LAUNDRY DAY

Since our feet are worn out, we decided to visit the local Laundromat today to clean the small amount of clothes we brought for the trip.  While our clothes were washing, we went across the street to a small creperie to have breakfast/lunch.  Wow, they use a lot of butter here.  It was delicious.

THE TOWER EIFFEL AT NIGHT

Our View

One of the most amazing sights we’ve seen so far was the Tower Eiffel at night.  We started the evening with a cruise of the Siene which was wonderfully relaxing and kept us off our feet.  Then we dined outside at Chez Francis Restaurant.  We had the most incredible view of The Tower Eiffel.  Rex and I kept switching seats at every course so that both of us could enjoy the view.  The Parisians must have thought we were crazy, but we didn’t care.  The experience was amazing.  I kept saying, “I am having dinner while looking at the Eiffel Tower.”   Ahhhh, life is good.

We then waited in an extremely long line to go to the top of the tower.  It was all worth it.  We got to the 2^nd level via the lift, and then queued in another line for about 45 minutes to get to the top of the tower.  We all felt like sardines in the lifts, people were pushing to get on board.

Once at the top, we had the most spectacular views of Paris.  Then in order to get back down we needed to queue in another super long line, however I think Rex and I cut some of the line by accident.  There was a large gap in the line, so we thought it was the end and hoped in.  I don’t believe anyone even noticed. 

Once back on the second level, we decided to walk the rest of the way down (all 1,665 steps).  Needless to say, we were exhausted and didn’t want to walk the 4 blocks back to the metro station at midnight.  We tried to hail a cab, but we didn’t have any luck.  We ended up walking back to the metro station that connected us to the metro that would get us back to our hotel.  Once at the connecting station we were informed that our train was closed and that we could take a bus.  We arrived topside at the bus stop tired and sleepy.  After sitting at the bus stop for few minutes, we noticed a digital sign that read, " only to discover that the “service terminee.” This was obvious, it meant there would be NO MORE bus service at that stop for the night.   WHAT?  How are we suppose to get back to our hotel?  AND where is our hotel?

We tried hailing a cab again – ha, even the cab that didn’t have passengers wouldn’t pick us up.  We must have looked scary or something.  We finally asked a local how to get to the station near our hotel.  We had only walked in the wrong direction for at block or so.  Now that we are retracing our steps, we were exhausted.  Finally we came to an intersection that was familiar.  We were back at our hotel safe and sound at 1:30 a.m.

PARIS SEWER TOUR?

Did you know you can take a tour of the Paris sewer system?  We found out about it last night.  Did we take the tour?  No.  We got all the info we needed here.

INCREDIBLE FOOD

 In case you hadn’t heard, France is pretty well known for its food.  We went to Les Papilles for lunch today.  This was the same place we tried to go to last night and were turned away since we didn’t have a reservation.  Kara got a Mediterranean salad and Rex thought he was ordering a nice bowl of leek and potato soup, but the waiter translated and told us it was not soup, but blood sausage.  Ooops.  I opted for the oso buco instead and was quite happy that I did.  It was the best thing I have eaten here so far.  The veal was tender, but the vegetables were amazing.  That made me think about whether French parents have the same troubles getting their kids to eat their vegetables as American parents do.  If they all tasted like mine did today, I would say no. 

Speaking of food, we also walked past a produce market and went in to check it out.  The tomatoes were the deepest red I have ever seen.  Tomatoes in US markets these days are pinkish-yellow at best.  Check out some pics that Kara took.  France is truly a food lover’s dream and I’m hoping it only gets better as we get out of the city and further into the countryside.

NOTRE DAME

 We visited the Notre Dame Cathedral in the morning - another amazing piece of architecture.  Mass started at noon and we were there for the beginning.  Since mass was in French it was difficult to follow.  Notre Dame is the zero point for the highway system, all road markings start here. 

They don’t allow flash photography in the cathedral, however since Rex bought me the Joby Gorrilla Pod, which wraps around anything and has magnetic feet.  I was able to take photos with a long shutter and have all the images come out clear.  I can’t wait to use this at the Eiffel Tower tonight.

LE MAUZAC

We tried to go to a restaurant Kara had researched online before our trip, but they were full and couldn’t seat us.  We walked around the corner and found another place called Le Mauzac that looked very nice and had a table for us to sit outside.  Since the weather has changed, it was a very nice night to sit outside.  Our waitress and some very helpful people sitting beside us helped us navigate the menu and make some great choices for dinner.  It is true that dining is an “experience” for the French.  They are not in a hurry to eat and rush off to something else.  We sat for nearly 2 ½ hours just enjoying the evening and the company of the nice people at the next table.  We got some suggestions for new things to do and experience in our remaining time in Paris and I think we will take them up on some of them.

