Paris

I don't know why it has taken me so long to write this -- it's not like I'm doing anything of real importance. However, typing things does cut into my reading and knitting time.

Anyway, this was the day that the tour really started. We got our wake up call at 4:45 a.m. I'm not joking. I, however, was up and ready to go at 4:30. I was officially over the probably salmonella I had the day before, and I was ready to be able to see stuff without worry about puking all over it.

We drove through Kent and went past Greenwich. On the way, we also drove past wide, open areas that were actually black death burial pits. They will never build on these.

We took the ferry from Dover to Calais, which was a 90-minute drive, and I managed to not get motion sickness. I was even brave enough to go out on the deck. I did make sure I was down in the seats before we actually moved though. It was a pretty smooth ride, and it gave me plenty of time to knit.


We had really wanted to do the Paris Illuminations dinner, but since it was close to Midsummer's Eve, we couldn't do it because it was light too late. We did get to take a river tour of the Seine, and we went under the Arc de Triumph after we ate. Jeremy was very excited to get to order a burger royale at McDonalds, and I had to point my way to a chicken and lettuce baguette. It was honestly one of the better sandwiches I've ever had. I was a little too excited to be able to walk and tear into the sandwich. America needs a fast food joint called "Le Baguette" that sells yummy sammiches.

We were lucky enough to see the Eiffel Tower's "sparkle show." This also meant we got to see a little bit more of Paris lit up. We took a quick drive past the opera where Phantom of the Opera takes place and drove into the Louvre's courtyard, which was an interesting feat considering the arches into it are very tiny -- basically barely wide (and tall) enough to fit the bus through.


It was another early morning the next day -- not another 4:30 day. But, let's just say we never slept past 7 on this trip. We started off with a tour of the city, which was basically a rehash of the tour of the night before. My complaint was no one pointed out the area that Hemingway liked. Oh well. The tour did include a ticket up to the second observation deck of the Eiffel Tower. I didn't look out so much during the elevator ride up, but I was fine when I got out there. We got some amazing photos of Paris, and I'm very glad I went up. I refused to go to the top, though.


It was then on to the Louvre; I was a little bummed because we did not get to see any of the really ancient stuff -- so no Code of Hammurabi:( However, they did allow photographs, which really surprised us. It was just a highlight tour, which meant we got to see Venus, Mona Lisa, and the Winged Victory. We also saw a few of the slaves that Michaelangelo sculpted for a pope's tomb (one of the Piuses, I think), and we got to see the rest of them when we saw the David in Florence. The big bummer, though, was that all of the "modern" art is in the Musee d'Orsey. This meant no Monet or Van Gogh for me. Had it not been for the fact that I got to see these classic works of art, I don't think I would have wanted to go into the Louvre. It was PACKED. I don't think they believe in following fire codes. It was enough to almost make me have a panic attack.




After the Louvre, we went to Monmarte, because it was on a hill -- we got another great view of Paris. We had lunch at a little cafe, and the birds here were insanely tame. Birds would fly in and out of the restaurant, eating crumbs off the floor. One actually clipped me in the head with its wings or feet. There were still a bunch of artists that set up shop in the center of this area.

That night, it was on to the Moulin Rouge. The food wasn't that great, and the show started to drag. It might have been helpful had it not be in French. We had no clue what they were singing about. During the circus portion of the show, there was a mini horse that looked like it was ready to escape. I hoped it would go nutty and do so, but no such luck.

This was really the end of our time in Paris, which was a really sobering thought. I really loved it and am ready to go back. There's just so much to see that we didn't get to go to -- like Notre Dame and the Musee de Orsey. It's a clean New Orleans, and it might have taken over New Orleans' spot as my favorite place.