Paris Part II

Champs-Elysees

It's a pity that it was late when we arrived,

hence we didn't manage to visit most of the luxury stores here.

It was drizzling when we arrived at Champs-Elysees,

so we dodged into a random restaurant nearby.

Decent food but horrible service. Horrible.

If you read my earlier post on paris,

you might have noticed that I already had some food earlier at the Christmas market,

so were weren't exactly hungry when we stepped into the restaurant.

However, the super snobbish French waitress insisted that we order 1 main course each;

Desserts were not allowed to replace the main course.

Totally absurd!

Look at the portion of the dishes;

Even if we were hungry, we would not have been able to finish them.

Worst of all, she made it quite clear that she thinks we were being extremely stingy by not ordering 1 main course each.

Explanation was futile and her service was obviously quite atrocious for the rest of the evening.

It's the only meal for the entire trip that we did not leave any tip at all. And why should we?

Arc de Triomphe

The next day, we had breakfast in this hole-in-the-wall French cafe+bar.

Basilique du Sacre Coeur

Lots of of gypsies trying to scam tourists at this venue, and they come in groups.

View from the hill top where Basilique du Sacre Coeur was located.

You can get a good view of the city if you are willing to climb long flights of steps.

A stall at a market selling roasted nuts and candies.

Map of the Flea Market

Flea market.

Quite a nice place to shop for quirky handicrafts, second-hand luxury goods and artworks.

It actually consists of many permanent stores in a enclosed area (look at the map).

The area between the train station and this flea market is quite shady,

lots of immigrants trying to sell you D-grade replica of branded purses.

There is even a rather rundown temporary market selling awful clothes and handicrafts.

Initially, I thought that was the flea market and was quite disappointed.

Luckily, a helpful British lady guided us to the actual flea market.

Inside the Louvre

One of those super-touristy headshot with the Mona Lisa painting.

It was rather crowded when we went but I still managed to get a shot with the portrait.

It was raining when we visited the Eiffel Tower and we were freezing!

The wind was especially strong and cold at the top of the tower.

View from the top of the Eiffel Tower.

Last day of shopping in Paris. ^^

I wanted to visit some second-hand luxury boutiques but couldn't really find it.

In the end, we just walked around and shopped freely, albeit not knowing where we were.

Unlike London, where there are a lot of big malls and departmental stores,

Paris has many small boutiques and cafes along the streets.

It's true that you need to be able to walk long distances,

but there are also plenty of places for you to take a rest and enjoy a cup of coffee.

Back in London for the last night.

On this trip, we experienced 3 different types of lodging;

Private apartment, serviced apartment and hotel.

I must say I really prefer staying at a hotel, with a clean and well-equipped bathroom.

It's also comforting to know that when you return at the end of the day,

clean linen and fresh towels awaits. ^^