CHRISTMAS IN PARIS - DAY THREE

Our third and final day in Paris was on Christmas Day; so it was only appropriate that we visited the Notre Dame Cathedral. According to The Independent, France is the least festive country in Europe and it certainly came across as no one seemed particularly bothered it was Christmas Day, nor did we see anyone wishing each other 'Joyeux Noel'. Nonetheless, we still had a magical day roaming around the cathedral and capturing the beauty of The River Seine.  

The Notre Dame Cathedral is one of the free attractions that Paris has to offer, and although the queue may look like you'll be waiting around all day, it moves so quickly it only takes about ten minutes to get in! The architecture of the Notre Dame is extremely intricate and when you get up close, you can really see just how much work must have gone into its design. 

I am in no way religious, but there was such a strong aura in the building with so many people reflecting and lighting candles in remembrance of loved ones. There were booths available for visitors where they could confess their sins, but I was on a strict schedule and I would have needed more than a few hours if I was to go in there! Throughout the cathedral, there were different activities that you could partake in such as signing the guest book and writing a wish on a piece of paper where you place it in a locked box. The extra touches that they added throughout the cathedral definitely made it an extra special experience.

Notre Dame is very reliant on donations by the public so there are a lot of opportunities throughout the visit to dig deep in your pockets and spare some of your holiday money for this historic landmark. They also have some extraordinary souvenirs with most of the profits going straight back to the church or different charities. 

After a busy three days, we were exhausted to say the least so we ended up spending the rest of our evening mooching around the side streets by the Eiffel Tower whilst eating Nutella crepes. Looking back on the trip, it was all rather a whirlwind fitting everything into just three short days but it can be done! I would love to come back for at least a week next time to really soak up the Parisian way of life as I feel most of our time was spent doing the typical touristy stuff so we never found any of the unknown gems that Paris has to offer. 
I hope you've enjoyed reading the 'Christmas in Paris' blog series and that it's given you some sort of idea on what to do when time is limited! Thank you for reading :) 

Tannaz 
x 

CHRISTMAS IN PARIS - DAY TWO

Our second day in Paris also happened to fall on my birthday which is on Christmas Eve. Except for Christmas Day, it's probably the worst day you can have your birthday as everyone is too wrapped up in the holiday season to really do anything. I wouldn't consider myself as very "cultured" when it comes to museums however, I was desperate to visit the Musee du Louvre during our time in Paris. 

CHRISTMAS IN PARIS - DAY ONE

As much as I love the Christmas period, Christmas Day itself can be pretty boring and as an only child with divorced parents, nothing particularly eventful ever really happens. This year my dad wasn't in the country for Christmas so it was the perfect opportunity for my Mum and I to go away on a city break.

THE BEST ADVENT CALENDARS OF 2014

Ho Ho Ho! Christmas is coming and I'm super excited! Over the last few years, beauty advent calendars have become a BIG thing. There are so many of them available on the market; from your high street brands to your higher end labels, they're all at it. 

I love the traditional chocolate advent calendar as much as the next person, but the beauty fanatic inside of me is lusting over some of these advent calendars big time. 
But it's not all about beauty advent calendars this year. There are so many different kinds available on the market for 2014 and this post is going to show you some of my favourite ones! 

ATLANTIS THE PALM - DUBAI SERIES #5

As the Dubai Series comes to an end, it's time to share with you my favourite place to go to in Dubai, Atlantis the Palm. 

The Atlantis hotel is probably one of the most famous hotels in the world and so it should be. I could happily spend a whole week there without even leaving the resort because there are just so many fun things to do! 

3 IN 1 - DUBAI SERIES #4

This post is going to be about three things that I love to do whilst I'm in Dubai. 
- Souk Al Bahar
- Visit the Burj Khalifa 
- Watching the fountains outside the Dubai Mall 

All three things are in close proximity to each other (and Dubai Mall) so if you're only in Dubai for a short stay, you could easily do all of this in a day. 

DUBAI MALL - DUBAI SERIES #3

I'm pretty confident in saying that 99% of people who have been to Dubai, have visited Dubai Mall. Dubai Mall is everything that the city stands for. It's the biggest and most visited mall in the world and if you ever happen to visit, it'll only take a few minutes until you see a Rolls Royce or hordes of women spending money in Chanel like it's going out of fashion. Having said this, you don't need to be a millionaire to have a good time there.

Dubai Mall is massive. Seriously, it's god-damn big and you're going to need more than a day if you plan on going around the whole of the mall. It has got everything that you can think of, including an indoor theme park, an aquarium, an ice skating ring and even a gold souk.