Word of the Week - Paris (tourist tips)

I was in Paris on the weekend for what is now an annual trip to meet my friend who is in Paris for work the same week every year. She lives in South Africa, so I'm grateful I don't have to fly too far for a meet up.

I just can't believe how busy and English Paris is now. All the trains, shops, menus, staff in shops all speak English, not a few words. Train announcements, written menus and when I say 'bonjour' they detect an English accent and I get no further in French. I'm not fluent, but I can say a few things, things I definitely needed to be able to say on visits in the past.

And busy ... we rebooked tickets up the Eiffel Tower. The queues on the day were just mad, however these queues merged with pre booked tickets and it took us 45 minutes to reach the 2nd lift to go to the top. I insisted we walk down afterwards as it was quicker than queuing for the lifts. We were made to wait till our time slot of 11am before we could join the queue.

I managed to get tickets to Notre Dame. These tickets are free with a suggested donation, however they are only available 2-4 hours before you visit. The pre booked queue was enormous, but moved quickly and we joined the queue at 3.30pm for a 4pm entry and we were inside in under 10 mins. We were also back outside about 15 mins later as the cathedral was heaving and the sheer volume of people inside just kept surging you through.

Next up was the Catacombs, but sadly they were closed due to industrial action, so that's on the list for next years trip.

When did the English language come with an American flag?

We took a visit out to Pere Lachaise cemetery where Jim Morrison and Oscar Wilde are buried. It was huge, we got lost and didn't know which way was out, but turned on google maps and were grateful that the cemetery has street signs. It is well worth a visit and I can see myself going there again.

Jim Morrisons grave. 

A lot of security has been put in place to stop people taking things and damaging the graves.

Oscar Wilde's grave. Now behind perspex after the family encounter massive costs to keep cleaning it of lipstick kisses.

The cemetery covers 110 acres (45 hectares) we were walking around for almost 3 hours.

A Sewer tour of Paris on the side of the Seine. It's a self guided tour, no booking needed and hardly anyone in there. 

And finally a walk up the Champs Elysees on 'No car day' which occurs monthly on a Sunday.

If you're travelling from the airport into the city purchase a separate RER ticket for €13 and buy a separate daily travel pass each time you want to travel. Initially you'll pay €2 for the Navigo easy card and then just top it up for a daily pass which is €12. 

We spent a lot of time on the train and metro network.

Don't buy a 1-3 day pass as you'll get travel to and from the airport included each day and it costs around €26 for each day, you'll also need to have a photo for these passes and if you don't put the photo on the card and get stopped you'll be fined €30.

Trains were disrupted to and from the airport over the weekend. I didn't find out until after I'd purchased my ticket and headed underground. Then the lack of available English left me having to work my own way round and I eventually worked out a stop with a bus route that was near the airport and waited till the train popped out from under the ground to confirm it on google maps. The replacement bus service was well organised, once I found it.

Next year we'll be doing a tour of all the artists. We did the Louvre and Sacre Cloeur last year, but want to visit:

Claude Monet's house and gardens.

Picasso museum.

Pompidou Centre.

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  Let me know if you've been anywhere you think I might like to visit. We've both done Versailles, Disney and all the big landmarks.

Post comment Love 13-15th June - Paris

Welcome back to #PoCoLo with Stephanie from Bosworth.Life and I.

Post Comment Love #PoCoLo is a friendly weekly linky where you can link up any blog post you've written this week. If you're new or a regular visitor we're sure you'll find something of interest.

We'd also appreciate your help spreading the #PoCoLo word on Twitter, tag us and we'll RT. You can find us on twitter here: Stephanie - @BosworthLife and Suzanne - @ChickenRuby 

I'll be catching up with reading your posts, sharing and commenting over the next few days. 

I had an amazing weekend in Paris with my friend, arriving late last Friday night and meeting on the platform at Notre Dame. we visited the Eiffel Tower, Notre dame, went to Pere Lachaise Cemetery, went on a Sewer Tour under the city and walked up the Champs Elyesse. There was champagne, cocktails, wonderful food, fantastic company and lots of catching up. My flight home was delayed and I got home at 1am on the Monday and I'm still playing catch up with my sleep, but it was worth it.

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May 2025 - Days out in the campervan

There haven't been many days out in the van in May as I'd hoped for. We did have a camping trip lined up but then we had to drive to Plymouth to collect our new car. All the camp sites want a minimum of two nights at booking.

