near the hostel. We were starving! We shared a croque madame and expresso. This was my first time ever eating a croque madame and thought the bread had a nice crunch. Otherwise, I felt neutral about it.
We took the metro and walked along the river, stopping at some bridges and crossed half-way to see the view. The bridges were within walking distance of each other, so you could see them when you're standing on one of them. It was a pretty scene.
There were bars and crepe/expresso stands every few feet on the river. I stopped to buy a crepe, but it was taking too long, so we moved on. There we also plenty of benches and chairs and grass and space for people to sit around and children to play. It was peaceful and lovely to be a part of it. I thought to myself Paris is a huge city and people do this! It didn't feel like there was any rush to do anything. Thinking about this walk still makes me smile and heart swell.
We eventually reached Bastille District, which is a large roundabout with a monument at the center. It was choked with traffic. It looked like a busy place with plenty of cafes and restaurants and boutique shops, but we didn't explore any further than the center because it was getting late.
Before dinner, we took a nap back at the hostel.
I don't remember the name of the place, but we had dinner near the hostel and their duck confit was on point! So tender and juicy. We also had croque madame, which I decided I'm not a fan of. For the record, the one we had at Le Metro tasted way better.
We spent another hour or so talking about our plan for the next day. Mainly, what we were doing, which metro to take, and when we should wake up.
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We flew Turkish Airlines to Paris with a layover in Istanbul. I also flew Turkish Airlines to Italy and like last time, service and accommodations were fantastic. We got Turkish delights, two meals that were surprisingly yummy, batman/superman movie themed menus and bag of goodies (eye mask, slippers and socks), and free water and snacks (sandwich and brownie). They also had lots of movies that we didn't get to see in theaters, like Imitation Game, Spectre, The Martian, Interstellar, and The Good Dinosaur.
The flight was really cheap so I'm assuming that is why it was so long - 12ish hours. It was difficult to sleep because both of us sat in the middle and the guy in front of me reclined so far that I could barely move my legs. He was literally on top of me. Ugh, INCONSIDERATE PEOPLE.
After some tossing and turning, we finally arrived in Istanbul and had 10 minutes to get to our gate to Paris. We ran and were 10 minutes late, but 10 minutes late to boarding time. Phew. We actually had to take a bus on the airside to board the plane. It's just like thte pics of when the POTUS boards/leaves his private jet, waving. It was crazy cool. On the second flight, we got breakfast #2. So crazy that we got fed so much.
When we finally arrived in Paris, we were already crazy tired. No sleep, and it was 10am in Paris, so we still had the whole day. Yeah, we could've slept, but who does that.
Looking back, not sleeping right away helped us overcome jet lag.
We took the train from the airport to the metro, and then to the hostel. It took us a few minutes to figure out how their transportation worked. It's complicated just like NYC's metro. Lots of different lines and there were subways and trains that crossed paths at certain points. But! We figured it out!
The train ride to the metro was uneventful and actually underwhelming. I couldn't help but compare it to when I took the train through Italy, which was really scenic. In Paris, it was industrial and slummy.
Our hostel, Les Piaules, was in the 20th arrondissement, in a neighborhood called Belleville. In brief, I would say the neighborhood is pretty multicultural, though kind of seedy (because of homeless people only a few metro stops away) and actually right next to a Chinatown (I think, because there were lots of Chinese/Asian restaurants a few blocks away). The hostel was surprisingly clean and had a very young/bro' vibe... lots of young people, video games, and a big bar.
We checked in around 1pm and dropped our stuff in the dorm's lockers. It was pretty convenient, though we had to pay for locks, which is pretty dumb. We also had to pay for adapters even though TripAdvisor said it's free. I mean, we didn't have to get one because I have one from my Italy trip, but still.
I asked the receptionist about how to get to River Seine, which runs through Paris. I wanted to see the bridge, but there are multiple bridges on the river, as I came to find out, and they all looked different. I think I wanted to see Pointe Alexander, but I don't remember what I saw online.
Anyway, after finding that out, we went to a cafe called Le Metro near the hostel. We were starving! We shared a croque madame and expresso. This was my first time ever eating a croque madame and thought the bread had a nice crunch. Otherwise, I felt neutral about it.
Croque madame from Le Metro
We took the metro and walked along the river, stopping at some bridges and crossed half-way to see the view. The bridges were within walking distance of each other, so you could see them when you're standing on one of them. It was a pretty scene.
There were bars and crepe/expresso stands every few feet on the river. I stopped to buy a crepe, but it was taking too long, so we moved on. There we also plenty of benches and chairs and grass and space for people to sit around and children to play. It was peaceful and lovely to be a part of it. I thought to myself Paris is a huge city and people do this! It didn't feel like there was any rush to do anything. Thinking about this walk still makes me smile and heart swell.
We eventually reached Bastille District, which is a large roundabout with a monument at the center. It was choked with traffic. It looked like a busy place with plenty of cafes and restaurants and boutique shops, but we didn't explore any further than the center because it was getting late.
Before dinner, we took a nap back at the hostel.
I don't remember the name of the place, but we had dinner near the hostel and their duck confit was on point! So tender and juicy. We also had croque madame, which I decided I'm not a fan of. For the record, the one we had at Le Metro tasted way better.
We spent another hour or so talking about our plan for the next day. Mainly, what we were doing, which metro to take, and when we should wake up.