[soniprady]

I have been excited about posting this travelogue here even before the trip started and it's such a great feeling to be able to do it finally.

My closest friend from undergrad lives in London and I have been meaning to visit him since forever. But that never happened due to the pandemic first and later I was doing my masters last year. Both of us are avid tennis fans and I decided that after my masters, I would visit him and try watching either the French Open or Wimbledon, which he has gone to multiple times. We also knew that the Olympics would happen this year but getting tickets and visiting seemed far-fetched, as I didn't know where and when I would work post my master's.

Sometime in April-May 2023, the tickets for the Olympics got released and my friend managed to get a number of them in the initial rounds of ticket sales.



The good thing was that there was an official ticket re-sale platform where tickets could be re-sold with a minor deduction. Even if I hadn't gone he would've gone with someone else or sold the extra tickets.

Come 2024, I moved to Bangalore and started working. I had to give him an answer in time so he could sell the tickets. I was hesitant to take leaves in the first few months of my new job but when people found out that I had tickets to the Olympics everyone told me to not miss the opportunity.

But aside from the Olympics we did not have anything particular in mind and kept discussing what else can we fit in during the vacant days and after returning from Paris.

One of our other friends was moving to the Hague, Netherlands just at the time of the Olympics and wanted to watch as well so we thought we could visit her and see Amsterdam/Hague for 3 days, come back to Paris to watch the last leg with her. Aside from tennis, we decided to watch Badminton and Beach Volleyball. My friend wanted to watch Breaking and athletics too but I wasn't initially interested in those. So he started to put other tickets on sale (hockey, day 2 of athletics, basketball etc.)

So the final plan was that we meet in Paris, watch tennis, badminton and beach volleyball in the next 2 days and go to the Netherlands. Spend 3 days there, return to Paris and he can watch breaking and athletics, and I can explore the city. The next day both of us go to London and I spend a week with him before returning to India.

This also meant that I needed both Schengen and UK visas and no plans could be finalised until I got those. Schengen visa is known to be unpredictable, especially with solo travellers so I gave all the documents and even attached the Olympics tickets. That probably worked and I got the visa within 4 days from VFS Bangalore. The UK visa also came within 2 weeks. That's when I finally believed that the trip was happening!

We had to sort out some bookings in Paris and the Netherlands, finalise stay options and book internal transportation. That kept happening until the final weekend before leaving. From India, I booked the Air India flight to Paris via Delhi and in return luckily I got to book the first direct Air India flight from London Gatwick to Bangalore.

We watched the opening ceremony on TV and were very excited to be there in 5 days to watch everything in person. I even bought a tri-colour and we also kept checking for other tickets since new tickets were getting released now and then and when I saw that athletics tickets were available for the Aug 8 night session (the day of the javelin throw final!) I bought them so I could join my friend and we could watch Neeraj Chopra live.

The day finally came. I had a super early morning flight from Bangalore to Delhi and my only expectation from Air India was to reach without massive delays.
After a 2-hour layover in Delhi, I boarded for Paris with a 1-hour delay. The charging ports and touchscreens weren't working but on the plus side, the flight was relatively empty and mostly had European/French passengers. I had the entire row to myself and soon we took off.

Landed around 7:30 PM local time at Paris CDG airport and the plan was to meet my friend at Gare du Nord station where his train from London would arrive and we could go together to our Airbnb slightly north of Montmartre. But immigration and baggage collection was fast and I reached Gare du Nord ahead of him and checked into our Airbnb. It was a small studio in an old building. It was cozy but didn't have an AC or fan and it was very hot and sunny in Paris. So we just opened the windows and managed.

My friend arrived shortly after and we decided to go see the Eiffel tower at night when it sparkled. It looked great and the 5 Olympic rings added to the charm. After seeing that and exploring the surrounding areas we came back as we had a long day the next day with tennis.



The next day we got up early and explored Montmartre and went to Sacré-Cœur. We saw a number of athletes from other nations exploring and getting pictures.


After brunch we went to Roland Garros to watch the second last day of tennis and had 4 matches lined up - Men's Doubles Gold medal match, Men's doubles bronze medal match, Women's singles Gold Medal match and Men's singles bronze medal match. The atmosphere was amazing and while the stadiums were full it wasn't extremely crowded. We were bummed as Alcaraz/Nadal didn't reach the doubles final and had lost earlier to a specialist doubles team of Rajeev Ram and Krajicek who were playing for the gold. The match was very high quality and reached the final tiebreaker where the Australians defeated Team USA.



