GIRLS TRIP 2025 - PARIS

 PARIS TRIP - OCTOBER 2025    

Dear Lil:

Well.....this was one heck of a trip!  Just me and you travelling the world!  I will never forget it from the time I left my house until Papa Tom picked me back up at the airport.  All of our photos are in Google Drive.  We have over 450 photos!

On Friday, October 3 I left for the Orlando airport to come to your place in Nashville.  You were still in school when I got there; but as soon as you got home we started packing up your stuff for our trip.  That night for dinner the whole family went to Sopapillas.  It was nice enough that we ate outside.

On Saturday we were off to the Nashville airport for the first leg of our trip to JFK airport in New York City. Our flight for Paris was not until Sunday night, so we had some big plans in New York for awhile. We stayed right at the airport on Saturday night at the TWA hotel.  TWA stands for Trans World Airlines.  When I was little, that was the major airline that went from country to country.  It was big in the 1960's.  So, this hotel was a retro 60's theme which took us back to the time when TWA was popular.  There were all kinds of fun things, like a huge Twister game, an old hair salon, and even a "ticker tape" board which use to show the flights back in the 60's.  One of the original planes, called "The Connie" was also there.  They turned it into a bar.  We went inside.  It's amazing that this was an international plane.  I couldn't believe how small it was compared to that Air France plane we took to Paris.  We had dinner right at the hotel.  We ordered crepes and they were HUGE!  Neither of us could finish.  All of the bars and cafes at the hotel took you back to the 60's.

You were already missing your best friend and sister, Sophia.  So I suggested we make copies of some of her photos I had, and we could just take her with us.  The front desk even thought it was funny and they were happy to print out as many copies of Sophia as we wanted.  We had fun placing her everywhere we went!  We even put her on the toilet!

The next morning we were up early to take a cab to Battery Park.  This is where we boarded the ferry that took us over to the Statue of Liberty.  They only allow 16 people a day climb all the way up to the Statue's crown.  We had tickets to do that!  Riding the ferry was fun.  It really gave you a great view of the city line.  When we got to the Statue, we checked our bags in a locker and headed up the stairs.  There are a total of 377 steps to get to the crown.  215 steps took us to the pedestal; in which our legs were already shaking.  We took a little rest and took some photos.  Then we had 162 steps to go to get to the crown.  The staircase was a double helix spiral ....very narrow staircase, with no elevators to help you if you couldn't make it.  As we climbed, we saw little side platforms where people could stand off to the side if they couldn't make it; and someone would eventually come and help you.  Out of the 16 people who had tickets, only 5 of us made it to the top!  WE DID IT!   BUT, for 3 days afterwards our legs were soooo sore!  We could look out all of NYC; and even see the Statue's arm!  In fact, you took a picture of her armpit!...lol  Going back down was even harder because our legs were shaking so bad.  This was a once in a lifetime experience for both of us.  We'll never have this opportunity again!

When we got back down, we toured the grounds of the island and the museum.  We also found a gift shop where we found a book for Naomi.  Then we hopped the ferry again, drove back past Ellis Island where all of the immigrants came to America; got back to the hotel and has some ice-cream.  From there it was back to our room to pack up our stuff and head for Terminal 1 where the Air France lounge and our plane were waiting for us.  Everybody at check-in was so nice.  The lady who checked our bags was laughing at us because we kept unpacking our luggage to see if we could bunch everything up so we could just have carryon luggage instead of checking a bag.  She rolled her eyes at us; and we finally agreed to check one bag,  We had to go through what seemed like a million x-ray machines.  Maybe we looked like gangsters?....lol  The lounge had tons of food for us!  You insisted on trying everything and ended up with a little tummy ache (I'm not surprised).  

Then, we were ready to board the plane.  We were the first ones on the plane (we were so being spoiled).  Our seats were in the very front of the plane and they were private.  So they looked like little bedrooms with TV's.  The seats made into beds and we had our own little cubbies for our stuff.  We never saw the people on the rest of the plane.  In fact, when the plane took off, we didn't even feel it.  It was like we were in another hotel.  We had no idea that we were going to be served dinner.  We were already stuffed from the lounge.  BUT, what the heck, we were on vacation, and we both agreed that we would probably get fat on this trip!

