Île-de-France

Of course the trip started with a challenging trans-Atlantic flight. No screaming toddler, but the Air France seats were so hard that sleep was out of the question. To pass the time, I watched a few episodes of La Gaule d’Antoine, hosted by the irreverent and witty Antoine de Causes, a French TV icon known for his sharp humor and knack for uncovering cultural gems. The show, a playful exploration of France’s regional quirks, feels like a French take on Huell Howser’s California’s Gold. My French was just good enough to keep up, and halfway through an episode where de Caunes dove into the world of the ham-and-butter baguette sandwich known as a Parisian, I decided to make finding one my mission during my 14-hour layover.

I landed at Paris Charles de Gaulle at 6 a.m. Clearing customs and catching a train to Notre Dame took two hours. I had a 9 a.m. ticket to enter the church, but on arrival, I found no reservations were needed—walk-ins faced no line. My last visit in 2011 left memories of a dark, dank interior, but the cathedral has been noticeably cleaned up! I did a quick loop inside and left.

My plan was to walk to the Eiffel Tower via the Seine and Champs-Élysées. Exhausted from the sleepless flight, I found a green metal lounge chair near Place de la Concorde, known for its Egyptian obelisk, and napped for two hours.

When I woke, I was hungry. On the Champs-Élysées, I stopped at a coffee shop and grabbed two flaky, buttery croissants. With no interest in shopping, I passed through the commercial district, turned left at the Arc de Triomphe, and headed toward the Seine and Eiffel Tower.

After crossing the river, I navigated through a checkpoint in the new security barrier around the tower. It was a hassle with my large backpack, but the lack of street vendors and scammers inside was a plus. I found a wooden park bench by a small pond and slept for another three hours.

Refreshed, I went to the food counter and ordered a jambon-beurre. Purists, I imagine, would argue it was not an authentic Parisian due to the addition of Emmental cheese, but it was delicious. Since I’m wearing Invisalign braces, my teeth were too sore to bite through the baguette, so I tore off bite-sized pieces to eat. It felt like the right way to enjoy it anyway.

At 5 p.m. I took the elevator to the top of the Eiffel Tower. I ordered a glass of champagne and spent an hour shooting aerial timelapses of the roads, river, and sidewalks below.

At 6:30 p.m., I departed the tower and took the metro to Paris Austerlitz to catch the night train to Bayonne.

Intending to use the slow intercities train as a hotel, I booked a first-class sleeper car ticket months in advance. A handful of passengers in the car were also heading to Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port to start the Camino Frances. I brushed my teeth, plugged my battery bank into an outlet to charge, and drifted off to sleep.