Lighting Up The Paris Skies!
It always begins with The Eiffel Tower…any discussion of France must begin in the “city of lights”, and on this night it certainly was!
The world-famous Eiffel Tower, originally constructed in 1889 and standing 330m tall, was only originally intended to be a temporary structure. It was created to be the centrepiece of the 1889 Exposition Universelle, a world’s fair held in Paris.
My “Travel A – Z” series lands in France for the letter “F”, and of course there is so much more than I can ever cover, but let me try to highlight some wild experiences I have had there!
France encompasses medieval cities, alpine villages and Mediterranean beaches. Paris, its capital, is famed for its fashion houses, classical art museums including the Louvre and monuments like the Eiffel Tower. The country is also renowned for its wines and sophisticated cuisine.
The Spectacular Arc du Triomphe!
The center of Paris revolves around this incredible monument. There are 284 steps to the top of the Arc. There is a vault with the names of the 660 generals who fought in every battle during the French Republic and Empire carved on the walls.
The twelve avenues that lead to the Arc form a star, hence its full name.
Away from the city center, I visited a place I wanted to call “home.”
Welcome To Chateau Vincences!
Yes, I had to visit my castle, just a few metro subway stops from The Bastille.
The Château de Vincennes is a former fortress and royal residence next to the town of Vincennes, on the eastern edge of Paris, alongside the Bois de Vincennes. It was largely built between 1361 and 1369, and was a preferred residence, after the Palais de la Cité, of French kings in the 14th to 16th century.
Here’s what it looks like inside:
Click here to see all of the castle I explored one day when I was in Paris on my own for the day!
I love to walk the streets of Paris, discovering so much great food everywhere you look – and sometimes you have to look up!
That’s Alex digging into a meal at Jules Verne restaurant – located on the second level of the Eiffel Tower!
After eating lunch you get to walk around the second level and see all of Paris surrounding you! See what we ate and more of our spectacular views here:
Paris is filled with memorable places to visit – like the Pere Lachiase Cemetery, where singer Jim Morrison is buried! Here’s is his gravesite:
It’s the world’s most star-studded cemetery – click on my story to see more famous figures who reside here:
With so much to see and do, no wonder France is the greatest “go to ” country there is!
Over 90 million people visited France is 2019, making it the most visited country in the world. Spain and the USA were the second and third most visited countries.
Time to check out some of my favorite places outside of Paris, beginning with a “water wheel” village in Provence!
Welcome to L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue!
L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue is a Provençal town in southeast France. It’s known for its antiques stores and weekend markets, plus vintage waterwheels on the Sorgue river! Here’s a look!
I will share more from this charming village on a separate post, but since you are in Provence, why not drive two hours east to visit the French Riviera?
Home to the world’s most prestigious film festival, Cannes sits on the French Riviera, and it’s a beautiful place to watch the world go by:
Those are my feet after a long walk…but this is much more than a place to relax…walk along the water and you will come across this!
Yes, there’s a party in every beach club along the famed “Croisette”, a walkway along the Mediterranean Sea…I have been to Cannes 26 times – mostly for work, so it was the perfect spot for my “Hitch Hiking” series of walks and Alfred Hitchcock classics like “To Catch A Thief”, which was filmed there!
See an in-depth look at the region here!
France is famous for its wine regions as well: from Champagne to Chateau-du-Pape, and the stunning region of Bordeaux!
A gorgeous region of vineyards, castles and more…here’s a look at the view from the top of St. Emilion:
My wife and I have been to the Bordeaux wine region three times now and we love it! One morning we were hiking the vineyards and saw this old-fashioned way to tend to the grapes!
Click here for a more in-depth look at this incredible wine village!
Alex and I also loved visiting the wine region of Burgundy – because we love the unique architecture there:
Alex and I explored the fascinating Hospices de Beaune, in the Burgundy wine region.
Click here to see that tour!
One year, Alex and I drove up Mont Ventoux – a moon-like landscape there Tour de France riders compete…click here to see the view from the top!
And here is another incredible sight:
The stunning Mont Saint-Michel is on our “must visit” list – click here to see why:
We loved our many travel through Provence, because you can drive through vineyards and see a Roman Colisseum as well:
It’s magical, and if you click here you can find out where this classic example of Roman architecture is located:
There is SO much more to explore in France, which is why it’s one of our favorite places to visit! I hope you enjoyed by latest edition of “Travel A – Z”. If you enjoy these posts, why not subscribe and never miss out? It’s easy, and there are NO ads of any kind, just stuff I like…click on the main page and “follow” me on the upper right!
If you like this latest edition, please share with friends on social media! Leave a comment and let me know if you’ve been to his magnificent part of the world!
Categories: Cannes Film Festival, Exotic Travel, Food, Memoirs, nature, Paris, Pop Culture, Real Estate, Travel, Travel Adventures, Travel Memoir
johnrieber 
Wow, the lights are spectacular.
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I must spend some quality time in France in my future – not too distant future at that
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We are headed back to Paris soon for a short stop of a few days…enough time to add a few more memories! Thanks for the comment!
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OMG! You have just ‘given me’ about an hour’s homework I DO want to do! Am going to watch each and every one of your videos even tho’ I may be cutting some medicine lectures from the US! I know what is important 🙂 !!! Have been lucky to have visited France quite a number of times – loved the arts and food in Paris but not its attitude towards people whose French was not perfect . . .but just adored the south! If ill-health had not intervened, would be living and working north of Bordeaux at the moment !!! Two loves we do share – I don’t know how many times I have returned to Chateau de Vincennes . . . and, for some 30 years when the Tour de France is on, I watch until 2am, for the three weeks in real time in Australia 🙂 !!!
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Thanks for the note and sounds like you have had some wonderful adventures there in person and are still living vicariously through social media and TV, which always helps take me back there as well!
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Well, if I had not ‘managed’ to get rotocuff to ‘change’ the rest of my life some 15 months back, I would actually be working in western parts of France near Bordeaux with special trips to Morocco! Circumstances change and one has to change oneself to survive!!!
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I have not been to any of the most visited countries you mentioned. I hope to go to France next year. This year I chose Belgium.
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There are so many places to visit in this world, we are trying to experience new ones while still seeing some of our favorite again as well…Belgium should be truly interesting and beautiful as well!
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John, you would love Bruges, and Ghent. Brussels is good too, but I prefer the Flemish-speaking areas of Belgium, with some great food and the best beer in the world! Check out the ‘Trappist’ beers, and ‘Kasteel’, strong and dark.
https://www.vanhonsebrouck.be/en/beer/kasteel/kasteel-rouge/
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Here you go Pete…found it in trash!
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France is a country of such great contrasts, and I have been lucky to visit it many times. My favourite part is the south, and the towns of Nimes, Arles, Aix, Montpelier, Narbonne, and Carcassone. I can see why so many British people go to live there when they retire.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Yes Pete, the south is terrific!
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I love France…..Paris is very romantic and the Normandy region is superb. chuq
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