After dinner (again), we both went to sleep so we could be well rested when we got to Paris.  The flight was about 8 hours (travelling through the night).  We slept about 7 hours of that.  In the morning they brought us wet cloths, a toothbrush, and everything we needed to wake up.  They also brought us breakfast.  Yup, we were gonna get fat on this trip!

The airport in Paris is HUGE!  I feel like we walked 2 miles just to find baggage claim.  We were picked up by a limo/tour service that I booked.  The guy's name was Nordine; but we just called him NoNo.  He loaded us in his car and provided us with croissants and water for the ride through Paris.  He was great at giving us information on all of the areas around the city.  We spent 3 hours with him.  He even bought us some macaroons.  We saw the Louis Vuitton hotel (which looked like a big purse); the tunnel where Princess Diana lost her life; the Eiffel Tower, Arc d' triumph, Montmartre, little streets of shops, and so much more.  He was always very eager to take our photos wherever we went.  At one point the police told him he could not park in a certain area.  He was frustrated and we heard him say, "ralalala!" (which kinda means "son of a bitch" or "shit" in French).  He also showed us a fence with tons of love locks and told us the story behind them.  We decided we needed to get a love lock for Sophia.  We also drove by the famous Moulin Rouge and the Opera House.  Then he drove us to the Louvre; and told us about some of the history there.  The Louvre actually use to be the King's Palace before he built Versailles.  Now it's a huge art museum.  A week after we came back home, it was all over the news that there was a huge burglary at the Louvre.  (Honest, we didn't do it!)

NoNo would have kept going all day; but our eyes were beginning to glaze over and we just needed a bit of a rest; so he headed for our hotel.  We were staying at the Hotel Maison Colbert, which is located right along the Seine river and directly on the other side of the river was the Notre Dame Cathedral.  The hotel was originally the home of a famous French author, named Simone de Beauvoir.  She was born in 1908 and died in 1986.  The room we stayed in was where she wrote several of her best selling novels.  We each had our own bed, our own sinks, an awesome shower, and even a heated towel rack.  We also had a cute little living room.  Hotel room are extremely small in Paris; but this was a real treat for us.  We had plenty of room and awesome views out our windows.  I loved the windows.  We could open them up and overlook the courtyard, see the cathedral, and just take in the fresh air.

We unpacked our luggage, rested a bit, and then took off to walk some of the streets of Paris.  We had dinner reservations at an all glass restaurant called Kong.  All we needed to do was walk the river to get there.  We got to enjoy the trendy bar first.  Then, it was off to the rooftop to be seated for dinner.  And when I say it was all glass....that even included the tables and chairs.  We had an awesome meal and enjoyed some amazing views of Paris.  After dinner, the walk home was amazing.  We could see the Eiffel Tower off in the distance; and the river at night was just beautiful.  One thing we noticed as soon as we arrived in Paris is that every road, sidewalk, walkway is cobblestone; and very uneven.  I love that Paris has worked hard to keep it's history in full view.

On Tuesday, October 7, we got up early and grabbed a taxi to get us to the train station where we met up with a handful of people and a tour guide named Clara.  We were off to Versailles for a full day bike tour.  The train station looked more like a big shopping mall, with plenty of stores and places to eat.  It was strange to see military personnel walking all around with machine guns.  That's something we don't see in the US, but in large European cities it is more common.

I'm sooo glad we had our sweaters and trench coats with us.  It was pretty cold; especially because it was still early in the morning.  When the train arrived in Versailles, we first walked to an area to get fitted and try out our bikes.  Then, as a group (there were 8 of us), we rode behind Clara our tour guide as she took us through the city.  My fingers were freezing!  BUT, it was so fun.  We arrived in front of the Castle Versailles and parked our bikes.  Our first part of the tour was inside of the castle.  Clara was amazing.  She was like a walking encyclopedia and gave us so much history.  

Versailles was designed and built during the reign of King Louis XIV.  He died before it was completely finished.  Louis XV enjoyed his whole life there; and the last King to live at Versailles was King Louis XVI, with his wife Marie Antionette.  I was so fascinated by the store of Louis XVI and Marie Antionette that as soon as we returned home, I bought some books about them so I could learn more.

