Weekend in Paris

 

 

 

Who knew the Eurostar was so comfortable and could get from London to Paris so fast?  Not this librarian, but I loved the experience (all but the part of leaving our flat at 4:30 am) of having breakfast on the train and lunch in a park in Paris.  In between we visited the Louvre!  I knew it was huge, but that is an understatement. We only had time to see a small portion of the museum, but I saw masterpieces I never thought I would have an opportunity to view in person.

After ordering lunch in a bakery that sold sandwiches, trying to recall French words I once knew and doing a lot of pointing, we ate in a park near the Eiffel Tower.  This icon is well guarded and our backpacks were searched before we were allowed to take the elevator to the second viewing level. 

The view was amazing.

 

 

 

 



 

We saw Notre Dame Cathedral, took a boat ride on the Seine, and enjoyed dinner in a French bistro.  That was just the first day!  Here is a collage I made of my name using details from the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower.

 

I learned that Paris is composed of twenty neighborhoods, and that each one has its own shops, restaurants, etc. so that the people that live there essentially are part of a neighborhood village.  The second day my friends and I started exploring some of these neighborhoods.  We met at a café for breakfast and then visited the Musee d'Orsay on the left bank.  This museum has an incredible art collection including many Impressionist works - a favorite of mine.  I was lucky in that one of my librarian friends majored in art history and she was a fantastic learning resource as we strolled through the Orsay. 

 

We attempted to visit the catacombs, but the wait was more than two hours in the blazing sun.  (France and the UK are experiencing a heat wave right now.)  Since I have visited Kiev's Caves of the Winds with the mummified monks, I decided to pass on this experience.  Exploring the neighborhoods was fun, and the Parisians were friendly.  Dinner at an outdoor café was a special treat. 

 

For our last day in Paris we visited Versailles.  The Tour de France was coming through there, so we waded through media and crowds.  Louis XIV's estate is so large it was difficult to walk it in 90+ degree heat, but we saw most of the palace, Marie Antoinette's house, and the gardens with many fountains. 

 

 

 

We returned to London on the Eurostar.  I changed the time back on my watch, but didn't notice the time on my phone did not change as it should have done automatically.  I use it as an alarm, so I got up a whole hour early this morning!