“Though you may leave Paris, Paris never really leaves you.” -Janice Macleod
Bonjour and welcome to the second part of my travel diary of Paris. The last few days of Paris were spent wandering around the city of lights visiting Parisian cafes, museums and the beautiful parks. Many times, we would simply walk around or “flaneur” to admire the beautiful architecture while the weather was so nice out. I certainly resonate with Janice Macleod’s sentiment above because though I have left Paris, there is indeed a large part of Paris that never leaves me.
Picking up on our third day in Paris, we got tickets to Musee D’Orsay because we really wanted to see the Impressionists paintings but first of course, was a stop at a Parisian Cafe for cafe cremes and croissants.
After a small breakfast was savored, we walked over to the museum which was a beautiful walk too because the morning started out cloudy and misty which made the buildings look even more beautiful, but it did clear up to blue skies by the time we made it to the museum.
The Musee D’Orsay was a beautiful museum that had artworks throughout, and the building itself was really its own piece of art too with its large windows, intricate detailing and a gorgeous large clock to center it all.
There were many beautiful statues and artworks including some of the master artworks from artists such as Monet, Van Gogh, Sisley, Cezanne Manet and Renoir.
After the museum we walked around the city and stopped into a few shops including Buly Officinie to pick up a gift and Lauduree to get some macarons to enjoy.
Eventually we made our way to Jardin du Luxembourg and enjoyed a coffee at the cafe as well as the macarons we picked up. We also walked around the gardens and enjoyed all of the flowers and beautiful statues.
After the gardens we went back to the hotel to relax for a few hours before dinner. That night we selected Tribecca Cafe on Rue Cler and sat outside to enjoy the lovely evening while sharing a plate of small bites and of course crispy baguettes.
On day four we decided to visit one of the national libraries that was closest to us because the libraries (or Bibliotheque Mazarine) in Paris are very grand and placed in the most stunning buildings throughout the city. We are both book lovers, so we knew this was a must-visit for our trip. We first went to breakfast at a small location along the way where I got to enjoy a coffee and one of my favorites, eggs benedict.
After breakfast we visited the Bibliotheque Mazarine to view the beautiful librarie. The visits to the libraries are free of charge and if you are a booklover too then I highly recommend a visit to one when you’re in Paris.
After visiting Bibliotheque Mazarine we stopped into a cafe for a quick lunch and to relax for a while.
After lunch we simply walked the streets of Paris and enjoyed the beautiful views. There are many things that I didn’t take a picture of because I wanted to be present in the moment and present with my friend as this was her first trip to Paris. But here are some of the pictures that I did take while walking.
On our last full day in Paris, we decided to visit Bibliotheque Nationale de France (Richelieu). The Richelieu site in particular is the main site of the librarie for 275 years and showcases the library’s collections including books, coins, medals, and antiques. The librarie itself is free to visit, but there is also an antiques museum within that you can visit for only ten euros.
The Richelieu building is an Architectual treasure itself with stunning historic rooms full of intricate details and beautiful artworks.
As our trip began winding down, we went back to the hotel to relax and went out to dinner at the cafe near our hotel and took one last sunset walk around our area. We had such a lovely time visiting the historic and cultural sites, bookstores, chocolate shops and cafes. There will always be a special place in my heart for Paris and it is a place that I will most assuredly visit every three to five years for the rest of my life. There are many other parts of France that I would also like to visit too, but for me, Paris is always a good idea.
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