Eurotrip 2023: Day 10 – Rainy Day Concorde, and Bir-Hakeim

On our second full day in Paris, the weather started acting up. I’ve checked the forecast of the day and it said 90% of rain.

I’ve looked out the window and saw that the sky was cloudy. It may not look like it from the photo below but it was surely going to rain that day.

I looked at the itinerary we planned and we had done some of those listed the day before. It really was a suggestion.

Worse, we realized that the automatic door of the AirBnB was fault. We only found out when Ikle arrived to join us.

We were able to open it from outside, but we were unable to open the door inside. If we were to step out for the day, anyone could just come in.

We were not sure if if it had been like that since the night before, which meant anyone could have mistakenly entered the AirBnB when we were asleep.

I immediately contacted the host, to have a technician look at the automatic lock. We also lost the entire morning and lunch.

We only managed to step out at 1:00 pm and had our late lunch at the Vietnamese restaurant in front of our AirBnB.

By the time we reached Bonne Nouvelle station, it began to drizzle. I was hoping it would stop raining after we got out of Madeleine station but it still went on — and stronger.

We decided to just look for a crêperie in the area and ended up at Crêpee Avenue at rue de Surène one block from Hermès at rue Faubourg-Saint Honoré.

It was already 2:30 pm.

I could have chosen to sulk and be annoyed with the weather.

On the other hand, Paris while it was raining was better than a sunny day everywhere else. It was a matter of mindset, so I lightened up eventually.

We had our sights at La Madeleine. While it was still raining a bit, we decided to just plow on unless we wished to be stuck inside a crêperie the entire afternoon.

To at least be covered from the rain, we accidentally entered Galerie de la Madeleine where we saw the Giambattista Valli store. Ikle and I had a great time making a fool of ourselves outside it.

And fortunately as soon as we stepped out of the galerie, the rain stopped.

On the other hand, we saw that La Madeleine was undergoing renovations, which meant we were unable to enter. (We could not have been more wrong, though. We eventually found out that while the exterior had the scaffolding, it was still open to the public).

From La Madeleine, we then decided we’d visit Place de la Concorde next.

While the Luxor obelisk was good, I had my eyes set on Fontaine des Mers. It was the fountain where Anne Hathaway threw her phone in ‘The Devil Wears Prada’, as she turned her back at a job that a million girls would kill for.

To my dismay, both the Fontaine des Mers and the Fontaine des Fleuves were, you guessed it right, undergoing renovations.🥲

Almost all the spots I looked forward to seeing since our first evening in Paris were covered/under renovation: Pont des Arts, Opéra Garnier, La Madeleine, and then Fontaine des Mers.

Paris had been hiding some of her famous spots from me, possibly for the Olympics.

On the other hand, it was surreal to see Place de la Concorde, a place where all these high profile executions were made. About 230 years ago, Marie-Antoinette had been executed in a white dress in front of a jeering public.

From Place de la Concorde, we then went next to the Jardin des Tuileries.

The ground was still wet, but it was not messy enough to mess with our shoes. I may be wrong but right at the entrance, the sand looked like beach sand, which meant it won’t be muddy for the visitors.

Papa and Mama just sat down at the chairs by the Bassin Octagonal, while Mon and I walked a bit around.

We only took some photos in that area and did not bother going as fars as the Bassin Rond of the Tuileries.

The sky was ominously very cloudy again, so we decided to go back to our AirBnB at around 3:45 pm.

We did our best to take advantage of the weather but it was extra difficult for Mama and Papa. It was also time for their afternoon nap, anyway.

We just opened the AirBnB door (which was  working perfectly fine) for Mama, Papa and Ikle, and Mon and I went out again to buy some macarons at at gelateria at Bonne Nouvelle.

Before we even got out of the store, it rained hard again.LOL

We were not to step out until late in the evening, so I just decided the rest, too. Day 10 into our vacation was no joke.

Around 7:30 pm, we went out for dinner but only around Bonne Nouvelle area. We crossed the road to rue du Faubourg Poissonnière and ended up at Aux Fourreurs at the corner of rue d’Enghien.

Again, my usual categories for choosing where to eat was the price and the atmosphere.

And while I also looked at the Google Reviews prior to stepping inside (the reviews were mixed), the usual comments were not enough to deter us from trying.

We enjoyed it so much, to be fair. So I guess we were one of those customers on the happier side of the polarizing feedback spectrum.

We finished eating at 8:30 pm, and we accompanied Mama and Papa back to the AirBnB.

For Mon, Ikle and me, we stepped out again to try a crêperie at Bonne Nouvelle (called Crêperie Bonne Nouvelle), with some coffee.

We planned going next to Pont Bir-Hakeim, hoping the rain did really stop for the day.

We left Bonne Nouvelle at exactly 9:00 pm, and travelled all the way to Pont Bir-Hakeim.

Metro 6 is famous for the Eiffel Tower suddenly popping up from the buildings as it crosses the Seine. We made sure stand to the left of the carriage.

We arrived at Pont Bir-Hakeim immediately recognizing the ‘Inception Bridge’. There was also a proposal happening at the tip of Île aux Cygnes where La France renaissante statue is.

We have seen the Eiffel Tower at various points already. Ikle, on the other hand, maintained that we must visit Bir-Hakeim.

And she was right. At least for me, it had the best view of the Eiffel Tower especially at night.

We have waited for the tower to ‘sparkle’ at least twice from there. And like on cue, the newly-engaged couple had their sparklers lit up as the same time.

You can’t get more ‘Paris’ than that.

We even congratulated the couple as they left, walking hand in hand across Pont Bir-Hakeim.

After we were done admiring the lights over Seine and the Eiffel Tower, Ikle invited us to walk some more towards the direction of voie Georges Pompidou.

So we walked, and walked. The wind was also blowing coldly at 10:15 pm.

We then stopped across Parc de Passy, where we had a gorgeous view of the Eiffel Tower and Pont Bir-Hakeim with their lights reflecting at the Seine.

It was magical.

The day started on a wrong footing with the rain and the malfunctioning door.

But Paris decided it would not only let the day end on a sour note, but with a beautiful one.

At 10:15 pm, we called it a day. Ikle, who already lives at the 16th arrondissement, just accompanied us back to the Passy station.

And from there, we travelled all the way back to Bonne Nouvelle.

Steps: 12,964