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On Sunday 17 August we set off early in the morning to go to Aldergrove (Belfast International Airport), the flight wasn’t until 1115 though we didn’t want to risk getting caught up in the aftermath of the flooding which occurred the previous day.

With the car safely parked in one of the independent car parks, we made our way to the terminal. Thankfully we checked in the previous evening on the Aer Lingus website, so all we had to do was “tag and drop” (get our hold baggage tagged and then put on the conveyor to go out to the plane). With Border Control and Security cleared, we hung about in the Departure Lounge for a while waiting on confirmation of the gate number on the screens. There was an overabundance of American Passengers waiting on the boarding to begin for the Continental Airlines Flight CO-095 to Newark, New Jersey, which was due to take off 5 minutes before Flight EI058 – our flight, so there were a lot of clear sealed bags of cigarettes and alcohol to be found. Finally, the gate was confirmed and we made our way onto the plane once our group of seating rows was called.

The plane, an Airbus A320, (as far as I can remember) was the Saint Comgall (all Aer Lingus aircraft are named after an Irish Saint.) About 20 minutes later, safety procedures demonstrated, we were in the air having taken off from Runway 25L. The flight to Charles de Gaulle lasts around 1hr20mins so it was a relatively short flight. After 1hr15mins, the purser announced over the PA “Mesdames et Messieurs, bienvenue à Paris” (Ladies & Gentlemen, welcome to Paris.) Baggage reclaimed, and a taxi journey later, we were in our hotel, in the 5th arrondissement of Paris in the Latin Quarter.

First excursion of our stay in Paris was to its most famous Church – La Cathédrale de Notre Dame. As expected crowds outside it were huge, so we joined the line that snaked its way around the square in front. Eventually the giant façade loomed directly above and then another sound filled the air (having heard ‘Emmanuel’ – the 13 tonne Cathedral Bell some moments earlier) – that of the Cathedral’s Pipe Organ. Stepping over the threshold was quite an experience – simply a huge building, the largest I’ve ever seen and add to that the fact that the organ was making the floor and walls vibrate. After several pictures and following the crowd around the perimeter of the nave, we went out and back to the hotel to see about something to eat.

The following day we set off to visit another sight of Paris – the Eiffel Tower. It took a while as we were following the course of the Seine, passing some landmarks in the process – the Palais Bourbon (where the National Assembly – the Lower House of Parliament – meets), the Musée d’Orsay, the Hôtel des Monnaies, the Ministère des Affaires Etrangères building and then finally onto the square where the Tower is situated. We crossed the street to the Palais de Chaillot and the Trocadéro where we got another few photos taken. Everyone seemed to be quite tired so we crossed the Seine once again and made use of the “batobus” – a waterbus service on the Seine – disembarking at the stop closest to our Hotel, Notre Dame.

The next day we set off up the street to the Jardin du Luxembourg, in which was the Palais du Luxembourg where Le Sénat (Upper House of Parliament) is based. After a dander around the gardens we then made our way to the Church made famous by Dan Brown’s The DaVinci Code, Saint Sulpice. After a circumnavigation of the nave and side chapels and a few photos later we then headed towards the Seine, stopping briefly at the Church of Saint Germain des Prés. We decided to cross the river and have a look at the Musée du Louvre and the Arc de Triomphe de l’Etoile. The distance between the two sites is roughly 3km but when the place is crowded beyond belief it certainly took a while to walk the distance. Father and I pressed on, leaving the rest of the party about half way along the Avenue des Champs Elysées, and walked as fast as we could to the Arc de Triomphe. Eventually it loomed in all its grandeur before us so we made our way to the underpass which took visitors under the incredibly busy Place Charles deGaulle. Relieved of €14 (between us) and 284 steps later we were standing atop the Arc, looking over Paris, the Basilique du Sacré Cœur in the distance. After a few moments we started the walk back to the bottom of the Champs Elysées to get the Batobus back to Notre-Dame.

Wednesday was our last full day in France so we went to Place de la Bastille and sat opposite the Opéra de Paris Bastille. A few moments later, the Police Nationale appeared on motorbikes, directing traffic and holding traffic back from the side street next to which we were sitting. A large crowd appeared in the distance blowing whistles, shouting and holding placards with messages and pictures of Nicolas Sarkozy with blood on his hands. I was handed a leaflet informing me of what they were protesting about – a scanned copy of which is included here. After the crowd passed we went along the Rue Saint-Antoine, stopping yet again in another Church – this time Saint-Paul Saint-Louis, eventually coming out at the Quai de l’Hôtel de Ville, crossing the river to Notre Dame where we went in one last time, as a few people asked us to get a candle. Unfortunately, the Organ was not playing but the crowd was just as large as the Sunday previously.

After the last of the packing was done, we set off to get some breakfast and after which we checked out and walked down the street to the RER Station, St Michel-Notre Dame, to get the train to the Airport. The journey lasted about 40 minutes. It took a few moments to figure out that we were dumped off in Terminal 3 and had to get to Terminal 1, so after discovering the shuttle service we arrived in the proper terminal, and practically next to the check in hall. With the bags on their way, we went upstairs through Border Patrol, where I was greeted by a rather stern looking female member of the Police Nationale, who didn’t look so stern after a greeting in French was given – I even got wished ‘Bon Voyage’! After a quick look around duty free we headed to gate 11 to wait on the plane. With Security successfully passed through, with about 2hours until the plane was due to be in the air it was a case of waiting and watching planes landing and taking off. Eventually the Green and White Livery of the Aer Lingus plane, the Saint Emer, an Airbus A320 again, arrived on stand, and not long after we were called to board. Take off was on time, and 1hr10mins later we were back on NI soil.

Pictures of the trip to Paris are available here.

In my opinion, 5 days in Paris was enough, that’s not to say that I wont go back, and I’ll certainly travel with Aer Lingus again! The next time, Nicolas has promised to keep his appointment for tea with Carla and him! Sorry for the extremely long waffle!