OUR TRIP TO PARIS

Everything’s AMAZING and we are soooo happy!

Ed and Lacey and I just had to go to Paris for a few days in March. As Lacey and I were conversing on the long flight over the Atlantic we agreed that everything IS amazing, and we were soooo happy! We were, after all, sitting in a chair IN THE SKY! We partook of the miracle of human flight and reveled in the wonder of traveling some 6,000 miles in under a dozen hours. So fabulous! And the best part of it all, of course, was that it was FREE! Who couldn’t love that!?!

Here is a picture of our hotel. It’s the red one - so easy to find! We had a great room 15 stories up and overlooking the Seine. From the window we could see the Statue of Liberty. Amazingly enough, we also found a miniature Statue of Liberty on a deck of the hotel!

LA TOUR EIFFEL

It was such a long day in airports and on planes, but at the end of it we were looking at the Eiffel Tower!!! Amazing! In fact, our hotel was just a few blocks from the Eiffel Tower, so we saw it every day. One evening we rode to the top of the tower and gazed out at the city lights twinkling far below in the night. A remarkable feature of the Eiffel Tower that we were so excited to witness is that when night falls and it's completely dark, the Eiffel Tower sparkles as if it were covered with diamonds!!! It happens every hour, on the hour, for just a few minutes. Millions of tiny bulbs covering the entire tower flash on and off in 6 second intervals making it shimmer and shine. A spectacular sight!

THE METRO

We rode the metro (subway) all over Paris. What a great way to get around! Ed planned our stops and transfers and it was smooth sailing all the way. He has the most incredible sense of direction. This is a gift that I do not possess, myself, so I am extremely grateful and blessed to have Ed as my companion.

L'ARC DE TRIUMPH

Our first evening in Paris, we toured the Arc de Triumph where we stood on the top and gazed out over all of Paris. There were some French Legionnaires who were also touring the arc and even though they didn’t speak English, they were very happy to have their picture taken with our beautiful daughter.

LES CHAMPS ELYSEE

Then we walked down the Champs Elysee and wandered into the Peugeot dealership where Lacey found her dream car – The Vroomster.

CREPES!

Between the Eiffel Tower and our hotel we found the greatest crepe-maker! Lacey’s favorite crepe consisted of Nutella and bananas. Ed and I preferred the ham and cheese. We also enjoyed several varieties of French pastries during our 3.5 day visit, and all agreed that French milk tastes strange.

VERSAILLES

We spent several hours touring the palace of Versailles. The marble, painted ceilings and statures were remarkably gorgeous, but everything was so extravagant! It’s no wonder the starving peasants revolted and cut off the heads of their king and queen! “Let them eat cake” indeed!

THE GARDENS OF VERSAILLES

We enjoyed wandering through the extensive gardens of Versailles behind the palace. Lacey found a pool that she particularly liked, as you can tell.

SACRE COUER CATHEDRAL

Later that evening we visited a cathedral in Montmartre known as le Sacre Couer (The Sacred Heart) where we were privileged to hear a choir of nuns singing. Their voices reverberated off the domed ceilings and filled the building with beautiful music as we walked reverently through the building admiring the architecture, statues and lovely stained-glass windows.

CAROUSEL

Walking down from the chapel we came across a carousel. Interestingly enough, we found carousels all over Paris – just randomly interspersed with the high-rises, shops, and hotels. Rather strange.

We spent an amazing day at the Louvre and saw the Mona Lisa (of course!) as well as thousands of other works of art. This palace is HUGE! After 7 hours of gazing at paintings, sculpture, Egyptian exhibits, etc. our brains had been inundated with about as much artwork as we could take in one day.

RIVER BOAT TRIP ON THE SEINE

My sister, Michelle, and her husband, Daniel, rode the chunnel over from London and met us at 5 pm outside the Louvre. We joined them for dinner and then took a riverboat ride on the Seine that night. We had the exhilarating experience of a big, brown, furry rat running alongside us as we ascended the dark, damp, moss-covered stone steps from the river to the streets of Paris. And yes, we screamed – well, the women did, at least.

NOTRE DAME

Our last day in Paris began with a trip to Notre Dame. If we were to choose our very favorite activity of the week, this would be mine. What a magnificent structure! Every detail, inside and out, a work of art from the stained glass windows to the statues and carved panels depicting the life of Christ, to the architecture of the building itself. Everything meticulously crafted to perfection. Such artistry. 170 years to build? I believe it! I must say; however, that everything inside Notre Dame was so dusty! I wanted to grab a dust rag and some pledge and spend a week or two in there just cleaning all the statues, carvings, tables, hearths, and other bits of furniture. Perhaps the dust helps preserve things, I'm not sure. Or maybe there's so many nooks, crannies and artifacts that people just got tired of all the dusting required and gave it up for lent.

NAPOLEON'S TOMB

Our final tour was of Napoleon’s Tomb located at a place Known as Les Invalides – a hospital for wounded soldiers. What a remarkable tribute to Napoleon. Marble and beautiful stone everywhere! Gorgeous beyond description. It was a whirlwind trip, but we certainly made the most of it. The weather was windy and chilly, and occasionally rainy, but that’s to be expected of Paris in March, I’m sure. Next time, I think we shall go in the summer so we can see the beauty of the gardens.