Walls and ceilings were all painted with amazing artwork.  In fact, the artists worked so hard to please the kings with their paintings that one became so overwhelmed he committed suicide.  The king and queen's bedrooms had private escape doors in case of an emergency.  The hall of mirrors was interesting.  Mirrors were hard to find back then, so this was a sign of wealth to have so many mirrors; and 75% of all of the mirrors are still the original ones. 

We finished touring the inside of the castle and then walked through all of the beautiful French gardens.  The French liked things very well groomed and symmetrical, which was very different from English gardens, which were more natural looking (Marie Antionette loved English gardens).

King Louis XIV also loved water fountains; but it was interesting how they had to build them because there was no such thing as electricity at that time.  It was all natural grading to push the water up.

This area of Versailles is where some of the Olympics took place in 1924 and 2024.  The equestrian events took place here.  This statue is of one of the Goddesses who turned men into frogs if they tried to come near her.  You can see the men climbing up the steps and some of them are frogs.  

Then it was on the road again to go through the markets, get what we wanted for lunch, and do a little shopping.  The bike rides were fun.  How there was one woman from Australia who really couldn't ride a bike!  Lil and I tried not to be behind here because at any moment she would crash her bike and we would run over her! 

While we were shopping we bought a little bunny for Clara.  We also bought grapes and cheese for lunch and hand a picnic on the grounds of Versailles.  We even did cartwheels on the lawn of Versailles.

Next it was off to see Marie Antionette's little resort.  Marie Antionette was the Queen and wife of King Louis XVI.  They were the last king and queen of France before the French Revolution.  Marie was originally from Austria and she loved English gardens and architecture.  So this place resembles that.

Then it was back to the train station and we returned back to Paris.  We grabbed a Taxi and got back to the hotel.  We found this little crepe place very close to our hotel.  the crepes were HUGE!  Neither of us could finish!

We did a little shopping on our way home and found a cute outfit for Sebastian.  Once we got home, Lil was anxious to take a bubble bath.  We had no problem falling asleep!  Versailles was our favorite day of the whole trip.

The next day was pretty chilly!  We had to catch a bus to Disney and we made sure we were dressed warm.  Disney Paris was fun, but much smaller than Disney World here in Florida.  We found a little nook in the castle where we could watch the parade without fighting the crowds.  We also ate lunch at Walt Disney's favorite restaurant.  We had some of Walt's favorite dishes, like pea soup and salad. The rest of the day was spent going on a few rides and shopping.  Anyplace we could get inside to stay warm was good for us!  The park was all decorated for Halloween.  And the castle was so pretty at night.  

We took one roller coaster ride and we both commented that it nearly ripped our necks off.  The regulations for ride safety are probably different in every country.  So, we decided not to do anymore extreme rides for fear we would become decapitated.  We loved the haunted house; and we took a train ride and got a little wet from a waterfall.  I got a kick out of the gas station which was called: "the EyeFuel Tower".  

By the end of the day we had done over 21,000 steps and 10 miles!  We had a hard time finding our bus to take us home.  We thought we were going to miss the bus.  However, when we finally got there, we found out that the bus had broken down and it was an hour late picking us up.  Another late night; BUT it's Paris!  We had lots of fun.

Thursday - This was the first day we were actually able to sleep in a little bit.  No actual appointments that required a certain time.  Today we wanted to visit the two famous churches.  The first church we visited was St. Chapelle.  This is a tiny church that is noted for its amazing stained glass.  The church is so old that there are no longer services in it.  We were blown away by all of the glass.  Just beautiful.

As we left St. Chapelle, we went by the Conciergerie and went inside quickly.  This use to be the prison in the 1700's where Marie Antionette was kept before they executed her.  We also took a little stroll through a flower shop that we just couldn't resist.  Then we came upon the Notre Dame Cathedral.  This church is massive!

Lil lit a couple of candles for her Meemaw.  We spent lots of time in this church.  There are several alters and side worship areas.  This church just recently re-opened as a result of a fire.  When they were renovating it, they found remains of some bodies buried beneath the rubble.  They are presently researching to see if they can identify them.  There's lots of history with this church.  We bought several gifts here, including beautiful cross necklaces for Abby and Sophia.

