Observations from Paris, France

1. It is still daylight at 10 p.m. in July.

2. Take your own bag when you go to the grocery store.

3. There are no cowboys here.

4. NO ONE walks around in pajama pants. (Hooray)

5. Piercings are worn only by women and only in their ears.

6. There are no mosquitos.

7. Even though there are 12 million people in Paris, the city does not feel crowded or rushed.

8. Public transportation is easy to use and totally awesome!

9. No one here has visible tattoos.

10. Sweatshirts are expensive (35 Euros=$52.50), but good French wine is cheap ( 5.99 Euros=$8.55)

11. There is a convertible Smart car that is cool.

12. French food is delicious!

13. French people are not rude despite what you may have heard.

14. I can't wait to come back!

Au Revoir!

Shopping at 3 a.m.?

Yep, that's right! It's 3 in the morning at home and we are up and ready to go. Today is our last day in Paris and we've got some serious shopping to do. Things are very expensive here. For example, a one liter bottle of wine cost 16 Euros at the cafe. That is $24. Yikes. Of course, I did also buy a totally hot pair of shoes for only 5 Euros ($7.50). But that was from a stand in the Metro station. They'll probably only last for a month but at least I can say I bought a pair of kick ass shoes in Paris!

Bienvenue au Versailles!

Today we spent the entire day at the Palace at Versailles. The palace and gardens of Versailles is among the most prestigious of the world's heritage sites and represents the finest and most accomplished achievement of the 17th century French art. King Louis XIII's former hunting lodge was transformed and enlarged by his son Louis XIV, who installed his court and government there. (per the brochure)

We roamed the Royal Courtyard, explored the Palace and crossed the gardens and groves to the Trianon Palaces and Marie-Antoinette's Estate. In this photo we are actually on the grounds of the palace just inside the main gate. It is about 500 yards from the Royal Courtyard. The courtyard actually starts at the building that Tracy's right hand is on in the photo. You cannot even begin to comprehend the magnitude of this palace until you see it in real life. It is bigger and more grand than pictures can show.

When we arrived the line to go inside the palace was so long we decided to tour the grounds first. That turned out to be a really good decision.

As we walked toward the back of the palace the

gardens came into view and were stunning. This photo was actually taken from inside the palace. Can you see the tiny little people standing out there? This is just one of the many gardens and groves located near the palace and gives a good perspective of how big it actually is. While walking, we came across a tram that would take us on a mini-tour of sorts of the grounds. It was an additional 6 Euros but well worth it. (Amy, skip the audio tour on this tram. Wasn't worth the extra 1,20 Euros.) The tram took us to the middle half of the estate to the Grand Trianon. This was the private and personal quarters for the French kings away from the Chateau itself. Had we walked it would have taken us about 25 minutes to travel the 1.5 km.

Like the rest of Versailles, the Grand Trianon building itself is a work of art. This single story structure has its own grounds and gardens that are equally beautiful. This photo is of Louis XIV's bedchamber. This is only part of the room. To the left of the table is another area the same size with seating/tables for about 15-20 people. While touring this mini-palace we learned there was a guided visit of the private apartments of the Emperor. That is to say Napoleon Bonaparte. The tour lasts for about 35 minutes and is in groups of about 15 people. Did we go? Heck yes! One problem, the tour is in French! Oh well, who cares! I can now say I have seen Napoleon's personal toilet and bathtub with running water. Can you? We weren't permitted to take photos so I don't have any pictures to prove it, but I know someone who did sneak some pictures and will have to get her memory card so I can share them with you. In any language it was totally cool. I highly recommend it.

