For my 16th birthday, I got that chance to go to France with my Gigi (grandma). After about a year and a half of planning, it finally happened. We went to many different places and although we didn't make it to The Lourve, I did get to go to The Eiffel Tower, shop and eat at a bunch of different cute cafés. Here are a few tips if you ever get the chance to visit The City of Lights!
1. Go to the Eiffel Tower.
Going to the Eiffel Tower when you are in France is obviously a given, but I met a few people who actually didn't get to go because they didn’t have enough time. Therefore, make sure you make time to go and go during the day and at night. When you go during the day you will notice that the tower is brown, not black, or maybe I'm the only one who thought it was black. Also, try to avoid going during the EUFA Euro Cup time because you won't be able to take pictures of the tower from far away. Take as much time as you need and soak up every single minute. When you go at night, make sure to be there between 11 p.m. and 2 a.m. because that’s when they do the light show that lasts five minutes and trust me, you do not want to miss it!
2. Have lunch in the Eiffel Tower.
There is nothing cooler than having lunch in the Eiffel Tower. You make reservations ahead of time, you go in, they seat you, ask you what you want to eat and the food is there in three minutes. I highly suggest the custard pudding for desert, it was delicious. Besides the food being good and super fast, you also have a pretty view while eating if you get a window seat.
3. Shop, shop, shop.
I truly wish I would have gone with an empty suite case so I could have shopped more. By the time my trip was to an end, my suitcase was stuffed, and I was definitely worried about the weight limit when it was time to weigh my suitcase to go back home. Before I left to go to France, I planned to buy birkenstocks because apparently they're cheaper over in Europe. After a few stores, I finally found the ones I wanted in the right color. They ended up being 75 euros but 15 percent off, so i got them for 64 euros which is only about $77 in the U.S. so I was pretty excited about that. That's proof that some items really are cheaper there, and you should definitely take advantage of it. Trust me on this one, you will not regret spending all of your money on clothes.
4. Monoprix.
Speaking of shopping, Monoprix was the store to go to. Monoprix ended up being my favorite place to go shopping. I bought all of my clothes that I got in France from there. I think it's like a Target but in France, and I love Target so it was a win/win for me. Besides clothing, it's also a little grocery store, but hold your breath because there's usually raw fish laying out to be sold and it is not the best smell in the world.
5. Go to a cute café.
There are a ton of cafés in France and my favorite one we went to was Bistor Marguerite Café in Paris. We ordered pizza but our bus was coming so we had to take it on the way. We ended up only eating two pieces out of the whole thing, and I was sad about that. Another thing, if you order lemonade, it is not the lemonade you think it is. It will be sprite with a lemon and that's it. It took me two café's to figure that one out. Just make sure you have time to actually eat your lunch and most importantly, take lots of pictures of the cute café.
6. Explore Paris.
Our first day in Paris consisted of walking all over the city, or at least that's how it seemed. We were on a look out for my birkenstocks, stopping at cafés and slowly working our way to the Eiffel Tower. You can easily get lost in Paris if you don't know the city, and we did. We eventually gave up and just got a taxi. The walking wore me out because I had been up for about 48 hours with maybe five hours of sleep and also had jet leg (yes, it's a real thing). Besides my sleepiness, it was fun to walk around and see all the stores and who knows, maybe you'll find a cute dog laying on the side walk as I did. Make sure to have plenty of rest before walking around all day, you don't want to end up like me and fall asleep on a park bench while holding an umbrella after a long day full of walking.
7. Notre Dame Cathedral.
There are many old gothic churches in France and the Notre Dame Cathedral has to be one of the prettiest. You have to stand in line to get through security but it doesn't usually last long. After that, you can enter the gorgeous Cathedral. You have many different opportunities to do many things when you get in there. You can listen to the sermon, light candles around various statues, and walk around with either an actual guide or a device that has an automated guide. It's definitely a must when you go to France.
8. Normandy American Cemetery
The Normandy American Cemetery was one of the last things we did on our trip. We went to Juno and Omaha beach, where D Day occurred. After that, we headed to the American cemetery on Normandy beach. It was truly a great experience and I highly suggest going if you ever go to France.
9. Monet's house and garden
Out of all our plans for our week long trip, I was the most excited about going to Monet's house, besides the Eiffel Tower. I had no idea what it looked like but I knew it would be gorgeous. Also, getting to go to the famous Monet's house and garden just founds exciting if you ask me. I highly recommend taking a taxi out there and seeing the beautiful view for yourself.
10. Have no expectations.
I went to France with no expectations and that’s extremely important. France is a gorgeous country but does have its downsides, just like every other country does. By not having any expectations, I was not disappointed one bit. That is probably the best advice I can give you when you visit The City of Lights.