I took the van over to Northern Ireland on the ferry for a week. Vans are down on the lower deck with the lorries and always last to load. I always climb into the back and have a lie down and read.

It was great to be able to sit with the baby while DIL popped in and out for appointments and collecting older grandson from nursery and gave us plenty of space for the pram, and both car seats with space for another adult to sit properly so we could all go out together. It was also great for nappy changes and feeding times were easier.

Grandson loves the caravan, so we went out for a play one afternoon. We popped the roof for him to crawl into the bed and he did the hoovering and helped me tidy ready for my trip home.

We're going to try and fit a trip away in the van in June, but the first weekend I'm in Paris, then child 2 and family are coming to stay, then we're dog sitting for a weekend, so it's looking likely that it's unlikely to happen until July.

Week 23 2025. One Daily Positive and Project 365 - Paris

I'm not enjoying work at the moment, it's quite depressing. They've wound my role down as they're doing something different next year to engage students with low attendance. I discovered this week that they're advertising for a TA, my old role. They said they'd let me know if there was any suitable alternative employment, but I found out on a job site about the role. It's not nice not feeling wanted, despite my line manger telling me I'm invaluable to her, it's just all to do with budgets.

I was triggered by a pair of shoes in Mountain Warehouse, these are what we used to buy for Stephanie and she'd have been due a new pair of boots and sandals around this time of year.

153 I had my B12 jab on the way to work and the nurse had prepped the blood testing tray to save me going back on Friday. It's my 6 monthly test for my creative thrombocytosis. Levels were almost in normal range back at the last test. Home to have an early bath, catch up with some TV and an early night.

154 I had a call from neurology first thing in the morning to discuss the new medication. It's definitely working, only 2 migraines in May. I'm still getting persistent headaches and occasional stabbing eye pain and I feel nauseous from the meds, but I'll take that instead of 15 days of migraines a month. An upset at work through thoughtless comments. Peter met me for coffee after work and home for dinner. Went to the pub on a dog walk with a friend.

155 Got my nails done after work and home to do some washing and packing. I spent the evening watching the last Mission Impossible film ready for Thursday evening.

156 Peter picked me up and we went into Worcester after work to watch Mission Impossible. We had dinner and a couple of drinks in the pub. I enjoyed the film and we got home at 11pm. Straight to bed.

157 Woke at the alarm and had a bath, then into work. Peter collected me at 3.30pm and we drove straight to the airport. I had 15 mins before my gate was announced to grab a sandwich. Landed at 10.30pm. My friend Dorette, was waiting for me at the station.

158 Some serious mileage walked and stairs climbed up and down. Grabbed a Starbucks and caught the metro to the Eiffel Tower for a trip to the top and a glass of champagne. I finally managed to get tickets to Notre Dame stopping on the way to have lunch and a cocktail. Then we visited the Catacombs to discover they were closed due to a strike, so we went to the near by China Town. We missed our stop on the RER, I fell off my seat and the Parasians did't bat an eyelid, despite me and my friend being in absolute hysterics. Bought a bottle of wine and some snacks and back to the air b&b around 9pm.

159 early morning visit to Pere Lachaise Cemetery where Jim Morrison and Oscar Wilde amongst others are buried. next stop a tour of the Paris Sewers, then a walk up the Champs Elysee. Back to the air b&b to collect my bag, then a stop at Notre Dame for dinner and off to the airport. No trains running, took a while but found a route with a bus replacement service. Flight home at 10pm.  

What made me happy this week:

Being in Paris with my friend. Having new experiences. 

Things that made me smile this week:

Sitting at the Easy Gate desk watching people trying to cram bags twice the size than they've booked into the racks.

Standing up on the train to check the station and sitting back down (on the ground) without realising my chair seat had flipped shut, walking past places we were going to all because we were too busy happy. A waiter meow'ed at us whilst taking our order. 

The stupid light on the BMW when you open the door at night.

On the blog this week:

The good bits of May

Post Comment Love - Link up with any post written this week.

Word of the Week - Comments

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Word of the Week - Comments

I spent the weekend going back through blogs, leaving and replying to comments. I leave comments every week on #pocolo that I cohost and with the other linkies I join in with.

But rarely check my own comments and I very much doubt after being asked a question, if anyone goes back to see if I've answered. So I decided to answer a few questions in a post as I have pretty much the same readers and comment leavers.

How's your grandson now?

He made a full recovery before I left.

Is it hard saying goodbye to the little ones?

