Have you ever taken a bike ride around Paris? Well I’ll tell you its one a scenic experience you don’t want to miss out on. Vélib is a bicycle-sharing operator in Paris with over 20,000 bicycles available. What’s great is the fact that they do have about 1,800 stations that are located approximately 300m from one another. There is an app available,‘Velib’, that helps you locate stations, informs you on where bicycles are available and how many parking spots there are. Its great! You don’t ever have to worry about loosing a bicycle! The Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile at the western end of the Champs-Élysées.
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The bell towers of Notre-Dame that Quasimodo adorn in the Hunchback of Notre-Dame. This little piece of island is one of the two natural islands on the Seine River in Paris. In Merovigian times, it was where the seat of power was located. This island has one of Paris’ main attractions, the Notre-Dame de Paris. Notre-Dame is well known for its architecture and stained glass windows, especially the rose window. But I found a church, just a few metres away from Notre Dame that holds one of the best stained glass windows in all of Paris, if not France.
Quaint cafés and beautiful creepers on walls - it is a picturesque walk through the hills of Montmartre in spring. Cheery Blossoms against a painted blue sky, Wisterias in bloom hanging off intricate iron gates with the sound of an Accordion playing in the distance - that’s how I remembered Montmartre when I first set foot in her 9 years ago. I’m here today and nothing has changed except for perhaps the influx of tourist. Spring I would say is the best time to visit Paris, and Montmartre is one of my favourite places to come to. Artist out in the square painting, while the hustle and bustle of tourist and locals a like sit out to enjoy a glass of wine in spring’s perfect weather, is absolute bliss!
Montmartre is the second highest point in Paris after the Eiffel Tower. From the top, one can view the skyline of Paris and a perfect location to watch the lights display of the Eiffel Tower at night. It is home to the famous white-domed church, Basilica of Sacré Cœur, as well as the old church of Saint Pierre de Montmartre. It is said that artist such as Claude Monet, Piet Mondrian, Pablo Picasso, Vincent van Gogh and even Salvador Dali had studios and worked in and around here. *How can you not fall in love with this place already?! “We have enough people to go to Manta Point tomorrow morning at 6am, so be up 30 minutes earlier to size up and we can get your gear ready for the dive”. “Huh? But I’m just recovering from a cold… and I just landed”. “Don’t worry honey, you sound fine. But lets see how you feel tomorrow morning. But you should really go as you wanted to dive with Mantas for your birthday”. Manta rays just off the coast of Bali Sitting on a flight with puffy eyes and a stuffy nose wasn’t a great way to start a dive holiday. The last of the antibiotics sent me off to slumber land within minutes as I flew over to Bali. Groggy as I was, I managed to get my luggage and meet my friend Arie at the airport where he whisked off to my destination – Amed.
On my first night in Ubud, my eyes and ears were treated to a grand procession from the royal palace heading down hill towards the river.
Traffic stood still as women in intricate-laced kebaya’s and sarong, glided down the street balancing baskets full of offerings, while the men walked ahead. Everyone is Ubud is heading this evening to Pura Gunung Lebah (more known to the locals here as Pura Campuhan) for one of the six grand ceremonies held to bless the temple. |
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