After we toured the cathedrals, we got the map back on our phone and walked to a special place for lunch.  It's called Le Cafe des Chats.  A cat cafe that is very famous for having cats roam around while you enjoy your lunch.  What an experience!  When we first got there, the restaurant wasn't open yet; so we enjoyed looking at the cats in the windows.  Then at noon the host let us in the foyer where he kept the door closed to the main eating area, while he explained to us the rules to keep the cats calm.  We could not talk loud, only whisper.  We were not allowed to pick the cats up; nor were we allowed to pet them if they were sleeping.  If  it got too loud in the restaurant, the host would ring a bell for us to stop talking.  We were then seated and kitties immediately came over to greet us.  One was very vocal; one loved sniffing the bags I had with me.  Liliyah was in Kitty Heaven; and the cats loved her.  The food was amazing; and surprisingly the cats never bothered your food.  The whole restaurant had chairs, planks, scratching posts and all kinds of stuff mounted on the walls and ceilings, so that the cats could jump around....all over the place.  It was like a giant playroom for cats.  We were lucky to be able to get in here because there were only a few tables for people to eat.  What a fun place for lunch!

After lunch, we walked back to our hotel for a quick rest and then we had a 1.5 hour walk to the Eiffel tower.  This was a great walk along the Seine River.  So much to see!  We actually stumbled upon the French White House where the president lives; and the street was blocked off because the President was coming home.  That was quite a treat to watch all of that happen.

The Eiffel Tower was amazing!  We tried to get into the main grounds, but for some reason the security guard would not let us through because I had a "love lock" in my purse that we had purchased for Sophia.  I even offered to let the guard keep the lock....but, no way.  We were just not allowed in.  So, it turned out to be for the best anyway.  We walked over to the lawn and sat on the grass and waited for the tower to light up.  We played games on my phone for awhile.  People kept coming around trying to sell us beer or wine to celebrate the tower lights.  We had time to Facetime with Abby and Papa Tom.  In fact, we were on the phone with Papa when the lights came on the tower, so he was able to see it first hand!

By the end of this day, we had beaten our previous day for steps, with over 25K steps and over 10 miles.  We grabbed a cab home from the Eiffel Tower and finished off the rest of our cheese and croissants that we bought in Versailles.  

Friday was our last day in Paris.  We spent the whole day shopping!  The Galleries Lafayette mall is just incredible.  On the first floor was the high end stuff.  As you went from floor to floor, the prices got less and less.  At the top was more like souvenir stuff.  We went all the way to the rooftop to take some pictures overlooking the city.

We had lumch on the top floor.  It was a sweet little restaurant all decked out in pink called La Vie en Roge.  Lil had the chocolate pancakes.

The next day we headed for the airport.  We were picked up by our driver who provided us with breakfast in the car.  When we got to the airport and got all checked in, we went to the Air France lounge and had another breakfast!  While waiting to board the plane, we got a little bored...LOL

This time we were flying back in the daytime, so we didn't plan on sleeping. Except, I was wrong.  Lil slept for almost the entire flight.  I watched the entire series of Versailles and was actually disappointed when the plane was getting ready to land.  It went by so quick.

When we got into the Newark airport, we had to go through customs, which turned out to be a piece of cake.  Then we had to once again board another plane to get us back to Nashville.  Our flight was delayed a bit, so we spent lots of time playing games, laughing, and talking about our trip.  We saw a guy with the craziest shoes.  I told Lil his shoes looked like pencil sharpeners.  She was laughing so hard she had tears coming down her face.  We got into Nashville very late.  I was glad that I planned ahead to book a hotel room for us there.  We went to our room and spend a couple hours sorting out all of the gifts we bought everybody.  The next morning we met up with Dustin and the girls for breakfast.  Lil was glad to see Sophia.  They really did miss each other.  Lil couldn't wait to hand out all of the gifts we got for everybody.  Then I had to say goodbye to them all and catch my flight back home to Papa Tom.  

This was definitely a trip I'll remember forever.  Paris is one of my favorite cities in the world and getting to spend it with my granddaughter was the best gift I could have ever given myself.  We had a blast.  I'm looking forward to many more trips with my favorite little traveller.

Love.....Nana