Bateaux Mouches - Seine River Cruises

Bateaux Mouches, which literally means fly boats, is the French term for the most popular boat cruise line along the historic Seine River.From the apartment we had to rush to the Seine as it was almost 10 PM. The night was so cold it felt like the temperature was below 10 degrees celsius. My hands were freezing I hated myself for not remembering to bring my gloves. Nonetheless we still decided to stay at the upper deck to enjoy a better view of the sites. I myself was concerned about how to take advantage of the Seine River Cruises and see the Eiffel Tower the best way possible.



The Bateaux Mouches Seine River cruises start at the Trocadero and Alma Bridge. The Eiffel Tower, located at Champ de Mars, is clearly visible from our location, albeit a thick fog obscured the top part of the iron structure. At around 10:00 pm the yellow orange lights that decorate the Eiffel tower sparkled, all the more capturing everyone's attention.



The light spectacle occurs hourly at the start of the evening until 1 am. Frankly, just seeing the Eiffel tower was such an awesome experience; I was truly mesmerized - like I am in a dreamland. I have seen the tower countless number of times on photos, TV and films but there's nothing like seeing it in person and witnessing it in all its grandeur.

After we passed by the tower, we continued with the cruise on the Seine River. We stood pat in staying at the upper deck despite the freezing cold. But it was all worth it. The beauty of every historic and grand monument and edifice and every bridge that make Paris made me go though the freezing night. I simply do not want to miss anything, not a single landmark.



Musee d'Orsay, the Notre Dame Cathedral, Louvre Museum, Concorde, Grand Palais, Hotel de Ville. The list that only speaks of splendid history and magnificense goes on and on. Apart from the buildings, we also marvelled at the bridges that spanned the river, numbering more than 30.



Each boasts of its own design and unique story to tell. Incidentally, our boat has an audio system that provides announcements and commentaries on every historic site that it passes by - in English, French and Chinese (or is it Japanese?).



What a city, I can only say. I was hoping it was not an anti-climax of sort as I am sure that in the next four days I would be witnessing other facets of greatness that is Paris France. But definitely the Bateaux Mouches cruise on the Seine River is one of the highlights of my trip. It is one stunning experience that I will never forget.