Over the week long mid-term break that I had during my Fall term at Exeter, I traveled to Paris, France...alone. The flight was from the airport just outside of Exeter, and luckily my AirBnB host offered to drive me there for my Friday afternoon flight. Now, I thought that the Richmond International Airport was small, but the Exeter Airport makes Richmond’s look more like JFK.
Once I landed at Charles De Gaulle, after waiting in line for security and exchanging pounds for euros, I made it onto a bus headed towards the 14th arrondissement near the Gare Montparnasse, where my first hostel was located. Unfortunately, I did not get a good first night sleep in the four bunk bed all female room. When you stay at a hostel, you certainly run the risk of staying in a room with all kinds of people, including loud snorers.
The first day in Paris, I met up with a friend of mine from home, who was studying at St. Andrews in Scotland and who had been traveling the continent during her mid-term break, for breakfast at a cafe next to the Luxembourg Gardens. After eating our petit dejeuner, we took the metro to the Eiffel Tower where we met one of her flatmates before heading to the Tower to climb its 674 steps to the second floor viewing platform. It was a long climb, but it was much better going by stairs rather than the elevator to the top; it was cheaper, faster (no long lines to wait in), and there were views of the city the entire way up.
Once we made it back down to the ground, we parted ways as my friend and her flatmate were heading back to Scotland. This point forward, I was solo in Paris. That day I walked and walked and walked. From the base of the Eiffel Tower, I made my way across the Seine to the Arc de Triomphe and the Champs-Elysees where I popped into a few stores. I continued down the Champs-Elysees to see the glass pyramid topping the Louvre, and I finished the day with desserts from a Patisserie. Luckily, I was able to get a better night’s sleep.
The next day was a bit rainy, so I thought I should visit the Musee d’Orsay, but the line was unbelievably long, umbrellas in the air, snaking around in the rain. Instead, I decided to walk around and try to find a place to eat. I went into Le Saint Germain for a brunch of an omelette, hot chocolate, and a Nutella filled crepe, and of course to use the bathroom while I was there.
Eventually, it cleared up enough to see the post-fire Notre Dame Cathedral, the bookstore Shakespeare and Company, the Marais neighborhood, and the Place des Vosges where Victor Hugo lived.
After awhile, my feet were done walking around the city, so I jumped on a Lime scooter to make my way around. The wind was chilly, and it was still a bit rainy here and there. However, it was much better on the scooter than walking. I scootered my way across the Seine to the Eiffel Tower to see it lit up under the night sky.
The plan for the rest of the week was to take a train to San Sebastian, Spain where I had someone to stay with. However, the train company decided to go on strike, so Saturday night at the hostel I frantically messaged my parents, trying to figure out how I would get to Spain and back to Paris for my flight to Exeter the following Sunday. I was so grateful to my Dad for helping me find a flight to Spain and back. All I had to do was find another hostel to stay at for the following weekend, so I chose one in the Montmartre area in the 18th arrondissement close to the Gare du Nord.
After coming back from San Sebastian, I had one more full day in Paris before returning to Exeter. That Saturday I wandered around Montmartre to the Sacre Coeur Cathedral, the outside of the Moulin Rouge, and down to the Printemps Haussmann department store which was decorated with multi-story high Longchamps Christmas trees. On the rooftop of Printemps Haussmann, there is a great view of Paris that includes the Eiffel Tower, and it’s free to go to the roof!
Getting to the airport the following day was easier said than done. To begin with, I got on a metro train heading in the wrong direction. Then, I found out that the section of the train line that normally went to the airport was closed, so I had to hop on a different train to get part of the way there and then ride on a bus the rest of the way. Fortunately, it didn’t cost more than a single ticket, a little over one euro.
All in all, I enjoyed the trip. I got to experience new places and travel alone. Share your tips for traveling solo in the comments or on Instagram!
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