This won’t be a very long blog because I didn’t do much but sit on a bus.
When I woke up on my last day in Paris, Kara, Kelly and I took our bags down stairs for the bus and then went out for a breakfast at a cafe for our last morning.
We have provided breakfasts on Top Deck already but we weren’t too keen on it as it was just your typical cereals and breads. They didn’t even have croissants!
Instead, we went down the road and got a table outside a French Cafe and ordered breakfast. It was about €8 each and we got a croissant, piece of baguette, a hot chocolate/coffee and a glass of orange juice. (a bit expensive for New Zealand terms)
When it was about 9am we headed back to the hostel to catch the bus to Switzerland.
I sat at the front (I love sitting there, you can see everything!) But ended up sleeping for the first few hours haha.
We all played a game on the bus ‘2 truths and a lie’ where everyone has to go up one by one and say 2 truths about them and 1 lie but we have to guess what one is the lie.
My lie was that I was home schooled until I was 12 haha. I think I used the same one on my Contiki trip as well when we played that game.
By the end of doing like 40 people I started to drift off and not pay much attention. Some of them were pretty funny though.
We had a stop off for lunch where we had a similar lunch to that of the Eiffel Tower picnic.
There was a chicken salad and coleslaw with crackers and cheese and a chocolate loaf bread thing.
By this stage I still hadn’t had any hot food! I was craaaaving something warm in my tummy!
I did take lots of pictures of our little Top deck mascot, Maggie. She was loving it at the picnic.
When we got back on the bus, I was DJ so I sat up the front with our driver Antonio. I wanted to sleep but he said I had to stay awake and talk to him so as not to be boring. 😣
Switzerland was like a 7 hour coach drive from Paris but it took us about 9 hours because of us stopping for toilet breaks and 2 food stops.
We eventually arrived at our hotel around 6.30pm.
Well, it wasn’t really a hotel. It felt like an a couple of older houses made into rooms, similarly set up like a hostel (4-6 people in each room) and we shared the bathrooms.
They did have an underground bar and kitchen however and a Jacuzzi, hammock area, dining area etc.
I went straight to my room once I was off the bus.
I was sharing with 3 other girls who I hadn’t really talked to before which was fine. I was missing my 2 K girls though! (Kara and Kelly)
I was in desperate need of a hair wash so washed my hair and re-did my make up which ended up making me late for dinner.
I only missed out on the cheese fondue though, and apparantly it wasn’t that nice so I wasn’t too bothered.
Dinner was pork sausage with vegetables which I didn’t actually mind.
After dinner we all headed down the the club where they had a happy hour going for us. 2 beers (or ciders yay!) For 5 Swiss franc.
(Probably ends up being around $11 NZ but it’s cheap for Swizzerland)
The Swiss get paid really well here I heard. The minimum wage is around €22 because the cost of living is so high. Their health care is really good too apparently and I’ve actually never seen one homeless person since I’ve been here.
It’s a really tidy, clean, green, nice country.
Not to mention it being very safe, even if they let everyone here own a gun.
Anyways, we danced the night away (well I did until 1.30am) and then went back to my room after I couldn’t stop coughing from being sick earlier in the week.
Today was my second day in the city of love on my Top Deck Tour.
Our driver from our tour was taking everyone into the city so we had to be on the bus by 9.15am – which isn’t that early. However I woke up still feeling sick from my flu so considered staying in bed and going out exploring later.
I’m glad I got up and caught the coach though because I did start to feel better around lunch time.
Kara, Kelly & I got off the coach with our red lipstick freshly applied just before the Louvre pyramid and found this cute french Macaroon shop where we each bought a Macaroon.
After we’d had our French treats (I got a strawberry flavor) we headed over to The Louvre and basically just walked around taking pictures.
The sun was a little too bright to get a good picture
We checked out the Arc de Triomphe again (as we’d seen it the night before from the bus) which honors those who fought and died for France in the French Revolutionary and the Napoleonic Wars.
It has all the names of the French victories and generals inscribed on the inner and outer surfaces and beneath its vault lies the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from World War I.
Just a note also, when we were checking out these sights. We had this lady come up to us saying “do you speak English?” With some piece of paper in her hand.
I assumed she wanted directions to somewhere so I said yes, she then proceeded to try and get me to sign my name and where I was from on this piece of paper as some petition ‘for the children’
They then try and get money off you which I actually didn’t have any of!
I hadn’t been to an ATM yet so I literally had no Euros on me. Not that I would have given any money to her anyways.
When she realized I didn’t have anything she scowled at me and stormed off to try and scam the next person.
They’re everywhere near the Louvre so just be wary if you ever visit. They get super annoying and really just want your money.
The above picture is the statue of Joan of Arc which was commissioned by the French government following the defeat of the country in the 1870 Franco-Prussian War.
