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welcome to the LouvreThe last destination. How crazy it has already come. We had a two hour train ride from Luxembourg to Paris. It flew by, I just read and when I finished my book we were quickly approaching the train station. We got into Paris Est and then had to get our way to our hotel on Metro line 13. The first train ride did not seem too bad because we had elevators and flat ground to roll around our luggage. Once we hit Paris we had towers of stairs and no elevators. With a 50 pound bag, 20 pound bag and my backpack I was struggling to get my stuff up stairs. Going down was not so bad because you could just drag the bag down behind you, but going up was not that simple. So many times poor people would stop to help us because we were struggling so much, but hey I loved the extra help. That is one thing that is so surprising here, that there are so many people that will just pick up your bag and help you take it up the stairs. We took metro line 4 from Paris Est to another stop and then had
to switch from line 4 to line 13. Once we made it on line 13 things seemed to look up because we only had a little bit more to go. When we got off line 13 we only had two sets of stairs to go. These might have been the hardest two sets of stairs. We smelt the fresh air outside and could see our exit, but it was not coming fast enough. When we got out of the metro station we ran into a little problem. There are no street signs so we did not know what street to head in the direction of. We decided to pick one way that looked like the best option, and lucky us it was the right option. So we got checked into the hotel and as we were walking in you could just see the lady at the front desk getting wide-eyed from looking at all our luggage. She realized that the room we were booked in was not going to fit all our stuff, so she ended up calling another guest and asked if they would move rooms. Oh I felt so bad for the other guest, but I think they
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touching the louvre were totally ok with moving so that was nice. There was an elevator, but it was barely big enough to fit my luggage and I. I had to crawl on some of it to make it fit. We were on the very top floor so there was NO way that we were going to climb up those stairs with our luggage. Our room ended up being very large and we had a ton of room for our luggage, plus some. There were three single beds so we even had extra room for another person. It was late and we were both exhausted from our 40 hour day so we passed out the second our heads hit the pillow. Wednesday we woke up for our first day in Paris. We started at the metro station and headed to the Louvre. What a place. You walk up and see the glass pyramids and it is so exciting. We got quite a few pictures outside before we even went inside. It is in an art to get around the entrance and buy your tickets. We wanted to get the museum pass that covered all entrance fees to the museums so we had to
go back and forth between different lines. Once we finally got it all figured out we started on our way. The Louvre is so overwhelming it was hard to decide where to start. Each of the four corners had an entrance to some part of the museum. There were multiple floors and hidden nooks all over with art. We decided that we would start with the Mona Lisa. This obviously was the main attraction for everyone. We were with crowds of people as we walked up the steps into the area of the museum with the painting. You always hear about how small the painting actually is, but when I saw it even I was surprised. It is pretty small and there are crowds of people around it at all times so you have to fight your way to the front to see it well and get a picture. You had to prepare yourself for a battle. I got elbowed and pushed aside at one point. I got my picture though and even managed getting one with me in it. I could see how someone could spend days in the museum, there is so much to see, and to really
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in front of the louvre be able to appreciate and understand the art you have to take the time looking at it. We started off looking at all the paintings and recalling facts we learned about them from art history. After two hours of walking around I was starting to fade and the paintings were all blending together. We found a few rooms with no one so we took advantage of looking at those paintings without everyone pushing around us and hovering over us. I was amazed by some of the artwork. I cannot believe the talent some people have. I have a hard time drawing stick figures and other people can draw very intricate designs. It amazes me. There were a few, what I assume to be, art students replicating some of the paintings and it was so remarkable. We were able to see pieces of work by Reuben, Titen, Divnci and many others. After two hours of walking around we were getting hungry and starting to fade fast. We decided to fit in all our activities we would have to get on our way, though we probably could have spent all day there. Our plan was to go to the Arc de Triomphe
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Emily and I in front of the Louvre next. We could see it from the Louvre and it didn’t look to far away so we decided we would walk. To get there we walked down the famous Avenue des Champs Elysees. We walked through some beautiful park area and then hit the shopping. New stores popped up on our left and right and you cannot pass up a new store. So we stopped to look in a few of the shops. As we got close to the Arc de Triomphe there was a street performance so we stopped to watch them. It was three boys break dancing and they were legit. They all had some sweet moves. So we had thought it would only take us a top twenty minutes to walk and later found out that it was about an hour. Granted we made a few pit stops, but it was a much longer walk than we expected. So we knew we needed to make up some time so we ran up the stairs to the top. 322 steps later my legs did not like me and I needed a little rest. Luckily there were amazing views of the city that made you forget everything. We could
see the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre. As you looked out there were building upon building of different famous buildings. I still find it crazy that I finally have been to the places that I have seen on movies and in pictures all my life. We spent time on the top of the arc to take in the view and get some pictures. We climbed back down and then set off to Sacre-Coeur. The Sacre-Coeur is also known as the Sacred-Heart Basilica of Montmartre. As you walk up to the huge white Basilica the view is overwhelming. At the base of the hill there is a carousel. This carousel has been made famous from numerous movies. We had to climb up hundreds of steps to reach the Basilica. The rain started coming on our way up the steps. It was only sprinkling so we decided to continue on our walk to the top. Once we got up there I toured around the inside. It was amazing how intricate the art work was and how many small details made the building what it is today. The steps were full of classes and people touring around. When you came out the exit