Next stop, the Petit Trianon: aka Marie-Antoinette's Estate. That's right... I walked through Marie-Antoinette's house today! The brochure describes it best:

"The Creation of 'Marie-Antoinette's Estate' is part of the 'Grand Versailles' project that aims most notably to show Versailles' contrasts: Classical and Baroque, destitution and extravagance, male inspiration from Louis XIV and female inspiration from Marie-Antoinette to Madame de Pompadour, to name just a few. The Petit Trianon and its gardens are inseparably linked from Marie-Antoinette: she was the only queen who

imposed her personal tastes on Versailles, scoffing at Court traditions. In the Trianon estate, which Louis XVI to her in 1774, she found a haven of privacy that allowed her to escape from the rigors of Court Etiquette. No one could enter without her personal invitation."

This palace has a very intimate feel despite the

fact that it is huge. It is simple, elegant and beautiful. I have a photo of her toilet if you want

to see it. It is made of wood and looks a lot like an airplane toilet. Beats an out house or using a chamber pot, right? This photo is of her game room - a socializing room for games and music.

After this we grabbed a quick bite to eat from the take-away counter of a baguette with spinach, pave de chevre (type of cheese) and honey. It was pretty good for a light snack.

It was raining when we left the Petit Trianon and grabbed the tram back to the Chateau. Since it was later in the day and had been raining many of the thousands that were there had already left and so were able to view the Chateau without throngs of people everywhere.

In contrast to the simplicity of Marie-Antoinette's estate, the Chateaux is all opulence and grandure. Everything is guilded and ornate. In other words, exactly what you expect a French palace to look like. Our tour included the State Apartments (Hall of Mirrors, and King's Chamber as well as the Queen's chambers and lots of other rooms) and the Chapel and 17th Century Galleries. This last photo is of the King's Bedchamber.

That's it for now. Tomorrow is Musee d'Orsay and shopping!

Eiffel Tower and more

Today is Thursday, July 23. Right now it is 8:50 p.m.

(I wrote this last night but forgot to post. Sorry!)

Today we went to the Eiffel Tower and Sacre-Couer.

We arrived about 9:30 and there was already quite a line f

or the lift to the top of the tower, so we decided to take t

he stairs to the 2nd floor (43 stories up) and then purchase a ticket for a lift to the top from there. After buying our tickets we headed up the stairs. Yes, they actually charge you to walk up 43 stories, and even crazier is that I paid it. The climb really wasn't that bad. The view on the way up is breathtaking - both figuratively and l

iterally. The climb is broken up by signs along the way about the tower and it's history. On both the first floor (21 stories up) and the seco

nd floor we were able to stop and take photos. In the photo above you can see the first floor. We made our way to the top via the lift from the second floor and had a spectacular view of Paris.

After we left the Eiffel Tower we headed over to Sacre-Coure. This is a church on the hill in Montmatre that has a significant Byzantine influence. We climbed yet more stairs to the top of the dome and could see all

the way back into Paris. We also went into the crypt below the church as well as toured the inside of the church. There are not photographs allowed inside the church. Bummer!

Next, we made our way over to a small square where we sat for a late lunch and watched the people walk by and enjoyed the artists selling their paintings. It is a law in Paris that you may sit in a cafe as long

as you like as long as you order at least one drink, so we stayed for about 2 hours and enjoyed our lunch, wine and people watching. I ordered French onion soup and a small bottle of Riesling. Tracy ordered the menu plat - choice of salad or starter, main course and dessert. She chose the tossed salad, steak and fries and creme caramel for dessert.

Good Morning!

Well, it's time to start another day. Right now it is 9:29 a.m. in France and 2:29 a.m. in the US. We are soooooo tired but are sucking it up to go to the Eiffel Tower. Hopefully it won't be too crowded yet. No matter, we will still wait in line to go to the top. After that we are going to Montmatre (probably spelled that wrong), to go to Sacre Coure. It means sacred heart. It is a beautiful church that sits on a hill outside of Paris. This area is also home to the famous Moulin Rouge.

Au revoir!

