Paris & London was awesome!! It was my 1st time visiting UK & France. I loveee Paris. The scenery is beautiful, luxury shopping is affordable & the men are well groomed. Ahaha :p
Day 1
Hubby bought the air tix from AirAsia X to London last year in October 2010 for only RM1800+ per pax. Pretty cheap I must say. We depart at 910am and the travel duration is 11hours+. We then arrived London at 355pm on the same day. Once arrived, we took the Stansted Express train via Liverpool Street. The train depart every 15 minutes and the journey took 46 minutes to arrive Liverpool Street. We bought the train tix as we arrived Stansted Airport. It cost us £21 per tix.
From Liverpool Street Station, we changed train to go to King's Cross St Pancras International Station via Circle line to take Eurostar to Paris. We finally arrived St Pancras Station at 645pm. Fuh. Good thing we pre-paid our Eurostar tix for 8pm train. And Good thing we travel light because some of the elevator was down so we have to carry our luggages through the stairs. So it did took more time than usual. Hahaha.
Hahaha. At the Station, we bought new phone sim card, Lebara & Vodaphone. Just because we have 2 phones to work with; iPhone & BB. Lebara for the unlimited internet use & Vodaphone for the unlimited BBM use. Hehe.
Eurostar called to check in at 730pm & by 8pm we were already on the move. There's a canteen in the train so you don't have to be worry being hungry during the journey.
We arrived Gare du Nord, Paris train station @ 1120pm. 1 hour time different with UK. We checked in at New Hotel Gare du Nord which located just outside of the station. We pre-booked the hotel via ratestogo.com for €98. The hotel is very basic but we feel safe there because it's really just opposite the station and at 1120pm, there were still a lot visitors of the bars along the street.
Day 2
We checked out as early as 830am and made our move to the next hotel. I was at 1st contemplating either to stay at Eiffel Tower area or Champs Elysees area. After getting some advice from a dear friend who used to stayed at Paris, he suggested Champs Elysees :) Another friend suggested Hotel Des Champs Elysees. It's a boutique hotel & it does look very sheek. However, since I did not book it earlier than I should, it was sold out~! Apparently, the week we were at Paris was Fashion Week. So a lot of hotels are sold out. But I was very very lucky to get Hotel Le A for €260! Hotel Le A is also a boutique hotel located nearby tube station Saint Philippe du Roule. But we decided to take the bus instead because we want to enjoy the scenery :) At Gare du Nord train station, we took bus No. 42 to Champs Elysees. Along the journey, we say Opera & Galeries Lafayette :) Hehehe..
Bus No. 42 stopped at Round Champs Elysees & boy I was awe by the scenery and the buildings in Paris. The entire luxury boutique really look like they belong in the building. Could feel tears was about to linger. I just couldn't believe that I finally arrived Paris! It was so surreal to see Arc De Triomphe. It was just steps away from Louis Vuitton! Haha.
So as the bus stopped, I already know where I should be heading to after we checked in. Hotel Le A is only 5 walking-minutes away from avenue Champs Elysees. I was very pleased with my luggage. A 4-wheeled United Colors of Beneton luggage. It was easy to handle and 15kgs did not feel like 15kg at all! And when we finally arrived Hotel Le A, I was very pleased with the hotel. It was oh so pretty! And by the way, Hotel Des Champs Elysees located just 1 lot away :p
Hotel Le A is a boutique hotel with black & white theme. It just finished refurbishing the hotel so everything looked brand new. I really liked it. Then they brought us to our room. Room 601 to be precise. Ouh.... my... god... I have my own sunroof. Well I think it is called sunroof because I never had a sunroof!! Damn Love It! Automatically I feel so romantic already. Ahahaha. It's small. As usual. But the fact that everything is pretty well displayed for us & it is near to Champs Elysees and it is below €500! Well, this is a perfect Paris gateway for us, I must say.
