In September 2014 I handed in my notice at work, and pretty much the same day G decided he was going to book us a mini break to Paris for the start of November. Partly wanting to cheer me up for having to unexpectedly walk away from a job, he’d also just gotten his British passport all sorted and was on a mission to start seeing more of Europe. So seeing as I hadn’t seen the sights in Paris since I was a child, he booked us our plane tickets to the most romantic city in the world (really?), and off we went.

Things to do in Paris in only one day!

Considering the only underground trains either of us had ever really experienced was the London Underground, when we got there we were quite excited to find the Metro incredibly easy to navigate. The lines are all numbered instead of named country-specific things like Jubilee or Marmalade. Or whatever. And on board the trains, each stop has its own little light that indicates which one you’re at - such a small detail but actually very useful to tourists seeing France for the first time.

One thing we noticed where us Rosbeefs and Frogs really differ: while Brits will go out of their way to avoid sitting next to strangers - I’ve been known to walk no less than 4 carriages down the train looking for a free table before resigning myself to huddling by the nearest exit - the French will grab literally the closest seat to them, to the point of forcing tourists to find a new resting place for their heavy suitcases. Like their laps. It was really quite a sight as more people poured in at each stop, as me and G clutched onto our backpacks thankful for our short and sweet overnight trip.

And we weren’t sure if the couple diagonal from us were French or if it was just because they were young and SO IN LOVE, but this guy had his face literally millimeters from his lady friend’s, eyes closed with the odd nose rub or slobbery snog - for the entire journey. Just try that level of mush on the tube, mate. If the rocking of the carriages doesn’t smash your heads together, some chav will. I tried to recreate the love birds’ closed-eyes-smiling-like-a-knob look with G on an escalator after we got off the train, but he didn’t get it and backed away from me. While my eyes were shut. Awkward.

With our totes adorbs pocket map from the airport in hand, we made a plan to head first to Notre Dame, followed by the Louvre, Arc de Triomphe, and finally the Eiffel Tower before making our way to our hotel.

We did get a bit lost a few times. We wandered down a path to the side of Notre Dame and ended up stumbling across a Love Lock bridge (no idea which one), so we thought why not, ran across the road to the tatty souvenir shop and engraved our own lock. Everyone say nawwww.

After that, for some reason we thought it would be a great idea to walk from the Louvre to the Arc De Triomphe. 3.7 km. That is more walking than I do in a week, just ask my iPhone health app. And I didn’t know it at the time, but I had a chest infection. Pretty sure it was more like Whooping Cough. I’d already been wheezing and spluttering for a few weeks, so you can imagine the effect that walking around in the middle of Europe in November all day had on me. In the end we hopped on the Metro for the last few stops, where I promptly coughed my guts up.

Undeterred by my failing health, we pressed on from the Arc de Triomphe and made our way to the Eiffel Tower. Sadly the top level was shut due to strong winds, but we grabbed a couple of passable selfies before I had to call it quits and give into what I thought was just a horrendous cold.

The only problem I found with France - and generally across Europe - is that they haven’t fully grasped the idea of dietary requirements yet. We pretty much lived on toasted sarnies and burgers, but despite the French’s idea of a ham and cheese toasty, I’m not really complaining. By the time we got to our hotel, I was in such a sorry state that we had to abandon our plan to find a cosy little restaurant, ordering room service instead. And, no lie, this burger was amazing. So it wasn’t all bad as I inhaled my dinner in my PJs, tucked up in bed watching A Million Ways to Die in the West.

Considering we only had a day to see Paris and me slowing us down, I think we did pretty well seeing the major attractions, but I’d love to go back to see more, especially some little tucked away restaurants - do you have any recommendations or your own Paris wishlist?