shopping cart / checkout

Search:    

July 2007


Paris and Rome and Transportation and Voyages30 Jul 2007 02:46 pm

When we decided to go from Paris to Rome, we looked into a number of options, flying, driving or by train. We choose to take the Artesia night train leaving from Bercy Train Station in Paris. The Artesia train trip is 14 hrs and 30 mins long and leaves in the evening and arrives in Rome in the morning. It was a great way to get to Italy. It cost us $260 per person for a 1st class sleeper compartment of our own.

The room consisted of a sink, pull out beds, and plenty of space to store our luggage. The room had electric outlets, which allows you to use a laptop or watch a portable DVD player or anything else you may have with you that requires electricity. The plus with Italian style, so make sure you bring a plug adapter. There was an attendant that looked over the travellers on the train car. At bedtime, he would come and put the beds down and make the room ready to sleep and make the room back up in the morning. The train had a dining car that offered a sit down dinner or breakfast for an additional cost. There was also a snack counter that provided drinks, croissants, snacks and numerous other things to eat. Sleeping on the train was fairly comfortable, considering the small size of the compartments. The train moved fair smooth along the tracks, with minimal shaking or jogging.

One drawback to the trip is that most of the ride is during the night which doesn’t allow alot of time to see the countryside. But during daylight hours, it is nice to watch the views as the train travels along. One thing that there is alot of on the trip are tunnels. There must be alot of hills and mountains that the train needs to navigate on its way to Rome. If you plan on getting to Rome at a specific time, you may want to try alternate routes. Our train arrived at Rome 2 hours later then it was scheduled to and from what I can tell it is normal for the train to not arrive on time., but if you are not in a hurry to get to Rome, it is a great way to travel from Paris.

London and Voyages28 Jul 2007 01:57 am

While in Paris, we decided to take a day trip to London, since it was only about a 3 hour train ride which goes through the Channel Tunnel. We boarded the Eurostar at 8AM in the morning and arrived at Waterloo Station in London at 10AM. We rode in second class and the train was very comfortable. They offered breakfast and snacks for sale in the dining car. When arriving at the station, it is a good idea to exchange some money for Pounds, if you wish to purchase anything while you are there.

Once we got in London, we had tickets to take the Hop-on Hop-off London bus tour. It allows you to hop on and hop off the bus at over 40 stops around the city. The stops go to all the major attractions and came with a free cruise on the River Thames. Along the bus tour, we saw the Tower Bridge, Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben and Buckingham Palace to mention just a few.

Dining
For lunch, we ate at a place called “Eat”. It had pretty good sandwiches and muffins. I would definitely recommend this for a quick place to grab a snack or lunch and it was right next to the Tower of London. For dinner, we ate at TGI Friday’s in Piccadilly Square. The food was typical American food, and the best part was they had free refills on drinks, the only place in Europe that offered them.

London Sites
We hopped off the bus at the Buckingham Palace stop. We were able to walk up to the gates of the palace. Guards stand out in front of the palace, walking and guarding the British Royals. The palace is quite big in size, very impressive.

Our day in London was too short. We are planning on returning, so that we can give it the time that it deserves. You should definitely put Britain at the top of your must-see list.

Purchase Tours:
Rail Tour to Paris from London by Eurostar


The Original London Sightseeing Tour - Hop On Hop Off

Tally-ho!
Michael

Paris and Voyages25 Jul 2007 02:02 pm

Paris, considered the city of romance. On our trip to Paris, we wanted to get the most out of the few days we would be staying there. We stayed at the Hotel Du Cadran, it was a nice place that has 42 rooms available. They offered a breakfast every morning and the employees all spoke English. It is located only a few minutes walk from the Eiffel Tower. We walked to the Eiffel Tower and spent the money to go to the top. It was well worth the wait in line. We also visited Disneyland Paris, saw a show at the Moulin Rouge and cruised on the Seine River.

Transportation
We purchased a Paris Visites Pass online before we left for Paris. It is valid for 1, 2 or 5 days and can be used on all the metro and bus systems. It made getting around the city fairly easy. We purchased a pass that went to zone 5 and allowed us to go to Disney Paris. On the metro we have to watch our belongings closely for pick-pockets. Crossing the street in Paris didn’t seem to be a problem, you can just wait for the crossing light to change and safely cross the road. This is in great contrast to trying to cross the street in Rome. We also saw some crazy parking in Paris, it seems with so many cars and scooters on the road that parking is very limited within the city.

Dining
Before we left for Paris, we researched places to eat when we got there. This was to help us to be able to find places without having to wander around. One problem we encountered was that restaurants are closed from about 2PM to 6PM, this makes it hard to find something to eat in the afternoon, but once you realize this, you work around it. The food was definetly not America, so if you are looking for American type food, stick to McDonalds. Portions are smaller and meals usually last much longer. We also got to eat at the Eiffel Tower at the Altitude 95 restaurant. But overall, eating was a good experience.

Sites and Sounds
When you think of Paris, you think of the Eiffel Tower. A trip to Paris is not complete until you go up the tower. Though, I suggest to go early in the morning when they open, the line to wait in can be fairly large in the afternoon and evening. There are elevators in each of the four legs of the tower. They can take you up to levels 1 and 2. If you want to go to the top level, you need to take another elevator from level 2. The top of the Eiffel Tower provides a panoramic view of the city. It is a pretty good view. There are also two restaurants in the Eiffel Tower. We ate at Altitude 95, which was a nice place to eat, with good food and wine. Also, seeing the Eiffel Tower at night is not to be missed. It lights up and sparkles, which is quite a sight.

Disneyland Paris has all of the same attractions as Disneyworld and Disneyland, though there are some differences. Big Thunder Mountain is significantly larger then the US versions. The haunted mansion was also longer. Overall it is a typical Disney experience, though you may miss out on the Funnel Cakes and Peanut Brittle, which they don’t have available at Disney Paris. Also candy apples are coated in a red topping, caramel and other toppings are not to be found.

One good way to see alot of Paris is to take a boat cruise along the Seine River. We took at boat that started at the Eiffel Tower and went up the river and back to the Eiffel Tower. It is about a 45 minute ride and they offer a narration of the city as you cruise along. The narration is available in many languages. The cost is fairly low for the ride, and well worth it.

Our trip to Paris was shorter then we had wished. We need to take another trip back to see things that we missed out on. We want to go and visit Notre Dame and the Louvre.

Happy Travelling
Michael

Close
E-mail It