Usually, when I plan a trip, it’s to the most exotic, exciting, adventurous place I can think of—South Africa, Thailand, Israel, or at least somewhere in Europe I haven’t visited yet. But there’s something wonderful about re-visiting places you know well and love. And that’s why I’ve booked my first big trip of 2018 to Paris and London!
To say I’m excited is an understatement. Due to circumstances beyond my control, I haven’t been out of America since September 2016 (ah, Slovenia, what a great adventure you were!) and I am SO READY to venture out into the world again. I’ve missed traveling. I’ve missed the excitement of trip planning, the joy of arriving at a new destination, eating local food, attempting to speak a new language: all of it. Traveling is a fundamental part of what makes me who I am, and not being able to do it has been tough. But in six weeks, I’ll be back on the horse (or rather, the plane) once again!
Trafalgar Square, London
As you may remember, my original plan for my first big trip of the year was just a tad different…I was planning to go to South America. Chile and Brazil were at the top of my travel wish list, and while I still very much want to visit both, the timing didn’t work out this time around. So I’ll be going next February instead (yes, I’ve already planned most of my 2019 travels—I can’t help it, this is how I roll!) In the meantime, I figured my spring trip should be to a place where I could visit family, and also revisit places that I love while discovering new ones. So I picked London, where I have loads of family I don’t get to see very often, and added on a few days in Paris because, well, Paris is always a good idea, oui? (Bien sur!)
I’ll be leaving at the end of April and spending four days in London followed by three days in Paris. My plans are still tentative, but so far, here’s what I’ve got:
The Louvre in Paris
Melissa’s London and Paris Itinerary
London—I always hit the British Museum and the National Gallery when I’m in London, as well as my old haunts in Covent Garden and Soho (like Stanford’s travel bookstore!) This time, I am also thinking of tea at Harrod’s or somewhere similar (a London experience I haven’t had yet!); popping by Buckingham Palace (The Crown has exerted its influence on me); and possibly doing a tour of the WW2 underground bomb shelters, which a friend recently did and highly recommends. I want to have at least one Brick Lane curry. And of course, I’ll spend lots of time catching up with aunts, uncles, cousins, and cousins’ kids.
Paris—I’m lucky enough to have been to Paris several times already, but it’s a place I can never get enough of. I’m sure there’s still loads for me to discover there, which is one reason I decided to book an AirBnB (for the first time ever—thanks, friend-of-a-cousin, for having an amazing rental available!) in Montmartre, where I haven’t spent much time before. I’m excited to be able to live like a local there for a few days, wandering around the streets, discovering new restaurants and soon-to-be-favorite cafes, and just relaxing and taking in that magical Parisian feeling that’s so hard to put into words.
But, it wouldn’t be a trip to Paris without revisiting some old favorites! I’ll be hitting the Louvre (and as a corollary, Café Angelina across the street, which has arguably the world’s greatest hot chocolate!); the Musee D’Orsay; the cafes of St. Germain-de-Pres (if Fitzgerald and Hemingway wrote and/or drank there, I’m in); and one of my favorite restaurants on the planet, Le Relais De L’Entrecote, where they serve nothing but steak, frites, and salad…basically my culinary heaven on earth. And I plan to eat all the Parisian pastries I can handle (maybe I should start building up my tolerance now?)
Hot chocolate at Cafe Angelina in Paris
Versailles—One totally new place I’ll be visiting on this trip: the Palace of Versailles! I’ve never been, because I could never bear to tear myself away from Paris long enough to go there. But my mom has been raving about her trip to Versailles for as long as I can remember. She saw it when she was 21 on her first big trip to Paris, and she’s been urging me to go for years. Yes, Mom, it’s finally happening!
All in all, this should be a fantastic trip filled with reconnecting with people and places I love, while discovering just enough new ones to keep things interesting—a perfect itinerary for diving back into the world again after a long break.
And of course, eating All. The. Chocolate. All of it.
Have you been to Paris and London? What are your favorite places/things to do there? All suggestions welcome!