As a special treat for turning 28 (oh, hey 30, just around the corner), I (Laura) got taken to Paris this past weekend. ‘Hourra’ as the French would say……

I’ve been to Paris twice in my life: once when I was 11 and I had my portrait drawn in Montmarte (an hour of constant smiling all for a portrait that made me look like the ‘Scream’ mask – I cried) and again last year, for one cold night in January during which I saw a homeless man pooing in the metro station (I retched). So this was my third time lucky in Paris!

Armed with my ‘Lonely Planet’ guide, I took off around Paris. Our hotel was situated on the road between the Arc de Triomphe and the Eiffel Tower, so they were two things ticked off the list immediately.

As a quick aside, I would suggest going up the Eiffel Tower at night. We walked past a five hour queue during the morning, so instead went up there at midnight, when there was no queue at all. Even more importantly, at night it glitters and sparkles so very beautifully whispers – magic!

I won’t waffle on about everything we did but will just mention some highlights:

On Saturday morning, we decided to avoid the tourist traps and headed to the Jardin du Luxembourg. In the middle of Paris, these 23 hectares were dedicated to the children of Paris by Napoleon and were filled with puppet shows, ponies and carousels. Luckily, all of this is still there, plus amazing chestnut tree filled boulevards, flowers and Parisians taking a break: reading; playing bowles; playing chess and generally chilling out. There is also a big lake in front of The Palais du Luxembourg with children playing with little boats. The whole thing was like a big Parisian dream – it really is beautiful and worth a visit.

That evening we took one of the dinner/river cruises. We used the popular Bateaux Parisiens company and would definitely recommend using them. We had a great table by the window and whilst gorging ourselves, floated past the main sites of Paris: Notre Dame, The Louvre, The Eiffel Tower etc (surely this is the dream way to sight-see?) There was only one downside of the cruise and that was the trauma of the photographer. I saw him saunter over out of the corner of my eye, so, being British, my boyfriend and I did our best to pretend we couldn’t see him. He, however, ignored this entirely and demanded we smile for the camera. We did so, reluctantly, but then it got one hundred times worse – he asked us to ‘kiss passionately’ for the camera. We were both deeply horrified but for some reason, obliged. What came next was 5 horrible seconds of forgetting the basics of kissing whilst a crowd of diners looked on. The photograph we got back at the end will now be burnt and we shall never speak of it again.

But back to Paris. Of course, we saw all the other famous sites and museums, but you’ve probably heard of all that. So a few other suggestions – visit the Latin Quarter if you like boutiques and books, and make sure you visit the bookstore ‘Shakespeare & Company’. This is a really magical bookshop with its very own live-in authors who give readings in the evenings. Also (and this was recommended by another user), make sure you visit ‘Angelina’ – the most picture-perfect Parisian tea room. I inhaled my pastry in approximately 10 seconds.

Thank you, Paris!