Touring Paris with my “Ride or Die” Travel Buddies

Well, none of you guessed it! The answer is… We toured Paris in a sidecar! Why ride the “Hop-On-Hop-Off” bus when you can slide into a retro sidecar and see the same sights? Best. Decision. Ever. We laughed so much and smiled so hard that our faces hurt at the end of the tour.

I found this opportunity through AirBnb. I’m not sure you’re aware but AirBnb now offers more than just lodging. They offer experiences with locals and I always do an AirBnb experience at least once per trip we take. It’s a great way to connect with locals and see their city, town, harbor through their eyes. When we were in Rio we jumped aboard a local’s speedboat and had an amazing time snorkeling and touring the bay for Lily’s birthday. I missed out on booking a Jai Lai lesson for John and me with a local from Biarritz but made darned sure that I booked the Retro Side Car tour with Juliene and his crew. The cost was only $71 per person for an hour and man did we pack that hour!

Here is what we saw:

1. Place de la Concorde
2. Elysée Palace
3. Avenue Montaigne, Paris
4. Arc de Triomphe, Paris
5. Les Jardins du Trocadéro
6. Eiffel Tower – Long stop here for photos
7. Pont Alexandre III
8. Grand Palais
9. Assemblée Nationale

Juliene and Arnold were fabulous! They were so funny and so much fun. I posted some videos of the tour on Instagram and wish that I could post videos for you here so that you can truly see their personalities. Watching the two of them together was like watching a comedy show. They played off each other really well and were an endless source of knowledge on all of the sights we saw. We could ask them anything and they had an answer and some witty quip to go with it. (Reminds me of the good ole days when you flew Southwest airlines and the stewardesses always did some shtick over the loudspeaker – probably dating myself with that one!)

As the saying goes, if you want time to stand still, then do a plank and hold it for a minute but if you’re having fun, time will fly. This hour we had with Juliene and Arnold flew by so quickly! We met them at the Place de la Concorde where I hid Laura and Lily in a crepe shop and plied them with crepes and coffee and a fun little “Alice in Wonderland” room of mirrors to distract them from their upcoming surprise.

Once I heard the sound of the motorcycles I popped up from my perch in the crepe shop and announced “Okay girls! Are you ready for the ride of your lives? Let’s go!” and they walked out of the crepe shop to the welcome smiles and roaring engines of Juliene and Arnold and their retro side cars. I have to say that surprising those two with this trip was one of the highlights of my adventures in Paris.

Once the tour was over it was back-to-business for us and we started our walk from Place de Concorde back to the Latin Quarter to check out of our hotel and into our AirBnb. Then the fun really began. I rarely stay in one spot for a week but when I saw this flat on AirBnb I snatched it up for the long haul. The location was perfect! Right by the Eiffel Tower and surrounded with shops and brasseries. There was also a farmers market in the square below our house once a week and fresh patisseries and boulangeries every few feet.

Those stairs were no joke! Although I HIGHLY recommend staying here – you cannot stay here if you cannot handle the stairs. Needless to say, the building we were in is old and these are the stairs that the servants used to retire in their attic bedrooms which is exactly where we stayed! These stairs are not for the faint of heart – quite literally – you have to have a strong constitution to be able to navigate these stairs with your luggage. I don’t know that the image above properly conveys how small the depth of the space is between the wall and railing but I am thanking the stars above that we only had our carry-ons to haul up here. I strongly doubt anyone could heave a full-sized suitcase up these stairs. But the view at the top was worth very ounce of effort. Take a look!

I know, right?! Wow! We awakened to the sound of church bells every morning and we fell fast asleep to the twinkling lights of the Eiffel Tower illuminating our bedrooms each night. We are so very blessed.

We closed out this special day with an up close and personal visit to our new neighbor: “The Iron Lady,” aka “le Tour Eiffel”, “The Eiffel Tower”, “The Steel Monument”. We rolled on down the 7 flights of spiraling stairs, out the front door and down the block where we planted ourselves in front of the tower to watch the sun set and watch her illuminate for the crowds below. It’s quite a party at sunset. There are vendors roaming the crowds selling champagne, beer and roses. There are couples and groups of girls with blankets covered in exquisite charcuterie and baguettes, sipping away on champagne and wine to pass the time. Children run through the crowds with light up wands and twinkling balloons that their parents purchased for them. Others simply stand with camera-in-hand and click away to capture every moment (your truly!). Irregardless of how those moments in time are spent at the feet of the tower, it is worth the wait when she lights up.

And with those images, I now bid you “adieu” and “Bonsoir”! Tomorrow we head to Montmartre. My father recommended Montmartre for the best views of Paris and an authentic Parisian experience. I will dream of our visit tonight as the lights of the tower bounce across my bedroom walls…