Of course. I'm in tears every time I say goodbye to our grandson in Northern Ireland and now there is two of them to only see 4-6 times a year. Saying goodbye this trip was really hard as eldest really didn't want me to go and was so worried about the distance I had to travel on my own.

How are the new migraine meds going?

The migraine meds are working really well. If you're interested I 've had migraines my entire life and have tried everything going. The biggest help is taking the triptans as soon as I get an aura and I find coke and caffeine works well and yes, I go to sleep if possible. If not, it usually ends in a trip to A&E to get rid of it. New meds are called Atogepant side effects are nausea and sleepiness, although I don't actually sleep. According to medical professionals over the years, my migraines have been caused by being female, hormones, perimenopause, menopause and stress. Having ruled all that out by keeping charts of my migraines for over a year, and proving there is no link to anything other than wheat and stating that I cannot continue to live with 15 migraines a month and listing the impacts on my life, they finally agreed I qualified for the new drug.

Does sailing at night ease sea sickness?

No, it's just at night time if we can book a cabin, I can get straight into bed and lie down before the ferry sails.

New job

I'll be in Australia for the start of the new school year. I am applying for other teaching jobs in both the UK and in Dubai. Yes I'm sad to be leaving and I'm open to working there again if they can sort their budgets out. I'm anxious about joining a new work place. I'm comfortable where I am. I make friends easily, but it's those questions people ask when you start somewhere new. Are you married? Got children? I don't want to have to answer the last question.

Battery

Our home car charger was installed last week, no more fluffing around with endless apps and finding a charging station.

What are your plans for the front garden?

We're going to level the garden off. A border will be dug in along the front and earth from the back garden will be used to level it off and the shrubs will be replanted, there's not a lot of soil in the front and these shrubs have been in the ground for almost 2 years now.

Wow you've got a lot of sun in the garden.

Our back garden is north facing garden, it surprises me how much sun we do actually get.

Do you reply to comments left on your blog?

6th - 8th June 2025 - Post Comment Love

Welcome back to #PoCoLo with Stephanie from Bosworth.Life and I.

Post Comment Love #PoCoLo is a friendly weekly linky where you can link up any blog post you've written this week. If you're new or a regular visitor we're sure you'll find something of interest.

I got home from Northern Ireland last Friday night after a week with my grandsons. Saturday was spent with the other set of grandchildren and Sunday was spent just chilling out before going back to work. 

This is the closest I get to having all 4 of them together. A video call.

This weekend I'm in Paris meeting a friend who is flying up from South Africa. We met the same time last year. We've got lots of plans and don't think we have a minute of our trip free.

We'd also appreciate your help spreading the #PoCoLo word on Twitter, tag us and we'll RT. You can find us on twitter here: Stephanie - @BosworthLife and Suzanne - @ChickenRuby 

I'll be catching up with reading your posts, sharing and commenting over the next few days. 

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Click here to enter

The good bits of May 2025

Things that made me smile:

Time with the family and grandchildren. 

Grandson telling me I'm not his favourite anymore when I told him off. I was no longer his best friend either when I said I wasn't reading all those books at one bedtime.

Peter kept taking the baby from me. Our granddaughter told him off for not sharing.

Our grandson tells me every time we read this book 'that looks like grandad'

Time with friends

5 middle aged women running down the road at almost midnight to help a friend catch a train that already left, on our way home from the pub. Peter gave her a lift.

Becoming obsessed with charging the car battery and keeping the camper van charged.

Places we visited:

I've had 2 trips to Northern Ireland to visit our new grandson. I flew over on the bank holiday at the beginning of May for a long weekend after the baby was born. Then I took the car over on the ferry during Whitsun.

We had a visit with my nephew, his fiancé and their baby in Cwmbran, then stopped over the night in a Budget Ibis and the following drove to Plymouth to pick up our new car.

I went to the cinema to see David Attenborough's Ocean and with the same friend went to hers to watch Barbie and have dinner on another occasion. 

I had afternoon tea with another friend and a few drinks and Peter and I went to the RHS Malvern Spring show.

We celebrated our daughter in law's birthday and I had a lovely gluten free pasta dish.

Things we did at home:

Lots of gardening was done.

We spent a lot of time just enjoying the garden also.

We had an EV charger fitted. Peter removed the kitchen radiator ready to start tiling. I spent a lot of time sorting through my teaching files now the GCSE's are underway. We've watched lots of telly.

We've already done quite a bit in June already and there is lots more to come.