Vacation - short summary
So - I was on vacation recently.
Surprisingly after 4 and a half years in Ireland this was my first Shengen trip. And it was to France.
We spent there almost 2 weeks: around 10 days in Paris, then 5 in Orleans going from there to Blois, Chambord, Chenonceau, Amboise. I just felt like not visiting Loire castles on my trip would be fail.
Overall it was marvellous. Weather was a little bit too hot compared to Irish - around 28 to 30 all the time. Considering that Paris feels almost as overpopulated as Moscow - it was melting me at times.
We walked a lot there. And I mean A LOT. Visited main tourist attractions: Louvre, Muse d'Orse, Tour Eiffel, Centre George Pompidou, Notre Dame, Montmartre, Montparnasse, Champs Elisee, La Defence, Versailles. Also we managed to visit our french office and meet a couple of friends there. Plus I met son_amour a couple of times. She lives in France and looks like it's good for her. =)
I liked Paris. With all it's narrow streets, ancient architecture, multitude of cafes, absolute domination of 2 or 3-weel transport, incredible diversity of nations and beloved by me french language - it felt like home. I want to stay there and re-learn my french. If there's a chance to relocate to our office there - I might really dig into that opportunity.
Orleans was really lovely as well. It's a lot quieter and looks a lot more like real France. I have an opinion that all capital cities are really similar. Yes - they have their cultural differences and unique details here and there but incredibly fast pace of life smoothens those natural edges, drags you past them leaving unnoticed and unappreciated. Only when you get out of the head and to the heart of country you can really settle down and feel things differently.
Orleans was the right ending for this trip - castles of Loire, quiet local life, traditional fondue and even salut on the night before our departure. It was purely coincidental that we were leaving 15th July with 14 being a nation-wide celebration of taking Bastille. Still a 15-minute non-stop salut was a perfect cherry on top of our vacation cake!
As usual - more photos here:
https://picasaweb.google.com/110544285038158744942/France2013
I'm sorry for poor quality - all these are from my iPhone
Surprisingly after 4 and a half years in Ireland this was my first Shengen trip. And it was to France.
We spent there almost 2 weeks: around 10 days in Paris, then 5 in Orleans going from there to Blois, Chambord, Chenonceau, Amboise. I just felt like not visiting Loire castles on my trip would be fail.
Overall it was marvellous. Weather was a little bit too hot compared to Irish - around 28 to 30 all the time. Considering that Paris feels almost as overpopulated as Moscow - it was melting me at times.
We walked a lot there. And I mean A LOT. Visited main tourist attractions: Louvre, Muse d'Orse, Tour Eiffel, Centre George Pompidou, Notre Dame, Montmartre, Montparnasse, Champs Elisee, La Defence, Versailles. Also we managed to visit our french office and meet a couple of friends there. Plus I met son_amour a couple of times. She lives in France and looks like it's good for her. =)
I liked Paris. With all it's narrow streets, ancient architecture, multitude of cafes, absolute domination of 2 or 3-weel transport, incredible diversity of nations and beloved by me french language - it felt like home. I want to stay there and re-learn my french. If there's a chance to relocate to our office there - I might really dig into that opportunity.
Orleans was really lovely as well. It's a lot quieter and looks a lot more like real France. I have an opinion that all capital cities are really similar. Yes - they have their cultural differences and unique details here and there but incredibly fast pace of life smoothens those natural edges, drags you past them leaving unnoticed and unappreciated. Only when you get out of the head and to the heart of country you can really settle down and feel things differently.
Orleans was the right ending for this trip - castles of Loire, quiet local life, traditional fondue and even salut on the night before our departure. It was purely coincidental that we were leaving 15th July with 14 being a nation-wide celebration of taking Bastille. Still a 15-minute non-stop salut was a perfect cherry on top of our vacation cake!
As usual - more photos here:
https://picasaweb.google.com/110544285038158744942/France2013
I'm sorry for poor quality - all these are from my iPhone