Farewell Paris

Paris used to be one of my favorite places on Earth but, over recent years, I have become disillusioned. And after this trip, I think the love affair is over. I don’t think I’ll come back to Paris, except maybe for Disneyland. 

I had Friday evening free and my initial plan was to go to Disney because, hey, a Lenny has to Lenny. In the end though I decided it would be better to do the tourist thing and head into central Paris. 

By tourist thing, I mean a nice wander along the Seine and dinner at my favorite restaurant – a tiny bistrot in a side street near the Musée d’Orsay. This is when I got the first hint that it wasn’t going to be a fun evening – my favorite restaurant was a hollowed-out construction site. 

I recalibrated and headed towards the Boulevard Saint-Germain to eat at one of the classics, Brasserie Lipp, Les Deux Magots but I settled on the ridiculously long queue for Le Relais de l’Entrecôte because at least then I didn’t need to decide what I wanted to eat.

After a 1h20 wait, I was finally seated on the terrasse (street). Dinner was excellent (and cheaper than I’m accustomed to) but it was late by the time I finished eating so I headed back to the hotel to get a good night’s sleep. 

It was strange having to trek all the way across Paris to get to Disneyland because normally I stay really close. This time, however, I’m staying near the Bois de Boulogne to be close to Roland Garros (my real reason for being in Paris).

The parks were also much busier than I’m used to because I don’t normally come in peak season. So busy that I went to Disneyland Park, noped out when I saw the queue to get in and went to Walt Disney Studios Park instead. 

First stop was the Avengers Campus for Spider-Man W.E.B. Adventure and Avengers Assemble: Flight Force. Next up was Radiator Springs for a Cars Road Trip down Route 66. Final Stop was my favorite ride in the Walt Disney Studios Park: Crush’s Coaster. 

After lunch it was time to attack Disneyland Park. Began, as you should, with It’s A Small World followed quickly by my perennial favorite Pirates Of The Caribbean. A steamboat ride round Big Thunder Mountain led me neatly to Phantom Manor. By then the wait times were down so there was barely any wait for Star Tours. And then one final voyage with Pirates Of The Caribbean and it was time to head to the airport to pick up my tennis buddy! Ten rides in under 8 hours, not bad.