Le Louvre

We went to Le Musee du Louvre today.  It is truly massive.  I understand why “The Da Vinci Code” was set there with all its secret codes and ciphers.  Finding our way around proved to be quite difficult – even with a map.  We got lost more in the Louvre than we have anywhere else the whole time we’ve been here.   

Of course the art was amazing, but the building itself is its own work of art.  Each room seemed like it was individually architected and truly beautiful both inside and out.  

We saw the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo, St. Mary Magdalene, the Colossal Statue of Ramesses and thousands of other paintings and sculptures.  We chose to stick to the highlights because 1) it was very crowded and neither of us like crowds, 2) we kept getting lost which was making it more and more frustrating, and 3) our feet were hurting with all the walking we’ve been doing, so we saw a few things and then chose to save our feet for another day.

PAIR-EEEEEEEE!

We said goodbye to London today.  We had a good time while we were there, but we are not sorry to say goodbye to the heat.  The train took us under the English Channel to Paris.  I expected it to be more interesting than it was, but the “Chunnel” was dark and I actually took a short nap while we crossed under it.  The train we rode was a high speed train and I am now firmly behind any measures to fund the high speed rail system in California.  Riding a train for 3 hours from Sacramento to LA would be awesome.

The best part of our hotel in Paris is that it has air conditioning!  We did not sleep well in our London hotel last night due the heat so hopefully we sleep well tonight (I expect we will).  We rode the subway to the EiffelTower this afternoon.  We’ve seen millions of pictures of it before, but actually being underneath it was amazing.  The tower is over 1000 feet tall and awe inspiring.  We got in line to ride to the top of the tower when it started to rain.  About 10 minutes into our wait, there was a huge lightning bolt with an immediate thunder clap.  We thought to ourselves, of all the places to be during a lightning storm, the Eiffel Tower is probably not the best place to be, so we got out of line and headed back to our hotel.  We’ll go back over the next few days.

We found a nearby grocery store and scored a couple of large bottles of water for 0.19 Euros.  That’s probably the best deal we’ve gotten on our trip yet.  Afterwards, we went to dinner across the street from our hotel at a restaurant called Wajda and had a great meal.

After dinner, we decided to jump back on the subway and go to the Arc de Triomphe, another famous Paris landmark.  It had started to rain again as we exited the train station, so we found a nearby café and bought a bottle of wine and just enjoyed the moment in Paris with a gorgeous view of the Arc de Triomphe.  Rex commented that it was probably the best day of the trip so far.

HOT, HOT, HOT

The top story on all the news channels here today was the fact that today was the hottest day of the year in London – nearly 90 degrees!  That is warm by Sacramento standards, but not hot.  However, when you add the humidity and general lack of air conditioning here to the mix and you get 2 very uncomfortable travelers.  This was not the weather we were expecting at all.  They say it is supposed to rain tonight, so hopefully that brings cool temperatures with it.



My "map fan"



We went to Buckingham Palace today, but missed the Changing of the Guard.  That would have been nice to see, but that’s how it goes.  Rex also decided to be the ultimate London tourist and have his picture taken walking across the Abbey Road zebra crossing (crosswalk) just like the Beatles.  He wasn’t the only one trying the same thing.  The local drivers have to be very tolerant of the tourists doing this.  I don’t remember hearing a single horn honked at anyone the whole time we were there.

 We ended the day back at Picadilly Circus to cool off with a couple of beers and do some last chance shopping before heading to the Goat Tavern for some more fish & chips and bangers and mash for dinner.  It was just OK.  Last night’s dinner was so much better.  Afterwards, we stopped by another restaurant to try some sticky toffee pudding.  We’d seen it on a few menus before and had to give it a try.  It was very sweet as you can image, but pretty good.

Now it’s time to start packing and find out how to get to our next stop…

SEEING THE SIGHTS IN LONDON

We saw Prince William and Princess Kate today – plastered all over coffee mugs in every gift shop window we passed by.  They are stilling getting traction out of the Royal Wedding.  We got a good deal on a case of them, so you’re all getting one for Christmas!  Today was sightseeing day for us in London.  Like millions of other tourists before us, we took a ride on a double-decker tour bus.  These are cool tours because we were able to hop on and hop off of any of the buses all day long.  It also included a tour boat ride up the Thames River.

The weather in London has been sunny and hot – just like we left it in Sacramento.  We are now the proud owners matching sunburns.  Who would have thought we’d get sunburned in London of all places?  Isn’t it supposed to be dreary and raining here all the time?   

 

 We enjoyed dinner at Jamie Oliver’s restaurant Barbacoa.  We tried several appetizers and small plates instead of ordering entrees.  That let us try many different things without breaking the bank.  Great food - Jamie didn’t disappoint. 

Tomorrow we will try to see a few things we didn’t get to today and hope to catch a show if possible.