Postcards from Paris: Notre-Dame, Tuileries

I’ve got lots of photos to share for today’s installment of Postcards from Paris — from the Louvre to the Tuileries Gardens and more — so grab that coffee and let’s get to it.

architecture in paris

For starters, though, let’s talk about where we stayed.

Rather than paying an arm-and-a-leg for a hotel, we went the AirBNB route. And let me tell you guys: I’m never doing it differently!

We really lucked out with our place – it was super central, in a safe neighborhood (the seventh arrondissement), and adjacent to one of our favorite streets – Rue Cler (where we picked up most of our daily picnic supplies). We were steps from the Eiffel Tower, too!

If you look at the photo below, we’re in the middle building – second floor from the top.

air-bnb-paris

On the corner of our street was the Bedford Diner, which is also a Brooklyn-based restaurant. This helped us to feel a little close to home, even though we preferred to stay off the beaten path and go “where the American’s don’t go,” as it was worded. Have I mentioned the French really don’t like us much (at first)?

One night, we ended up at a nearby dive – a smoke-filled, hole-in-the-wall bar with really quirky, vintage decor. (Think typewriters, floor lamps and sofas.) It was kinda charming, actually. I asked – in broken French – for three glasses of wine, and the bartender ignored me and gave us a bottle. No complaints there, obvi.

He spent the rest of the night throwing ice at us constantly, but I think that’s just because he didn’t know how to wink.

bedford-diner-parisparis neighborhood districts eiffel tower paris

streets of paris

It’s hard to resist an autumn walk through the parks of Paris. And there are a lot of them.

Among my favorites were the beautiful Tuileries Gardens (below), which stretch their chic French lawns along the grand Seine river between the Louvre and Musée d’Orsay. A close second is the lovely Luxembourg Gardens.

luxembourg gardens in paris jardin du luxembourg best gardens in paris luxembourg gardens goat in luxembourg castle in paris the lourve paris

On our way to check out the Louvre.

luxembourg castle gardens

The Arc de Triopmhe is perhaps the most iconic of all French monuments. The traffic is mayhem and it’s crawling with tourists, but it’s a sight that thrills nonetheless. Kinda like Times Square if you’re not from New York, I suppose?

The Arc stands at the center of Place de l’Étoile, which is the hub from which all 12 grand avenues meet and radiate to form the star for which the Place de l’Étoile is named.

arc de triomphe paris arc de triomphe grey booties for fallarc de triomphe l'etoile arc_de_triomphe champs elysees champs elysees arc de triomphe

red-and-pink-outfit

Another one of my favorite landmark locations was the Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris. I grew up in an Irish-Catholic household, so exploring and experiencing one of world’s most renowned religious centers was a bucket list item of sorts.

notre dame paris sightseeing

Notre-Dame is technically known as the heart of Paris.

It’s easy to miss, but there’s a brass star in the sidewalk across the street from the cathedral’s main entranc. This marks the exact location of Point Zéro des Routes de France, wherein all distances in France/from Paris are measured from this spot.

rue neuve notre dame olivia palermo for westward leaning

Always wearing my matte Westward Leaning sunglasses (from Olivia Palermo’s collection).

bloggers in paris_

Art-directing our poor picture-taking stranger.

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One of our favorite things to do in Paris was to walk. We spent countless hours and logged lots of miles strolling up and down the Seine, especially. Like a true tourist, I’m pretty sure I have 200 variations of the same photo!

walk across the seine in paristhe seine pariswindowsills in parisbastille gare de lyonfountains in paris

… And all that walking was a good thing, because we often stopped for blueberry or Nutella crepes. And wine.

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For more posts from Paris…

Postcards: Eiffel Tower exploring | Louvre & Luxembourg Gardens
Personal style/outfits: Practically PJ’s | A striped ensemble | Pretty in Pink | A Pleated Maxi

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23 comments

  1. I am so freaking jealous of your trip it’s not even funny. You need to do a guide on how you were able to afford this trip + how you were able to see almost all of Paris in such a short amount of time! And art directing to strangers is also a specialty of mine… lol!

    xx Larisa @ weheartbeauty.com

  2. YES I second Larisa’s comment! I’d love to see a true travel guide post. We stayed in an AirBNB in NYC a few years ago and it was awful. Think cockroaches, dirty sheets, hair on the pillows, and a pipe in the bathroom that was always scalding hot (and un-protected- stepping out of the other you could just barely avoid burning yourself really badly). So glad you had a better experience!
    http://www.youtube.com/sparklesandsuch26

    • Oh gosh, EW. Sorry you had that experience in NYC. We would only consider AirBNB locations that had positive reviews, so that’s a good place to start.

      I think a travel guide-centric post is a great idea. Appreciate your suggestions!

  3. Ah! I’m so jealous that you were in Paris! I studied abroad in France in college and got to take a few trips to Paris. Walking all over is the best, I’m pretty sure one day we walked over 6 miles one day from our hostel all around Paris. I also love the Tuileries Gardens! It was actually Pret a Porter fashion week while we were there (it was March) and we happened to be walking through the garden when a show got out. It was crazy!
    I’m loving all of these Postcards from Paris posts! It’s fueling my wanderlust even more!

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  5. oh I’m leaving for Paris in 120 days and it can’t come soon enough!!! Do you have a link on where you stayed?? the location looks perfect!

    LOVE your blog 😉

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