I Love Paris

J'aime Paris even though it is still winter here and quite cold. I had no idea it would be so chilly in March when we decided to come for my birthday. It is still lovely and we are having a great time. Jeff and I are staying in a small hotel on the left bank and convenient to walk to the Metro and Notre Dame and lots of restaurants and shopping. We are here for eight days and nights and so far enjoying every waking minute. I will download my tons of pictures when we return and do a daily post, but for now this will have to do.

First day we went up the Eiffel Tower at sunset and saw the city in light and darkness. Very cold up there, but exciting. First rides on the bus and Metro and found it easy to navigate and so far safe. The people are so nice and most speak English to us, but appreciate our speaking French. We are able to order food and get directions and ask for most things so we say "merci beaucoup" to our high school French teachers and wouldn't they be proud of us. We're just thrilled to remember anything we learned so long ago.

Day two we went to The Louvre and it is most impressive. Saw Mona and Venus and Winged Victory. They all said" hello" to all of you. We learned to ask for a carafe of d'eau which is a free carafe of tap water instead of an expensive bottle like Perrier. Special thanks to Rick Steves' and his guidebook for all the little tricks of buying museum passes and so much more. Walked out of The Louvre and into the Tuilleries and strolled to L'Orangerie where we saw Monet's Water Lilies stuck to the walls. So incredibly beautiful and lots more great art on the lower level displayed on concrete walls. Then we walked up the Champs Elysees and saw a military parade. Every night they present floral bouquets at the Tomb of the unknown soldier (at the foot of the Arch) and we were there and after eating we climbed the 284 steps to the top of the Arch and looked out at nighttime Paris. Somehow we made it home and into bed before our tired legs collapsed.

Day three is Friday so it must be Versailles. This would be incredible with the flowers blooming, but still worth the trip. We took the train and walked to the palace where we took the Rick Steves' iPod tour. Jeff had downloaded his tours onto our electronic devices and they worked great here and at The Louvre. Later we walked in the gardens and then took a tram to the Trianons and domicile de Marie Antoinette. That was my favorite part of the whole place - like a fairyland. Back in Paree we had dinner near our hotel in a small restaurant overlooking Notre Dame.

Saturday we booked a full day trip to Normandy and this turned out to be very special. My favorite part was visiting the American Cemetery where over nine thousand military men and women are buried by their families choice. It is a bucolic setting overlooking Omaha beach where so many of them gave their lives on D-Day and afterwards. We visited a few of the landing sites and learned lots about the invasion. Had lunch at a rustic farmhouse hotel with fine cuisine in their beautiful dining room. I'd definitely stay there if I were to visit the area again and there is so much to see in addition to the WWII sites. Lots of tiny villages and old churches and cemeteries that would be fun to explore. Got back in time to rest and go out to dinner at a local Italian bistro with cheesy pizza and eggplant parmesan.

Today is Sunday and we had a full day planned and accomplished everything. Got up late and walked to St. Sulpice Church which played a big part in the book, "DaVinci Code." Got there at the end of mass and toured the building and saw their three Delacriox murals. Then at noon we went through a secret door and up a concrete spiral staircase to the choir loft. There we saw one of Europe's famous organs being played by Daniel Roth, who is one of the world's best organists, or so says Rick Steves. It all sounded wonderful to me and was exciting to stand next to this behemoth intrument and watch it being played by a master. Left the church and browsed the book stalls along the Seine. Then we headed to the flower and bird market on the Ile de la Cite. Saw some amazing birds and more varieties of bird seed than I knew existed. Next stop was a walking tour of Le Marais. In the subway we heard a great klezmer band and really enjoyed listening for a while. Started our tour in a posh shopping area similar to SOHO and then it became very Jewish with falafel stands and kosher bakeries. We had lunch at a busy place with outstanding falafel and hummus. Jeff had schnitzel and we were both happy. Continued our walk with a visit to the Holocaust Museum. This is a building with maximim security and excellent exhibits about the French, the Jews and the war. Outside is a wall with names of the righteous Gentiles and inside names of all the French deportees and later walls and walls of their photographs. In between a complete history of the Jews in France through WWII. Wish we had more time there as they closed at 6pm and made us leave. We did have time to stop for a carafe of wine and relax before the short walk home which happened to pass Notre Dame. The scenery here is unbelievable and it all looks just like a picture postcard. We're back at our room now and resting before we eat again and go to sleep. Lots more on the agenda for tomorrow.