they always say, paris is the city of love! although, I will write about that, this city is easily traveled by yourself AND actually enjoyable.

LET’S GO!!!

I know there are so many famous spots in paris but I will start with the most cliched, the one with the Mona Lisa; The louvre museum! this museum is a good starting point to explore; because if you like to read everything, you can spend your whole day in here or at least half of the day. As a reminder; Don’t be dissapointed when you see The Mona Lisa Because it is REALLY small! I mean, you’ll be like; “Is this fake?”

“HISTORY TIME”
— Built as a fortress in the late 12th century to protect the city. In the 14th century, Charles V converted it to a residence. In the 16th century it operated as Royal Palace. In 1793, they started the collection with 12 paintings from Italy; later on the Royal Family moved to Versailles Palace and the collection was presented with 537 pieces to the public.

today, the museum has more than 350.000 pieces of art and if you want to examine each of them for a minute, you will be done with the whole museum in 73 days!

(At least half of the day, told ya!)

Another option is The Orsay Museum, one of the largest art museums in Europe, where mostly works of French art are exhibited.

The museum was originally built as a train station. Between 1900 and 1939 it was the last stop for trains from the south of Paris. In 1939, it was used as a communication center in World War II because it was determined that it was not suitable for long trains. It was officially opened as a museum in December 1986 as a result of 6 months of work with 2000 and more paintings, 600 sculptures.

Notre-Dame de Paris (Our lady of paris) is one of the best example of french gothic architecture and cathedrals in paris. The cathedral was Completed in 1345, ever since it has been one of Paris' most important landmarks. At the beginning of the 19th century, Paris city planners wanted to have the cathedral demolished because of the neglected condition of the cathedral. Victor Hugo played a major role in the renovation of the cathedral, attracting public attention with his novel; notre Dame de Paris. The novel describes the dark days of the monarchy in France. It is also very famous for his musical and especially the song Belle. In the fire on April 15, 2019, the entire roof of the cathedral and its tower was destroyed. The restoration of the cathedral, which is currently closed to visitors, is expected to be completed in 2024.

“GARGOYLES”
— Gargoyle is a kind of Gothic architectural element, originating from the French word gargouille. They are mythological creatures. These half-man, half-beast demon looking creatures have been watching over Paris. According to belief, gargoyles are creatures that petrify during the day and come to life at night. They are used to drain the water accumulated in the gutters.

If I say Montmartre is the most beautiful region of Paris, I am not exaggerating! Cobbled streets, artists, cafes and Sacré-Cœur. It’s like a little green heaven with its gardens and vineyards. Also it was a home for painters like Picasso, Van Gogh, Renoir and many more back in time. unfortunately they cannot afford living in this area anymore. You can see so many portait sketchers and caricaturists to make some money. If you’re a fan of The Amelie movie, you can stop by at the cafe, but be careful because it’s always crowded.

The Basilica of Sacré Coeur De Montmartre (Sacred Heart of Montmartre) is another Basilica worth seeing in Paris after Notre Dame. It’s located at the hill of Montmartre. You can reach the Basilica with Funicular since the way is really steep.

Me? I walked as usual!

If you get tired, you can relax and enjoy the view at “Square Louis Michel” in front of the Basilica.

“PéRE LACHAISE”
— The cemetery may not look like a place to visit, but if there are famous souls in that cemetery, you can go to thank them for the works they left. Pére Lachaise is the first and largest cemetery in Paris. The cemetery is also famous with its elaborate tomb monuments which is called “necropolis”, city of the dead. Some of the figures buried at Pére Lachais are; Jim Morrison, Oscar Wilde, Edith Piaf, Marcel Marceu, Sarah Bernhardt, Ahmet Kaya, Yılmaz Guney and many more…

Jim Morrison

Oscar Wilde

Edith Piaf

“The greatest thing you’ll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return.”

MOULIN ROUGE!!!

Is there anyone among us who hasn't seen the movie yet? Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor share the lead roles in the 2001 Baz Luhrmann movie.

Moulin Rouge is the famous cabaret in Paris, located in the North of Montmartre. Maybe there were no Satine or Christian in real life but I’m sure so many stories lie behind the curtains.

The Co-Founders were Charles Zidler and Joseph Oller, which we see Zidler in the movie too portrayed by Jim Broadbent.

Additionally, it is the birthplace of the modern form of the Can-Can dance! I can tell this is one of my favorite dances to do. I wish cabarets were more seen as a form of art, not a pleasure for men.

You don’t need to be a kid to go to Disneyland! It’s a fun day trip to take all the rides, dancing with the disney characters and maybe even get your face painting!

Of course getting your ticket online is the best option; so you can choose a specific date or undated ticket that you can use whenever. Undated tickets are valid for a year.

You can arrive to Disneyland with car or train. You can use the link above to see the options for arrival.

Disneyland

Take a look at Notre Dame at night! It looks much better in the dark with all the gargoyles and the gothic architecture.

Even if it is touristic, it would not be a bad idea to put a lock on one of the bridges in Paris. I chose the one with the Notre Dame view.

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Belle

〰️ Belle

You can watch the most popular song from Notre Dame de Paris by clicking on the scrolling Belle link;

“BONUS LOCATION”
— Shakespeare and Company is an English language bookstore located opposite Notre Dame. Could be a good break point.

And of course, The Eiffel Tower!

The tower, which is the symbol of France, takes its name from the French architect Gustave Eiffel, who built it.It was built as the gateway to Paris for the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution.

The tower, which is now one of the biggest tourist attractions, was initially agreed to stay for only 20 years. It was allowed to stay in 1909 after seeing that the tower was suitable for communication. It was even used as a signal cutter in World War I. And it's still used as a station, with a 27-metre radio transmitter on top.

Choose your Eiffel; Morning or Night?

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