We decided to explore Roland Garros before the next match started and got pictures with the rings, at the show courts, and with the iconic Nadal statue. We found out that Alcaraz was practising for his Gold Medal match tomorrow and quickly ran to get a glimpse. He had just finished practising and was giving pictures and autographs to fans on the other side of the court. We shouted and pleaded to come to this side along with some Spanish kids and he finally came to our side. We managed to get a selfie and his autograph. This would be one of my most special memories from this trip.




We also realised that Djokovic would also come to practice for his match and tried to figure out the court for his practice. By the time we found that out, he had already come and there was a huge crowd in and outside the court where he was practicing. We were too far for an autograph but still got a good glimpse of him before he left the facility.


The women's singles final was also intense and Quewin Zheng won China's first gold in tennis after both men's doubles and women's singles we saw the medal ceremony. We changed seats for the final match of the day, the men's singles bronze medal match between Felix Auger Aliassime and Lorenzo Musetti. It was dark and drizzling and the roof of the Philippe Chatrier court closed and made it a different shade of orange clay.



Post that match we explored the merch store to buy souvenirs and saw 2 two-time grand slam champion from Australia - Lleyton Hewitt. He was probably buying some souvenirs for his kids and we quickly got a selfie with him! Explored Roland Garros some more before leaving.

At night we met my friend's colleague from London who drove from there and was watching other events at the Olympics. We met at a pub which was started by a Pakistani journalist in exile. Spent some time chatting there and finally went back to our accommodation.

The next day badminton was going to start at 8:30 AM at Porte De La Chapelle Arena just 20 mins walk from our place. It was not even remotely crowded and it felt unbelievable to walk through quiet residential neighbourhoods to watch the badminton semis at the Olympics. 4 matches were lined up and the last one - Lakshya Sen vs Viktor Axelsen was the most awaited for us. All matches were great and it was really sad when Carolina Marin got injured towards the end of her match and had to retire.

We kept going downstairs to get pictures and this time there were a bunch of Indian flags and supporters. However, the Danish supporters were far higher in number. We also spotted Dhruv Rathee and his wife in the stands. The view was great and we got out our Indian flag out. Lakshya had game points in the first game and was leading in the second game but unfortunately lost. After the match, we went downstairs and cheered him and he acknowledged us.



After badminton, we went to the iconic Eiffel Tower Stadium to watch beach volleyball. This was a makeshift stadium right behind the Eiffel made just for the Olympics and what a location it was. Could see the Eiffel from everywhere in the stadium. The atmosphere was full party. After every point there were songs played, chanting, stunts, Mexican wave and whatnot. Watching this was so much fun. After the first match was over we clicked a lot of pictures and both matches ended in around 2-2.5 hrs. After that, we went to the Opera area in Paris, and had dinner at a Chinese restaurant before returning to our place.


Next day, we had an early morning bus from Paris to Amsterdam. The journey was comfortable and the bus stopped at Lille at the France-Belgium border. We reached Amsterdam around 2 PM and after checking in to our hotel went straight to the Van Gogh museum. After seeing that we went to the city centre and explored that the entire day and had dinner at a Surinamese restaurant.



The next day we had a lot to cover but long days meant we could see a lot. We took a 2 hour walking tour of the city where the tour guide took us through famous landmarks and told us about the history and geography of Amsterdam and Netherlands, how land reclamation happened. We then went to the Albert Cuyp market and had lunch from stalls there and finally went to Zanche Schans around 30 mins from Amsterdam to see the famous windmills. Spent a couple hours there and came back to Amsterdam for dinner. Went to central Amsterdam at night for the final time before making our way to our hotel.

The next morning, we left for the Hague to meet our friend who had moved there just the previous day. Spent some time at her place and then we all went to the city centre. I thought the Hague was a small sleepy town with just administrative and judicial bodies but it was huge. It has a pier, beach, parks, a lively town centre and museums. We spent the entire day there and in the evening cycled to the beach. Spent some time at the pier and beach and went back to our friend's place to pick up the luggage and transfer to Rotterdam in night.