Once we had seen a few famous places, including The Palais Garnier (as shown above) – a 1,979-seat opera house, we headed to Sephora so Kara and I could have a browse (we’re both Sephora lovers haha)
I bought another Urban Decay eye-shadow Naked Pallet (number 3 if you’re a make up freak like me and want to know)
We then walked 20 minutes to the Moulin Rouge and took a couple of snappies.
By this stage we were getting a bit hungry so went to a restaurant nearby and sat in the sun.
My throat was still sore so I ordered a bowl of ice-cream haha (any excuse right?) And a lemonade. Which unfortunately wasn’t the same type of lemonade that America does. 😐
The girls ordered some cheeses and meats which I only tried a little bit of. I don’t have the taste buds for all these different cheeses. I’ll eat Camembert and a bit of Brie but don’t really like the super fancy french cheeses like most people do.
We decided to head to the Eiffel Tower after lunch so took the bus and got off just before the tower.
The girls had a bike tour that started at 3pm which I didn’t sign up for (I wasn’t sure how I’d be feeling) but I did have a ticket for a river cruise.
We split up and I went on my way to do my river cruise.
The river cruise was a good opportunity to take pictures of the French scenery.
The boat was pretty crowded but I got a good seat at the front.
I think they needed to organise the cruise a bit better. When we were all boarding everyone was pushing and shoving trying to get on. There was no lines or anything for people to board in a ‘mannerly fashion’ so it was basically just shove until you got to the front.
I listened to my iPod the whole time and looked at the sights around me while taking pictures on my phone.
They did have information about all the bridges we passed over from an audio loud speaker but it played in French, then English, then Mandarin and repeated it with every single sight that I couldn’t be bothered listening anymore.
(Me and my beautiful boat hair)
The ride went for about 45 minutes so when it was finished we all pushed each other off and I headed off to buy myself a magnet for my souvenir collection.
I found one from one of the many souvenir shops that Paris had then went and sat down at a cafe and ordered a hot chocolate.
I thought being in Paris they’d do amazing hot chocolates but I was actually a bit disappointed with mine. It just tasted more like hot chocolate-y water than anything else.
Oh well, It was nice to just sit in the sun and people watch.
I felt slightly peckish after my drink so went down the road and came across this cute bakery where I got myself a raspberry filled donut thing.
It looked like a donut but it didn’t really taste like one…
So I’m not sure if that’s actually what it was.
It was nice anyways!
I must look weird eating all this sugary food walking around in my gym gear all the time haha.
I’m case you’re wondering, I only have gym pants and 1x pair of jeans in my suitcase with me – hence why I wear a lot of the same outfits throughout my blog.
Everything else I packed are dresses or shorts and Paris was just way too cold to be wearing them.
I was getting pretty tired and knew the girls would still be on their bike tour so I headed over to one of the grassy areas next to the Eiffel Tower. Unfortunately my iPod had run out of battery so I lay down with my handbag as my pillow in the grass and listened to silence from my earphones.
There’s lots of guys at the Eiffel Tower selling souvenirs and they come up to you like every 2 minutes so the headphones in the ears is a good way to act like you’re busy/can’t hear them.
I think I actually dozed in and out of sleep because the time went by really fast and before I knew it it was 6.30pm.
I messaged Kelly and met up with them underneath the Eiffel Tower so we could go and find out Top deck group and have our Top deck provided picnic.
Our tour guide wasn’t very clear with where to meet so we walked around for a few minutes trying to find the rest of the group and eventually did a short walk awhile from the Eiffel Tower.
Our tour guide and bus driver had set up a cold picnic of chicken drumstick things, salads, crackers and cheese, potato salad and some macaroons and pie slices.
It was all good to eat but I was kind of feeling like some hot food by this stage.
Being in Paris you can actually get over eating breads and cheeses believe it or not.
When we’d all finished our picnic under (well really near) the Eiffel tower, all the girls went to the coach to get changed into some nicer clothes as we were going to a Cabaret show that night.
It started around 9.30pm so we were driven to the place and as we were early, went to a bar next door for a few drinks.
I didn’t even get a drink, I lined up for the bathroom and by the time I actually ended up going it was time to leave!
The Cabaret was good. If you’ve never been to one, it’s basically a show which has music, singing, dancing or drama and is shown at some type of venue like a restaurant or a night club type place.. The audience, often dining or drinking, does not typically dance but usually sits at tables and it’s all introduced by an MC. It’s often (but not always) oriented towards adult audiences, so we did see lots of boobies from the females dancing around.
Being honest (and everyone else said the same thing) it wasn’t amazing. For €65 it was a bit meh.
We got 3 bottles of wine per table and one of the guys at our table even fell asleep!
Some parts of the show were interesting but I got a bored and it annoyed me how some of the dancers were out of tune with the other dancers.
We left after 11pm and headed back to the hostel.
I went straight to bed! I was knackered! 😴😴
There was some drinks at the bar going on downstairs but I just couldn’t manage another late night.
