Pont Neuf Bridge looks very pristine in early morning
After unpacking we came down for a walk. It was already dark outside. So, we didn't go far and back to hotel seeing Notredame Cathedral and Pont Neuf Bridge. It's probably the oldest bridge in Paris. There is a bronze statue of King Henry IV riding a horse, who named the bridge, locates at the center of the bridge on the square du Vert-Galant.
Paris at night
Notredame Cathedral
Next day we went Louvre following our plan. [I have another post regarding it] It took all morning and a lot of walking. It was really amazing to see too many tourists even in this off season! At about 3.00 pm we came out from the museum. We were looking for something to eat. Next to the museum there is a large garden, it's the Jardin des Tuileries. It connects the Louvre with the Place de la Concorde. We began the long-winded walk through the garden and finally came upon a solution for lunch. It was a small shop in the open place, not stuffed with enjoyable items. However, we settled for a small snacks, which we ate at outdoor sitting on stairs.
Lots of visitors in Louvre
I already felt tired walking inside Louvre and on the long path of Tuileries. So, got on a bus for Eiffle. Paris buses are nice and modern but tickets are not valid for 1.30 hours that we got in Canada and Sweden. Each ticket admids only once ride. Bus left us near Eiffle. Although Eiffle is visible even from a far distance, to get a closer look you can go at the base of the tower and can ride up to the top to get a panoromic view of Paris. After we reached the Eiffle first watched it from the base. Then had a long walk to get other side crossing the Seine river for pictures. Actually I couldn't enjoy much, my weary legs were killing me. Left is the picture of Concord.
We saw a cart while waiting for bus near Eiffle
We ended up for that day visiting Jardin des Luxemburg. It's a garden with huge area, a pond, fountains, statues of French queens, but nothing much interesting. Later on thought it would have been better if we hadn't gone there. There were more important sites than it and we were short of time.
Jardin des Luxemburg
Our plan was to spend the last day in Disney land. But later thinking of my exhausted feet decided to stay and enjoy the nearby attractions. Next morning we again passed some time outside Louvre. It was really a lovely place, people sitting in the sun lazily, kids running around the pyramids, seagulls swimming in water.
We headed Arc of Triomph in the afternoon. The road was nice, series of trees of same category and same form made it prettier as you see below. We thought we could reach the Arc on foot as it was looking nearer. But after few mins walk we realized it was not that close at all. Continuing on our walk through the street, we made a wonderful discovery. We found some fabulous perfume stores stocking wide range of exccellent perfumes. I am a huge fan of Paris perfumes especilly Dior and Amor Amor are my favorite.
A beautiful shot of 'Avenue des Chames Eylesses' and Arc from far away
Arc of Triomph
After the arc we approched our hotel from a different side than we did previously. We found a shopping street that contains lots of brand boutique stores like Boss, Gucci, Armani, Dior, Channel with fashionable and expensive clothes and gifts. I stunned to find a fashion bag at 1500 euros, a pair of shoes 1200 euros, quite expensive.
A nice resturant
Shopping street with expensive stores
In Gothenburg one of my favourite places is the Botaniska Tradgarden (Botanical Garden). It's the Sweden's largest botanical garden. The park is home to about 12000 plant species. I often like to pass my spare time in this quiet, fascinating place snapping photos. Walking across the narrow path lined with plenty of trees, sweet smell of flowers and soft mellifluous songs of birds remind me rural areas of Bangladesh.
In summer the park wears an excellent look, all trees come into new leaves and flowers are in full bloom.
There are Rhododendron, Japanese, North American and Asien valley. Next to the rock garden is a hill with a fine view over the western part of Gothenburg and Slottskogen. There are also a greenhouse, caffe, resturant and shop at the entrance of the garden.
Opposite the Botaniska there is another Park Slottsskogen, where a half Marathon took place last saturday (17th May). It has grown to be one of the greatest long distance races in the world, with a new record this year 45000 runners.
Couple of years back we were invited by our friend to visit Smola, a small fishing island in North Sea near Trondheim. We got there by a ferry from Trondheim.
It was a very quiet island only a few wooden houses set meters apart. We stayed in a cottage only a block from the sea and could see the fishing boats in harbour from balcony. The island was super exciting and preety cool itself, you can see below. I encountered with mind-blowing natural beauty and had a great time here.