Day 2 (Wednesday)

Today we went to Notre Dame. It is in the heart of Paris on an island in the middle of the River Seine. We arrived at about 9:30 for the 10 a.m. opening of the bell tower. They only allow groups of 20 up every 10 minutes so we had to wait about 1 1/2 hours to climb the 400+ steps to the top. It was so worth the wait. It is an incredible view of Paris. While we were up there Tracy actually over heard some dumb american wondering aloud how Quasimodo got up and down the tiny spiral staircases so quickly. HA HA HA! (For those of you who don't know, Notre Dame is the setting for Victor Hugo's novel "The Hunchback of Notre Dame.") The inside of the church is beautiful. There are so many people there it is easy to forget that it is a place of worship. It was awe-inspiring none the less.

We also went to L'Orangerie. This is a building that sits on the edge of a beautiful garden (huge gardens) that were originally built for Catherine de Medecci. Inside the building are 8 murals Monet painted of his famous water lillies. They are beautiful.

After that we went to the Lourve. It has to be the single biggest building I have ever been in.

We saw the Mona Lisa, of course, as well as the Venus de Milo, and Winged Victory. We also viewed the original private apartments - with original furnishings- of Napoleon. The opulence and extravagance of these rooms is difficult to describe. For those who don't know, the original Lourve was built as a palace and then as time when by different rulers added on to it and kept adding on to it to make it what it is today. I don't know when I was converted into a museum.

To end the day we went to the Arc d'Triomphe. Napoleon built this to be a tribute to troops returning from war. Guests can climb the steps to the top and have a spectacular view of Paris from a unique location. The Arc sits in the middle of a traffic circle at the intersection of 12 different streets. We didn't stay too long because it was raining. Hopefully we can return tomorrow or the next day during the daylight hours to get some great pictures. Lastly we strolled down the Chapms d'Elysee and stopped at a cafe for dinner. Well, it's now 1:25 a.m. here and I've got to get to bed.

Tomorrow is the Eiffel Tower and Sacre Coure!

It's all about the food

Our first meal in Paris was from a Boulangerie (bakery). We picked up sandwiches and Cokes and came back to our hotel to sit in the air conditioning. It was very hot today. I am so thankful we are staying in a hotel that has air conditioning.

At the bakery we picked up what we thought was mozarella, and tomato sandwich on a baguette. It turned out to be tuna fish. Wow was it good! Probably the best tuna sandwich I've ever had.

For dinner tonight we ate at le "Relais de l'Entrecote". Don't ask me what it means I have no idea. This restaurant was right around the corner from the St-Germain des-Pres metro stop and about a 5 block walk from our hotel. For dinner they served a fixed menu of Salad with walnuts and mustard dressing, pomes des frittes (french fries) and steak with a 'secret house sauce.' Don't let the photos fool you... It was lick the plate good!

We have arrived!

Bonjour mes amiees!

We arrived in Paris at 8:45 a.m. local time. That is 1:45 a.m. for you guys. We breezed thru customs and picked up our luggage and we were able to exchange our dollars for Euros ($1.50=1Euro, ouch) without any difficulty and buy our Paris museum pass all before leaving the airport. Being adventuresome (not to mention frugal) travelers we decided to take the train from the airport to the hotel. It cost 8.50 Euros and took one hour and twenty-five minutes. We've decided we'll take a taxi back to the airport to save on time.

When we arrived at our hotel, the K+K, our room was not ready so we left our bags at the desk and we were off to site see. We first stopped at a boulangerie (bakery) and grabbed a delicious sandwich and soda. Next we walked toward Notre Dame. Along the way we stopped at Pont Neuf - the first bridge to be made of stone and now the oldest bridge in Paris; La Conciergerie - originally a beautiful palace and later converted to a prision. There we walked inside Marie Antoiette's prison cell (It's bigger than my house). When we made it to Notre Dame there were tons of people there and so decided we would come back in the morning when it opens and climb the 386 steps to the top of the tower. We then went back to the hotel. I'm not sure what we will do tonight but I know it will be good.

Once I figure out how to add the photos I will.