We explored Rotterdam the next morning for a few hours before boarding our Eurostar train to Paris. The train was delayed and our athletics session was going to start at 7 PM. But thankfully the final delay was only around 20 mins and we reached by 5 PM. Checked into our hotel close to Gare Du Nord and quickly left for Stade de France - the venue for our session.

Since the capacity for this stadium was over 80,000 it was crowded but very well managed. When we entered, the medal ceremonies for the previous sessions were going on and soon action started. We were all so happy and could see fans from literally so many countries. The most prominent ones were France, US and the Netherlands which were loudly cheering for their athletes. Finally, the champ Neeraj Chopra came out for warmups and in parallel women’s long jump final also started.

The 200m men’s sprint also happened very quickly and L. Tebogo from Botswana won his country its ever gold and heavy favourite Noah Lyles had to settle for Bronze. The events were happening parallel and the long jump and javelin throw players would take a break when a track event started so we had to really concentrate on everything.

Before the track events, there used to be pin-drop silence and once the gun was fired the crowd roared. We eagerly followed the Javelin throw and were praying that no throw crossed Neeraj’s. Finally, Arshad Nadeem’s throw came out of nowhere. It seemed like the Javelin was stuck in the sky and just like that, he broke the Olympic record. The entire crowd gave him a standing ovation and while Neeraj Chopra got silver, we were very happy for both him and Arshad Nadeem. The long jump also got over right after that and Tara Woodhall got the gold there.







We also saw semis of the 1500m women’s race where F. Kipyegon won gold the next day. After 110m men’s hurdles came the 400m women’s hurdles where Sydney Levrone of the US broke the world record. It was surreal just seeing athletes breaking records, throwing a javelin more than 90 metres away, jumping 7+ metres, re-writing history and pushing human limits in front of us.
The medal ceremony was going to happen the next day and the session ended before the scheduled 11 PM finishing time. We again clicked pictures and while exiting saw many Indian fans going to the lower tiers to get a closer look and cheer for Neeraj Chopra. By the time we tried the security did not let us go further downstairs but we still got a good look and went our way.

The next day was to explore Paris and my friend had to attend breaking – the new sport which was introduced this time. We visited the Louvre and just walked around a lot near the Seine, Notre Dame, Pantheon and also visited Galeries Lafayette Haussmann. Also tried some fresh croissants, pain au chocolat and baguettes from local boulangeries. Rushed back to the hotel in the evening to pick up our luggage and reached in time for our train to London from Gare du Nord and reached London late at night.



Overall, the Olympics were so well organised. Add to the beautiful backdrop of Paris it felt like the entire city was welcoming us. The crowds were very well managed and volunteers were everywhere right from metro stations to venues and were so helpful and cheerful. For the athletics event since my friend from Hague booked her ticket later, our seats were separate. We told them and they somehow gave us seats together in a sold-out 80,000-seater stadium. The volunteers also clicked pictures and always went out of their way to help.

We entered a small grocery store to buy some stuff and the store staff asked us where we were from. We said India, they asked us how are we doing at the Olympics. We mentioned that we have won 3-4 medals till now and cricket has the centre stage in our nation. They were surprised and said yes cricket and ‘informatique’. We thought what’s that sport only to realise that they meant IT!

The only thing that I didn’t like was the prices of the Metro almost doubled from 2.15 euros to 4 euros for the Olympics. My friend visited Paris in June and since this was announced he bought a MetroCard and tickets for me, but otherwise this was done to get visitors to pay more since locals can buy tickets before the price increase.

The UK leg of the trip started the very next day. Since it was a Saturday we planned a 3-day road trip from London to the Jurassic coast in Southwest UK. My friend’s girlfriend and another friend of ours in London joined us for the trip. In the UK foreign license holders can drive for up to 1 year which means that 2 of us could drive but since my friend has spent longer than 1 year he couldn’t and has to have a UK license to drive.

Instead of renting a car through bigger players – we rented through this platform called Turo where people rent their own cars. It was cheaper and we didn’t have to travel further away to the airport etc. to pick up and picked it up from the Oval area. We chose an Automatic 2016 Volkswagen Golf Diesel which was quick and comfortable.