*incik suami :)
*Hotel Le A
At Champs Elysees district u can find alllllll the big brand. Luis Vuitton, Prada, Gucci, Salvatore Ferregamo, Pucci, YSL and also Zara, Sephora, Vigrin Megastore & H&M. So we sinked in for awhile, and ready for Champs Elysees exploration! Ahaha. From Hotel Le A, we walked to Champs Elysees & the 1st place we went was Luis Vuitton. Ahahaha! We were there at 940am. It was early still so we walked up to Arc De Triomphe. Took some photos and we went back to LV. The sales consultant who assist me was so nice. I can't remember his name though but he really put up with me. Ahahaha. So I got myself a Bloomsburry PM for €660, a crossbody. It's my 1st ever LV and a luxury brand that I ever own. Huhu.
*look the line outside LV after we went out from LV @ 1030am.
After that we went to Laduree which located along LV. It's a must visit pastries parlor in Paris. It is famous for their lovely macaroon. I am an avid macaroon eater. I bought macaroon whenever I found one back in Malaysia. So macaroon €having the opportunity to eat macaroon from Laduree is very overwhelming. No, it can't compete with my passion for handbags tho. Sorry :p
*getting my pastries & macaroon from Laduree
Then we went back to your hotel to drop our stuff & perform prayers, we took the same bus No. 42 to Galeries Lafayette. OMG. Once we arrived there, it has so many crowds! There's nothing awesome about the mall. But the fact that it has all the luxury brand under one roof really attract people to shop here. Well my reason was I wanted to get Longchamp. Boy, the queue is not that bad too in LC! I spent 1 hours and 30 minutes in LC alone. Hahahaha. After getting what I wanted, we walked a bit in the mall & went to LG floor to submit my VAT forms.
Then we walked outside Galeries Lafayette and found Printemps just around the corner. It has all the brands too in Galeries Lafayette but not many people come here. Well, it's not as awesome as Galeries Lafayette. Galeries Lafayette has 9 floors people. Crazy! At Opera, we enjoyed Amorino ice cream made from gelato. 3 flavours for €4.50. U should try!
It was already near dark so we back to hotel and gasp into the comfort & also to consider that we were pretty damn tired :p Around 10pm, we went to Eiffel Tower. We took the same bus at the same stop. How convenient right? So we were able to glimpse through Paris during the night. It was lovely to see all the old buildings showered with lights. It really make u feel that u are at a foreign country. Hahaha.
At Eiffel Tower, even though it was already late, there were still so many people! At 1st we were afraid to go there at night in case we were the only one. Ahaha.. we got that wrong for sure. There were so many tourists & lovers trying to take pictures with Eiffel Tower. We, are not stranger to that. We bent, climbed, tipping toe just to get a better view to take pix with Eiffel Tower. Hahahaha. And then suddenly, there was a light show on Eiffel!! Bloody pretty and romantic feeling instantly. Ahahaha.. I'm a sucker for romantics. I know :p Going back to the hotel, we took the trishaw! I dont know what it is locally called tho. But it was fun to enjoy quality time with hubby :)
*during the light show @ 11pm which last for 5minutes
*trishaw in Paris!
Day 3
So we love our hotel very much. But we still have to leave :( Before we back left to London, we went to Eiffel Tower another round. Well, there is really nothing there. But Eiffel Tower is magnificent. I have things for buildings. I don't know why. Well, I love shopping mall more than other things I guess. But Eiffel Tower is something "I will bring home with me". The memory, the feelings I had when I saw it, it just make me feel different. In a good way...
On the way back to the hotel, we saw city bikes. I told hubby that riding city bikes is in my to-do list in Paris. So he suggested we stopped at Avenue Montaigne and take pictures with the bike at least. So we did.
*Paris City Bikes
Opposite the city bikes is a hotel were RPattz used to stay. I told hubby "Look at the hotel. RPattz stayed here before and I wanted to booked it for us. But it would cost us €760".
*Hotel Plaza Athenee
So I didn't settle. But we just walked pass by it but from far I saw this sign. But what I didn't know the hotel where Robert Pattinson was seeing photographed at was this hotel!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was beyond awe. I was over the moon!!!!!
*Was I lucky or what!!!!
