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Published: June 19th 2009
We woke up this morning at 7, had breakfast at 8 and got on the coach at 9. Our city tour guide was called Pasqual. As Ali drove us around Paris, Pasqual told us all about it. We saw some familiar places from yesterday's walking tour, and are starting to learn our way around town. We got a great photo at the Eiffel Tower. The bus dropped us off at the Arc de Triomphe and we had an afternoon to ourselves, as a Cuda group.
Some went to examine the tomb of the unknown soldier underneath the Arc de Triomphe. It sits on a VERY busy traffic circle, fed by 12 avenues, so we use an underground pedestrian walkway. Some spent some extra time on the Champs Elysees, the widest street in Paris. We all met at the Place de la Concorde, at the end of the Champs Elysees. This is where the guillotine was used during the French Revolution. Today, it's a beautiful plaza with the obelisk of Luxor and 2 fountains.
Some stopped on the way to see Monet's huge paintings of the Water Lilies (Les Nympheas). We all met at the Musee d'Orsay, the impressionist museum.
This museum houses works by Monet, Manet, Pissarro, Rousseau, Sisley, Van Gogh, Degas and Millet. We then walked along the left bank, crossed the river Seine and continued along the right bank. We passed the famous bouquinistes, the used book vendors. We met Alejandra and the other groups at Hotel de Ville (city hall) and she led us "2 or 3 blocks" (= about 15) to our restaurant. Flam is a French chain of restaurants. They serve an speciality from the north-eastern province known as Alsace. It's a thin pizza with cheese, ham, mushrooms and onions, in various combinations. Dessert was an apple or chocolate Flam.
After dinner, we walked (2 or 3 blocks, really) to our coach. The coach took us to under the Eiffel Tower. We took a Bateau Parisien (Parisian boat) up the Seine. We passed the Orsay museum, the Louvre, Notre Dame, went around Ile de la Cite and came back down. We got a great view of the many bridges that cross the Seine, including the beautiful Pont Alexandre III. The boat delivered us back to the Eiffel Tower and we went up to the top. It was pretty chilly up there. When we
got back down, our coach was waiting and we were driven through Paris, lit up at night, to our hotel.
It's been another full day. We're off to bed because we have another one, tomorrow. There is a lot to see and do in Paris, and we are seeing and doing a lot! Bonne nuit...
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Mary & Maia Waldroff
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Wish we were there!!!!!!
We are so happy for all of you. It sounds like a dream come true to be there. Maia is mad because she is officially the only Waldroff to not see Paris. A Bientot!