Europe Expedition : PARIS - PART 1

Paris — the City of Light — has been a beacon of culture for centuries. As a world capital of art, fashion, food, literature, and ideas, it stands as a symbol of all the fine things human civilization can offer.This year through the end of July we visited this beautiful city that offers sweeping boulevards, chic boutiques, breathtaking architecture and world-class art galleries. 

Living a Parisian Life for three days was not enough as you always want to explore more of it ..sidewalk café, Climbing Montmartre ,zipping to the top of the Eiffel Tower, and saunter down Avenue des Champs-Elysées till Arc de Triumpe ,Master the Louvre museum and so much more.

We started of first with a quick breakfast from near our hotel and climbing the Montmartre. It is primarily known for the white-domed Basilica of the Sacré-Cœur  .The best things about Paris is that you will be surrounded by so many amazing artists and musicians .We did charmed by the presence of one such artist at our visit up hill and couldn't stop but capturing the way he nailed those chords on violin.We did managed to take a few pictures inside as well although it wasn't allowed :)

Basilica of Sacre-Coeur(the big white church) sits on the crest of the hill -  Montmartre

                                                        Inside  the Church
 

                                        View from the top of Montmartre

 At the bottom of the hill is the Boulevard de Clichy which is lined with souvenir shops with those cute totes, fridge magnets ,hats and what not  . couldn't stop but end up  buying myself some beautiful stuff to take back home as a memory .Fridge magnets, i just adore my collection :D 

        Climbing was none less than an adventure ..a short route with those series of stairs


Then we headed to another famous monument Arc de Triomphe that honours those who fought and died for France in the French Revolutionary and the Napoleonic Wars, with the names of all French victories and generals inscribed on its inner and outer surfaces.

Arc de Triomphe

Looks preety similar to our own India Gate with Amar Jawan Jyoti 

                                       The Arc de Triomphe Paris' Memorial Flame

The Champs Elysées is known for its great collection of upscale boutiques. Along the avenue you’ll find names such as Cartier, Louis Vuitton, Hugo Boss, Lancel and Lacoste.It's  a playground for the rich and famous, as luxurious restaurants and theaters lined the avenue. 

 
                                   Those lavish rides were on rent on hourly basis . 

                                                  Lunch time ...Bon Apperite 

After Enough of posing on the streets :) and filling lunch on one of the Parisian street style  Restaurant .We finally tracked our way to one of the Romantic and most ranked among st all the the Wonders  ..Eiffel it is . 

This was the view from the pathway coming from the subway station and I was awestruck for a moment .

Eiffel Tower 

View from across the Bridge 

View from the first Level the last day .Unfortunately it was closed the first day due to some security reasons and EURO 2016 

                                                  Siena River and the city 

From the First level 

Since Eiffel was closed to the top  .We had to Move ahead to the next destination .

                        Pont Alexandre III – the most spectacular bridge in Paris

The bridge was built at the end of the nineteenth century over the Seine and is lavishly decorated with lampposts and sculptures.

           

                      

In a city like Paris there is plenty to see when traveling on foot. However ,The Paris metro is one of the oldest and one of the best systems in the world. Tickets can be bought at the ticket booth in the station one at a time, by ten or by 1-day, 2-day, 3-day, 5-day, Le Paris Viste tickets for tourists.

The connectivity is amazing though the only tough part was to sweat a bit to catch the train between and within the stations for a route .
It was quite exciting (exhausting)..haha :P

You can get metro maps at the stations and navigating through that is quite easy .. or just download the map and you know your way ...now i know ;)


Moment of Truth :
I couldn't possibly agree on the fact that Eiffel Tower is THE most breathtaking wonders of all until I saw this .

These sparkly flickers are momentary ,only for few mins or so and you don't wanna miss it .

A moment of quite amidst the noise .

Saving some after-dark energy for one of the world's most romantic cities is another charm . 

Friends ,Since it was a quite long blog post .I decided to split it in two .
 Soon I will post the second edition of PARIS  - Disney Land and Louvre Museum  :D 

Hope you like it ..Cya ..!!

Spice it up ..

Indian Food 

Panner Tikka 

I love this dish ..its easy to prepare ;) ,take less effort and usually treated as a starter dish in Indian weddings .. :)

Indian food is all about spices and strong taste..Paneer tikka is basically marinated paneer or cottage cheese cubes, grilles in oven or tandoor .It tastes amazing with coriander and mint chutney .

Lets Begin with marination :

In a bowl take 

• 2-3 tbsp yogurt or thick curd.
• 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste or crushed ginger garlic
• 1 tsp ajwain/carom seeds
• 2 to 3 tsp kashmiri red chili powder
• ½ tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tsp jeera powder/cumin seeds powder
• 1 tsp dhania powder/coriander powder
• 1 tsp garam masala powder
• 1 tsp amchur powder/dry mango powder
• 1 tsp chaat masala
• juice of half lemon
• 1 to 2 tbsp oil or ghee or butter for brushing
• Salt

Add all the stuff together 

and mix it well 

now dice the veggies in small cubes :

• Paneer
• Red/Yellow/green capsicum
• Onion

and add them in marinade

Now keep them in refrigerator for 2 or more hours.I kept them overnight .

After they are marinated , Place them in skewer or toothpicks and keep them in oven for 20-25 minutes flipping in between and serve them hot :)

I swear guys ...do try it ..its finger licking good :)

Do share how you tried it in the comments below