All this while I though the signed is at Dorchester Hotel, which I have no idea where. We took couples of picture just to get it perfectly. Still not perfect but I am still happy and smiling about it until today :) Wwwwwweeeeeeeeee!!!!!!! So there I was, skipping back to the hotel with the best memory of Paris ever to bring back with me :) Aaahhhhh....
By 10am we left hotel & took the same bus to Gare du Nord station. We were catching up Eurostar train @ 1215pm. We already foresee this, but we did not a really slow traffic in Paris! I was worried there. But we manage to reach Gare du Nord station before by 12pm. Fuh!!! That was closed. If we missed the train, we have to pay 4x more expensive. We got it for £69 return per pax. Awesomely cheap isn't it?
By 130pm we arrived St Pancras International Station again. We took the tube heading to Bayswater. I wasn't really sure where to stay in London. So a dear friend suggested Berjaya Eden Park Hotel which is owned by our Berjaya. HOWEVER! As we checked in, they said the hotel was over booked so they have to transfer us to Hyde Park International and they will give us complimentary breakfast. Allkay, fair enough. But what we didn't know is that, Hyde Park International Standard room is very small and not decent at all! WE HATE IT! Well, we came from Hotel Le A. And to get a room like that, really disapoint us. I didn't even take a picture. Not worth the battery for it! Huh.
But we like Bayswater area nevertheless. It's very strategic. It has Noodle Oodle restaurant & Subway for halal food. Also arab restaurants. Post office if u need to courier things. Internet cafe, Boots, Tesco, and a shopping mall, Whiteleys! We watched a movie there :) Awesome kan??
So after checked in, we went to Madame Tussauds. The only reason why I went there was to take picture with Robert Pattinson wax figure. Ahahahahaha. I was still over the moon that I found the signage. And the taking picture with RPattz wax was another great things in 1 day :) I did try to stalk RPattz and KStew when I was in London. But they were in Surrey. Too bad :(
*RPattz wax and I
After Madame Tussauds we went to Westfield London @ White City. Did I shop? Yes I did! Ahahaha. I bought couples of Next perfume and lipgloss as sourvenir. That's all :p For dinner we eat at Jom Makan. Not bad. Nasi lemak for £9. After dinner we head back to hotel & relax.
*Jom Makan Restaurant
Day 4
Big day today!! At 830am we are already on our way to Marylebone station. From there we will take Chiltern Railways to Bicester North. The tix is £60 for 2 pax return. The journey took us 40minutes to arrive Bicester North. And from there, we took the shuttle bus to Bicester Village :) Yes, I was damn excited to reach Bicester Village. HOWEVER, I did not fancy anything I saw back there. The fashion was too out dated. Not to my liking. Really. It was not my lucky day :( But I shopped alot at Cath Kidston as sourvenir. And also some Ralph Lauren for the kids. It was really cheap. Like £8 cheap for a top! Fuh.
*1 view of Bicester Village
So we ended early at Bicester Village. Boo hoo! But the journey didn't stop there. We went to Oxford Street! Ahahaha. I went to the shops from Oxford Street station until Primark :p Far ain't it~! But for the passion of shopping, I went through it all. I went to most of the shops along the streets but I didn't buy anything tho. But once I was in Primark, I shop like MAD! I could get a decent chiffon blouse for only £8-£12. Well how cheap is that people! So yeah. I went crazy :p
Day 5
Busy day today!! For hubby! Haha. By 9am we were already on our way to Chelsea Stadium :) It was allkay. Not a big fan. Hahaha. After that hubby and I part ways. I went to Harrods & hubby went to Emirates Stadium / Arsenal. I went crazy at Harrods! Ahahahaha. I bought loads of Harrods signature items as sourvenir. I was there for 2 hours meanwhile hubby was already at Liliwhites & almost done. Ahahaha. I went to Liliwhites & bought a cabin luggage. Not that my luggage was expending much. But I thought I should have a hand luggage :p Good thing we bought the luggage. Coz we went to Primark again. And we shopped like nobody business! Ahahaha.