I’m not going to go into my exact dates of when i’ll be flying, for safety reasons but i’ll write my destination plans! I’ll be flying up to Auckland to spend the night with my best-friend before I leave on my trip. She’s currently pregnant with her first child so by then i’d have had lots of cuddles with her new baby boy!! First stop is San Francisco – I’ll be staying there for about 5 days and i’m really hoping to go to Alcatraz while i’m there! And maybe even do a little bike ride across the Golden Gate Bridge 🙂
Next stop is Los Angeles 🙂 I’ve heard mixed reviews of this glamour town but I feel it’s a must see! I’m worried i’ll overspend here!
I’m then heading off for a Contiki Tour across the United States! If you’re un-sure what Contiki is – it’s a Travel Operated Coach Tour which operates in Europe, Egypt, Australia, New zealand, North & South America and Asia.
They do three types of tours –
-Camping Tours (which are the least expensive as you rough it a bit but are really popular with gap year students) -Budget/concept tours (you stay in backpacker style accommodation or specialized contiki villages and get to meet lots of people, great if you’re going solo like me!)
–Superior Tours (most expensive of the tours but you stay in tourist hotels with nicer accommodation)
Thanks Wikipedia!
I’m doing a budget high-energy tour! So my days are spent discovering the sights and thrills of America and partying it up at night. The tour promises twin-share accommodation, breakfast each day plus some dinners at hotels and local restaurants, sight-seeing tours of the major cities and some included activities such as a limo ride down the Las Vegas strip.
As this is my own honest opinion blog, i’ll be writing an honest post about the whole experience when i’ve finished it!
I’ll be starting in Los Angeles and visiting Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, Texas, Mississippi, Louisiana, Florida, South Carolina, Virginia, Delaware, New Jersey and finishing up in New York 🙂 I’m very excited! As i’m going solo I hope to meet lots of other travellers in the same kind of boat as me. I have a tendency to get really run down when I party too much so I hope that doesn’t happen while i’m on the trip. (It has a bit of a reputation for being a party tour) Then I spend around a week in New York City at the end of my tour!
I’m most excited to see New York. As far back as I can remember I’ve been dreaming of the day i’ll see NY. When I was little I was obsessed. (I probably watched too many TV shows that featured it haha) I still haven’t booked my accommodation for here so any recommendations for a solo traveller would be great 🙂 Then I’m off to London for a few days before I start another tour!
I’m going to be doing a Top Deck tour for a few weeks around Europe.
It’s very similar to a Contiki (With the ages being 18 to 30-somethings)
But from what I’ve read/heard, Contiki is very party orientated and quite rushed and Top Deck is more about the sights and they have better food apparently!
I’ll have to write another Blog at some point about Contiki vs. Topdeck because when you research online – there’s half the world saying “CONTIKI CONTIKI!!” And the other half is “NOOO Top Deck is the BEST!”
On the Top Deck I’ll be visiting Paris, Switzerland, Venice, Germany & Amsterdam 🙂 then I’m back in London for a few days before I head over to Croatia for a one week sailing trip!
It was very hard choosing whether to do the Greek Island or Croatia for a sailing trip. I’m really gutted I’m not doing the Greek Islands but I couldn’t do everything on my budget 😦
I had to keep reminding myself, ‘The Greek Island will still be there for another day…’
Plus I heard Croatia Sailing is very ‘In’ right now.
When I’m finished up in Croatia I’m off to Rome as It wasn’t included on my Top Deck tour and I really want to see Italy!
Then It’s off to Dubai for a few nights!
Since I’ll mostly be staying in Hostels & Backpackers, or be with other people on my tours – Dubai’s one of the places I’m slightly nervous about so I won’t be staying in a hostel over there. I’m trying to find some good accommodation that doesn’t cost the earth 😦 I’m really excited to go to The Mall Of Dubai though! I feel I’ll spend a good 2 days there.
I read alot of Flight Attendant Blogs about girls working over in Dubai for Emirates etc… and I get so envious of their lives that it makes me really want to be a flight attendant!
Then It’s on my way home with a stop off in Singapore on the way back. 🙂
Credit – @juliiianneh Weheartit
Phew. That’s alot of travelling.
I have a long stop over in Australia on the way back home as well. It’s at an odd hour though so I won’t be able to leave the airport and go for a browse or anything. Not that I’d want to I don’t think! I’ll be absolutely knackered.
I can’t sleep on planes.
Me + Flying nowadays isn’t the best thing for my nerves. And can you believe I want to be a flight attendant!
I think with all this stuff happening to planes lately it’s just put me on edge so the slightest bit of turbulence on a flight, my eyes are open and I’m alert.
I’m going to book in with a Hypnotherapist before I go so hopefully that will help 🙂
I hope you’ve enjoyed my itinerary!
As I’ve only just started up my blog, feel free to follow me!!! And ‘like’ any of my posts so I know at least someone’s reading them but my friends 🙂
After we’d had our French treats (I got a strawberry flavor) we headed over to The Louvre and basically just walked around taking pictures.
ThePassportPrincess 