you could see out over that area of the city. From the Sacre-Coeur we headed out for the Pantheon. The Pantheon was in the Luxembourg quarters of Paris. As we came up the escalators from the metro station we could see exactly why it was called the Luxembourg quarters. The buildings were designed to look exactly like the buildings in Luxembourg. I was glad that I was able to see that section of Paris because it was one last little taste of Luxembourg before heading home. In the Pantheon we were able to see more marble structures and the main attraction, the crypt. The crypt was cold and eerie. There was a wall with a list of names from people who passed away over 50 years ago from different diseases. As sad as it was to see all those names, it was interesting to learn a little about all those people. There was a really cool clock in the main area. It was actually fascinating to see how it worked. It was a metal ball on a string that swung back and forth over the hour and minutes. From the Pantheon we got back on the metro and headed a
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inside the louvre few stops away to Notre-Dame. Walking up to Notre-Dame was overwhelming. You look over the two pillars on both sides of the building and it is just as it looks like from what we have learned about it. We walked in to look around and walked into a mass. Mass going on does not matter. People are free to walk around at any point. It was a wonderful experience to be able to see the church as well as experience the mass. The music that was sung was beautiful. We walked around and got to see all the stain glass, artwork and decorations around the church. We were supposed to meet a friend from MUDEC at 6 so we went towards the exit to get out front to meet her. There was a huge mob of people gathered around the door. We just wanted to get out and meet Liz. I couldn’t figure out what was going on so we just tried pushing our way to the front so we wouldn’t be late. Once we got to the front I realized that the reason there was such a crowd was because it was pouring rain. As everyone exited they tried
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the square of the Louvre to stay in the small area that was covered. Once I finally got out I realized that I didn’t have an umbrella. So there I was in the pouring rain and was supposed to be heading to meet a group of people. We found Liz and had to make a mad dash to her apartment. Luckily her apartment was only two blocks so we only were in the rain for a few minutes. By the time I got to Liz’s apartment I was dripping wet. I had to ring out my hair and my clothes to dry off. I finally got half dry so I was able to sit around the apartment and meet Liz’s family. Liz’s dad, mom, aunt and mom’s best friend were all there to visit her. It was so much fun to get to meet her family. We sat around and they had set up French appetizers, breads, cheeses and pâté. We sat around and got to learn about her family and their travels. After snacks we finished getting dry and put together and headed out for dinner. The area they were staying in was really nice and there were tons of restaurants all around her
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the Louvre apartment. We ended up going to a delicious restaurant and I was able to get lamb. After dinner we ventured for gelato on the way to the metro station. Liz and her family all were walking the same way so they dropped us by the metro station. We took the metro back to our stop and walked back to our hotel. Thursday we woke up and set off early to Versailles. It took us around 45 minutes to get out to Versailles and we arrived to a long line of people waiting. The line snaked around and as we got there the rain started coming again. Thirty minutes later we got into the building to finally start our journey around the chateau. We walked through the apartment of King Louis. We were able to see all of the family portraits and walk through all the rooms. My favorite area to walk through was the Hall of Mirrors. It was a lot different than I envisioned it. The mirrors were really foggy and not so “mirror” like. But even with the rain, looking out over the long windows to the gardens was beautiful. The gardens were so organized and shaped in
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outside the Louvre again really cool designs. I was impressed by the designs, but surprised how there were no flowers; it was all greens and grasses. After visiting the Palace of Versailles we made our way to the Eiffel Tower. We shopped around on our way there and jumped on the metro and off we went. When we exited the metro station the Eiffel Tower was right there. All of the sudden it was just on top of us. The structure was not as pretty in person. It is such an icon, but up close and personal it is not the most beautiful structure. We had to wait in a line for thirty minutes before we could get on the elevator. You had to take an elevator to the second floor and then take another elevator to the top floor. The first elevator was a two level, red elevator. It was kind of cool because you go up the base of the Eiffel Tower diagonally. Once you get to the second floor you get out and can walk around the edge and see out over the city. With my slight fear of both heights and elevators, the next elevator up sounded like a grand
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with the glass pyramid time. After facing my fear we reached the top, though my eyes were closed the whole time. It was amazing looking out over Paris and seeing everything. As we looked down two bridges of the Seine River there was another statue of liberty. It was crazy to see that, it was one more familiar idea from home. We could see Sacre-Coeur, Arc de Triompe and the Louvre. I felt like I had accomplished so much by just going up that I was on such a high. Coming back down in the elevator was so much easier than going up the tower. We had to switch to the other elevator at the second floor. After coming back down, I was so excited to be on solid ground again. We walked across the street to try and take pictures of the tower from farther away. We had to pack up our stuff and finish getting ready for the dreaded day of coming home, so we headed to the metro station. What a metro ride that was. We had to literally pack into the metro like sardines. Everyone was on top of everyone. I was just holding my purse with my guard on
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inside the louvre high. We finally got off and could breathe some fresh air. We decided we would have one last night of European food and we decided to get a baguette and cheese. Once we got back to our hotel room we had our picnic and packed up our stuff. It caused so many emotions. I was so sad to be leaving Europe yet there was some excitement to get home. I couldn’t believe it was almost that time. Friday morning we woke up, checked the room over and headed to the airport. It was that time…time to board the plane and make our final journey. Our journey back to the United States of America. The flight was not as bad as expected. It was light the whole time, so there wasn’t any sleeping, but the time went by really fast. We arrived in Boston at 3 PM. I had just over two hours in Boston before boarding my last plane home. The flight was quite turbulent, but I finally had arrived safe back in Dallas.
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