Paris with Le Merdien Etoile - Day One

I met Ella on Thursday morning at St Pancras to jump on the Eurostar so our Parisian adventure could begin. You may have read in my recent 'lately' post when I met up with Ella for a catch up she invited my along to this trip with 'Le Meridien Etoile' I was beyond chuffed.

Arriving at Gare du Nord we were met by a wonderful Parisian gentleman Manuel who took us to the hotel. What a luxury, both Ella and I spent the journey pointing and gasping at the beautiful buildings. Paris even in the rain you're bloody beautiful!

We checked into Le Meridien Etoile and made our way to our rooms. The hotel is in the process of being renovated and we got the chance to stay in the newly redesigned rooms which were bright and modern. The bed was so cloud-like I never wanted to get out of it!! The photos on the walls shot by Angie McMonigal showing Paris through her eyes were a real insight into the diverse range of architecture in Paris. I will come back to Angie in another post as she is one of the reasons we'd come to rediscover Paris. 

Before we headed out to explore, there was a knock at the door and we were given a delicious 'Le Meridien Etoile' eclair, along with some postcard Paris prints of Angie's work. What a welcome to Paris! Of course, this called for a shot for instagram. The room key is a shot by Gray Malin, who I'm a huge fan of and a really nice little touch making me feel as if I'm abroad.

We headed to Montmartre for lunch at 'Cafe des Deux Moulins' if you're not familiar with the cafe it's in the film 'Amelie'. It had been on Ella's bucket list to visit for years and it's one of my favourite films. It would have been rude not to visit, albeit maybe a very touristy stop but we throughly enjoyed it. I opted for crepes, when in Paris ehh!

We wandered around Montmartre and visited the Sacre Coeur, I'm always enamoured by the beauty of these places built hundreds of years ago. The skill and craftsmanship that have gone into them is beyond your wildest imagination. Walking past the Moulin Rouge and through the red light district as it began to get dark was beautiful, neon signs lighting up the rain soaked streets, lighting them up as the evening began. We spent the evening alfresco dining at 'Le Dome'. Something I truly admire the Parisian's for dining outside no matter the weather or time of year.

Day Two . Day Three . Photo Diary