Paris, Day 2 – Busrides and a Pink Umbrella

The next morning, we woke up very early and looked outside. The sky wasn’t blue, but we were optimistic. I took a shower, we got dressed and we went downstairs for breakfast. I love breakfast so much when I’m on vacation! It seems everything tastes so different and more delicious.

The breakfastroom was small but comfortable. God, I loved breakfast so much…
Last year, we had seen big red buses driving around the city, showing tourists all the interesting places. We really wanted to take one of those busrides this time, so we headed for the Arc de Triomphe, where the buses, among other places, stopped to let tourists in and out.

Harry Potter 7.2 posters everywhere in the metro! There were also really,
really big ones where Harry and Voldemort face each other fighting.
When we got there, it was like the bus had been waiting for us: it stood there, ready for us to get in. We bought two tickets for two days, so we could ride the buses the next day too. While we were exchanging money for the tickets with the busdriver, he already started driving! With one hand he gave us the tickets, while steering with the other hand. And he pushed the bus right into the traffic around the Place Charles de Gaulle, one of the busiest squares in the world! You could tell he was very experienced… After receiving our tickets, we climbed up the small stairs and sat down on two chairs in the back, so we had a great view around us.

A bus like ours. They were incredibly bright and very notable.
We drove around the Arc de Triomphe, all the way down the Champs-Elysées, past the Grand and Petit Pallais, to Trocadéro and then to the Eiffeltower.

Our guide, including a map with the route all the buses drove.
The ride was so much fun! Because we sat in the back, the ride was extra bumpy and when the bus drove downhill, it almost seemed like a rollercoaster for a moment! And sometimes we went superfast, which was scary but at the seem time really entertaining, because of all the traffic and shouting around you.

The Eiffeltower, edited by me. It gives it a little darker twist. I like it.
Unfortunetaly, it got darker and darker and it started to rain. We quickly went downstairs, so we wouldn’t get wet. Even Paris, the most beautiful city in the world, is a lot less beautiful when it’s raining. We were very cold, so we decided to get off the bus at Opéra, where the famous Galeries Lafayette is, a department store.
As soon as we got in, we felt an atmosphere that seemed to whisper: ‘Expensiiive~!’ There were guards in uniforms everywhere, that looked like you shouldn’t mess with them. We looked at some umbrellas and we immediately understood why there were so many guards: everything was expensive! A simple umbrella was seriously 225 euros/320 dollars! We weren’t planning on buying one, but we were pretty shocked!
We walked to the information desk, to ask if we could take pictures, but they were only allowed in the dome.Well, that’s the only place where we wanted to take pictures anyway. We kept on walking past expensive jewelrylabels, including Swarovski, until we finally reached the famous dome.

The dome was incredibly beautiful. It was actually very high and
even brighter than on this picture.
On the ground floor were all the incredibly expensive make up and perfume brands, like Christian Dior, Guerlain, Chanel and Jean Paul Gaultier. It was nice to look at, but buying? No.
We walked around for a while, until we decided we wanted something to eat. Down one of the escalators was a food area, where you could buy almost everything! We decided to keep it simple and we bought two chocolatecake-thingies.

They also sold macarons, but we didn’t buy any: we had decided to
buy some at Ladurée, because we liked that idea way more!
We went outside to see if it had stopped raining and it did! We went back to where the bus had stopped and suddenly, the sun started to shine! But when the first bus came, it ignored us! And the second one too! Every bus ignored us or the busdriver pointed in front of him to the street. We walked around the entire Opéra-building, but we didn’t understand why they ignored us. After more than an hour, we finally discovered why: the bus that dropped us off didn’t do this at the official stop! We found the sign for Les Cars Rouges, but we were so stressed and annoyed by the whole situation! Luckily we could sit down and enjoyed another ride through Paris, including the part we had already seen.

I think we’ve seen the Arc de Triomphe a total of five times from the bus.
We took so many rides in those two days!
When we drove past the Champs de Mars, the big field in front of the Eiffeltower, I heard my phone ringing. Of course I picked it up, expecting my father at the end of the line. But it was a woman. She introduced herself and asked me if I was still interested in the job I applied for! Of course I said yes, after a little stupid giggle of surprise. I asked her if it was okay to call her back next week, since I was on vacation. She said it was okay and said she hoped I had a nice trip. I was so surprised, I must have sounded like an idiot! (Today I had the job interview. I got the job! I’m starting tomorrow)!
When the bus stopped at the Notre Dame, we left the bus to take pictures. The church looked so fantastic in the sunlight!

The sky had two colours, how amazing is that? But no Hunchback to be seen…
We took some pictures and I could finally officially pose with my Baby’s pink umbrella! While my mom took pictures, a lot of people smiled at seeing all my pink frills. I’m pretty sure a man with dark sunglasses took a picture of me, but after he smiled friendly at me I forgave him (XD).

This is one of my favourite pictures. All the pink~!
We looked around in the souvenirshops for a bit, where we bought key chains (I swear, we are addicted to key chains, but they’re all so cute) and I bought an adorable hat with a bow on it. We took the bus again and drove to the Eiffeltower, where we got out to eat some crêpes at the same place we went last year.
While we were eating, I suddenly noticed someone that tried to get my attention in the corner of my left eye. I looked up and saw an Asian-looking woman with her husband and daughter, pointing at a book she held in her hand: Aoki Misako’s book! I cried out something like: ‘Oh my Gaaawd’ and ran over to their table. My mom was astonished while I started talking with the mother and daughter, because she hadn’t seen the book nor the woman in question and wondered why the hell I sat down at a stranger’s table. I quickly explained to her what had happened and continued my conversation with the girl. She told me she recognized the typical style of my Baby’s umbrella and the Angelic Pretty necklace I was wearing.

I had bought this necklace as a present for myself. I love it so much!
She had bought Misako’s book at Baby Paris and asked me if I wore the fashion too. It was a very nice conversation and I was so happy my Lolita items were recognized! She gave me her email so I could add her on Facebook (I didn’t have an account, but I just made one especially for her). ^^ After that, my mom and I finished our crêpes and we went back to the hotel. There, we Skyped with my father and brother on my laptop, which was really cool! After that, we drank some coffee and tea and went to bed. We were so tired.

My mom made a lot of amazing pictures on this day, but I couldn’t put them all-in my story.
Here are three of my absolute favourite portraits she made of me. Thanks mom!
Next time: The most delicious macarons ever and shopping like a Lolita!