We stopped at Richmond for lunch and visited the famous pub which was featured in Ted Lasso show and were on our way.



We soon hit the motorway and I started driving from this point. My friend has cleared his written tests for his driving license so he quickly helped me understand all the symbols, yellow stripes and most importantly – roundabout rules. The motorway was comfortable and fast and I was sticking to my lane at the speed limit – 70 mph, but saw more powerful cars going very fast and I was often overtaken.

After driving for 2.5 hours we reached Bournemouth where we stopped at the beach before hitting our final destination for the day – Poole, where we had our Airbnb booked. It had a parking spot and the host had given us detailed instructions to park the car. Then we visited Poole Park and Baiter Park which had views of the bay and had yachts parked. Spent an hour there before coming back to our place. It was late so we just ordered food and slept.

The next day we left for the main highlight Durdle Door around 45 mins away to see the iconic door-shaped limestone arch over blue waters. Being a summer weekend it was very crowded, but the parking was very well managed by volunteers. We also went on foot to Lulworth Cove and had lunch at a nearby restaurant. We then left for Lime Regis – another beach town around 40 miles west through twisty roads. This was the most tricky bit of driving for me as on many parts you can’t overtake, and driving below speed limits is frowned upon. But I managed well and we reached Lime Regis. Spent some time there before returning to Poole and it was dark by the time we reached.




The key to driving in the UK according to me was being super confident
and doing overtaking etc. in one motion. There was traffic everywhere and people drove fast so any hesitation could lead to consequences. I don’t know if this is true for other cars in the UK but in Golf the turn indicators and wiper stalks were on opposite sides from India and the initial couple of times I accidentally turned on the wiper while trying to signal. The speed limits also change very quickly so had to be super mindful of that and not use high beams at night.

The next day we had to leave to reach Heathrow Airport by around 3 PM to pick up my friend’s mom who was coming from India. We started and stopped at New Forest for a short break. There were deer there and a lot of families and campers on trails etc. After that, we stopped at the All Saints Churchyard in Minstead where the grave of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is located.



There were narrow single roads here and when you let someone pass – they wave and acknowledge you. We hit the motorway again and there was a huge pileup which delayed us. But we managed to reach Heathrow and picked up my friend’s mom. The final task was to drive through central London to reach my friend’s home in Borough. We initially thought of dropping the car first to avoid central London’s congestion charges which are applicable till 6 PM but we got delayed and reached after 6 PM.

Driving through Central London was tricky for sure. Signals every 2 mins, a strict speed limit of 20 mph and have to be careful of bus lanes, cyclists, and pedestrians and be in the correct lane to turn. Missed a couple of turns since it was too late to change lanes but reached comfortably to my friend’s place where he had open parking.


We dropped off the luggage, cleaned and refuelled the car and finally went back to Oval to return the car just in time. The host did some quick checks and it was all clear. We drove around 350 miles (~560 km) and our car returned a mileage of around 15 kmpl.

After a super hectic 10 days I rested the next day and didn’t do anything. I had come to London in 2016 for an internship for 3 months and saw the major attractions and landmarks. This time around I noticed 2 big changes – so many EV cars and the uptick in cycling. In fact my friend cycles to work every day.
Taking advantage of that we cycled quite a bit—from buying groceries to visiting markets. I also walked around central London, did some shopping, tried different cuisines, played tennis with my friend, caught up with friends and my old boss from my internship, and played board games.





Finally, it was time to come back. I thought since it was Air India’s first direct flight to Bangalore it won’t be crowded just like the onward flight to Paris. But I was wrong and the flight was full. They gave us chocolates since it was the first flight.

Landed in Bangalore with around 2 hours delay but the immigration was quick. Took bags, and reached home and that finally marked an end to such a great trip.

[Annibaddh]

Had a ton of fun reading through your write up mate. Seems like a super cool memory to make. Paris is a delightful city at any time, but a sunny bright Paris and Olympics must have been such a charm!

Great story.

[routefinder]

I really enjoyed reading about your trip to Paris! I'm going to Paris in October, and your experiences have given me some great ideas on what to expect. I've also been checking out some guides, like this one https://gowithguide.com/blog/tourism...of-lights-5744 to prepare for my trip. Thanks for sharing your journey!