"Paris...is a world meant for the walker alone, for only the pace of strolling can take in all

This was said by Edmund White, not too sure who he is or what he does but I do know that he is absolutely right when it comes to Paris.

I set off a nine o'clock this morning (and for anyone who knows me, knows how much of a struggle it is for me to get out of bed before midday!) and walked around for 6 hours enjoying the beautiful scenery that is The City of Light.

My advice would be, if you're on your own and have a habit of getting lost, to stay walking along the River Siene. Not only does it put the Thames to shame with perfectly clean riverside paths and a ton of truly spectacular buildings but all the major sights that you probably plan on seeing, like the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, Musee du Louvre, the Royal Palace, are all located just a few metres away from it.

Another reason why you should probably walk next to the River is that the roads are just mental to cross. I've been to Thailand where there are pretty much no motoring laws and you have to fend for yourselves but you get used to that and you understand that it is pure chaos. Whereas in Paris you're given a false sense of security. Like England you have a red and green man to notify you when it's safe to cross the road HOWEVER this is a lie! Just because the signal gives you a green light in Paris that does not mean it's safe to cross the road. In a sense it's like you have right of way when the green man shows up - you can cross the road but there still are cars driving a hundred miles an hour towards you and they can swerve around you! Yeah cause that's not petrifying! And they get pissy that you've tried to cross the street when you#re bloody allowed to!

Rant over. Moving on from the nutty drivers of Paris I have to say that even though this is the first stop in my month of travelling, I've truly fallen in love with this place and I can't wait to come back here. Words can't describe how beautiful it is, the architecture of all the buildings are breathtaking, you're constantly looking around and snapping pictures. There's so much that is familiar but yet so different from London, yes it's a capital city and you can feel that it's bursting with life but the aesthetics don't even compare.

I have to start with Notre Dame, not going to lie I teared up a little bit walking into this great cathedral and I'm not even the slightest bit Christian. I've never seen anything like it in all my travels. It's dark when you walk in besides the light given off from the candelabra and the pillars left by people paying respect but that only makes the atmosphere that bit more intense. I literally can't put into words the effect this place had on me, you have no desire to talk to anyone else while you're in there because there's so much to look at and you know you're becoming a part of something. You can literally feel all the centuries' worth of emotions and history that has been poured into the pews and walls. I'd recommend prioritising this place to see above anything else.

Even thought the Notre Dame absolutely knocks the Eiffel Tower out of the park, it's definitely still worth the visit. It only costs 5 euros...5! When looking it up online I saw prices that arranged from 13-30 euros and heard the horror stories about the dreadful queues however that's not what I encountered. You have to queue up in order to enter the fenced perimeter of the tower which was a measly 10 minutes (not the 30 minutes I was expecting) and so it was free for me to stand directly underneath the centre of the Iron Lady. I didn't get the price of what it would be to ride up to the floors of the tower but for 5 euros and a few flights of stairs I wasn't complaining because the views of the tower are exceptional. On a clear day, for a far as the eye can see, you get to witness the vast population of that is France.

I also went to pay a visit to the Shakespeare & Co bookshop, a second-hand bookstore that offers you free lodging in exchange for a couple hours of work in their shop or adjoining cafe. I have to warn you, space to sit and buy a coffee is limited but all the costumers were lovely and I ended up joining an elderly French woman at her table. She was stylish to say the least, she would put any hipster wannabe to shame in London - you go girl! She had lived in Paris all her life and had no desire to see anything else because to her Paree was the greatest city on Earth - and from what I've seen so it's pretty had to argue against that. This lovely woman, who's name she wishes to keep a mystery, was more than happy to give advice on what to see and do around the town. She most definitely recommended the Moulin rouge and the district that surrounds it however, my budget is pretty thin so if I have any spare dough when i return to Paris in a month's time I'll be following her advice. But god knows what she got upto in her hey-day in the district!

I also returned to the coffee shop I was at yesterday, it was nice that the bartender remembered who I was, "the girl who said latte" (just to let you know in France latte isn't really a thing, the equivalent you're looking for is a cafe creme which translates to a coffee with milk) and while I'm sat here writing this blog loads and loads of camera crews popped out of no where! Thankfully the old man next to me was fluent in French and English and divulged that I have the privilege of being in the same shop as a contender for the French Elections, "Not that they'll win" he says haha.

So there you have it! My first full length day in the French Capital. The few people I've met so far were over-flowing with kindness and generosity. What I've witnessed is that the people here are more than happy to help you and more than that they're not insulted or rattled by you striking a conversation with them. Which for a solo traveller and foreigner is greatly appreciated. Thank you Paris!

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