Day 6
Yes, today is the reason why this trip was ever happened. At 5am we were getting ready to go to Euston London station to take Virgin train to Manchester! Yes people, the city of Football :) By 9am we arrived Manchester and a gf who stayed there picked us up and and kindly took our hand luggage back to her place. We then took bus No. 250 to Etihad Stadium. This time, we watched Manchester City vs Everton, people! Hubby is a huge and ecstatic fan for Everton. He is a Toffee since 1995. Basically this trip is about him. To go to Everton's game & visit Goodison Park (bohrinnggg).
He was lucky that there was an Everton match during the weekend we were in London. But since it was an away game, he has to work harder to find the tix. He was only able to get the tix on couples of days before we left to London. Very Lucky. But the tix was not cheap. It was £60 per pax! Crazy. Huhuhu.. Even though, I had fun. Everton lost 0-2 :p
*Man City was leading 1-0
After the game, we went straight to Old Trafford. Wooooohoooooo! As a hugeee fan of Man U, I shopped like crazy at Man U megastore. I bought MU DHL training kit for myself even though it was for Man size S. Hihihi. Still feeling great that I was able to get the jersey. It is something that is not sold in Malaysia. So am kinda proud whenever I'm wearing it and I do recognised some turning heads :p
*In front of Old Trafford stadium
After Old Trafford, we rushed to Mothercare and JD Sports at Great Ancoats Street. We were practically running once the bus stopped in front of the stores. Coz I had only 10 minutes to shop since it was near closing time. And I did manage to buy 4 Avent bottles and tits for only £24! That is what I call dirt cheap!
*Mothercare on the far right & Toysrus & JD Sports on the far left
For dinner, we were meeting my gf in front of Primark at the town. Well, I did manage to shop a lil bit while waiting for her which ended them waiting for me! Ahahaha. My gf brought us to Red Chili & boy the foods were all awesome! Spicy and nyummy!!!! I miss eating them already. Never had anything nice like that. After the wholesome dinner, we went back to my gf place and bunked there for the night.
Day 7
By 8am we already made our move back to the Manchester Piccadilly train station to Liverpool Lime Street. We arrived Liverpool by 10am and waited for bus No 19 to Goodison Park. Hubby was already restless waiting as he has been waiting for this moment nearly half of his life. Hehe. As we finally arrived at Goodison Park, my role kicks in. As his photographer. I was asked to capture everything including the grass. How about that. Hahaha!
*Just look at how happy is he!
Then we head to Everton megastore. We sent nearly 2 hours there. Then we hike Stanley park to go to Anfield Stadium. Pergh... jauh gile! Worse was, we were crossing the field/park with dragging out luggage along. Ahahaha. Penat!!! But once we arrived Anfield Stadium, we didn't shop at the megastore. We just went to the loo. Ehehehehe.
*Stanley Park, Liverpool
After that we took the minicab straight to Liverpool Lime Street and jumped onto Virgin train to Euston Station. Good thing hubby got the first class coach for a really cheap price. I can't remember how much but it was cheap. Really. After 2 hours we arrived London & went straight to Bayswater to check in again at Berjaya Eden Park Hotel. We left our big luggages there when we were away during the weekend since we continued to stay there for another night. This time, they gave us a decent room. For £89, we got this:
*1 pair of twin bed & ..
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*1 queen bed in the same room! Pardon the mess :p
We were pleased to receive this hotel coz we do have alot of repacking to be done and this space really do us good. Alhamdulillah. We were happy again with Berjaya Hotel Eden Park. Thank you :) After checked in, we rest for awhile and then we went to Whiteleys and catch a movie. We watched Crazy, Stupid, Love and we loved it very much. We always try to make a point to watch movies when we are at overseas because I love watching movies so much that sometimes, I just don't take lunch and instead, I spent the time watching movie at the cinema. Crazy huh? At least it's not an expensive obsession :p
Day 8
The day reality hit us hard on our forehead. We were heading back to Malaysia. I already missed Paris so much & even worse now :(
It's a wrap ladies! I am back on Malaysia soil and I have courier over all Europe pre-order handbags. Glad everybody love them and remember, I bought them with passion and love for the bags.
Please continue ur support and thanks for reading.
With Love
-eija-
