Paris Days 2-5

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Day 3 (Saturday) it poured all day. We walked through the Jardin du Luxembourg regardless though and it was still beautiful despite the rain and grey skies. We went to the Pantheon Monument and toured the crypt which was actually really interesting. Afterwards we enjoyed warm tea and coffee at a fancy creperie across the street. We tried to go to the Grande Mosquee de Paris but it was closed (we were running ahead of schedule since we didn’t stay in the gardens as long as we anticipated). We got to see one part of it though. By this time we were soaking wet and just wanted to head towards the Eiffel Tower.

So we headed over that direction. We stopped to have lunch (at a Japanese resturant of course). After lunch we did some window shopping and everything was beautiful. One boutique had handmade, beaded lace jewelry and I could have bought it all if it didn’t start at 100 euros! It was still fun to look and I’ll go back there when I’m rich one day. After shopping we went to the bridge that has all the locks of couples on it. I found one that says “Jocelyn and Claudio” so we’ll see if I ever meet a Claudio in my lifetime. It was amazing to see how many locks were attached to the bridge and even more amazing to see how many said things like “Sally and Bob 30 year anniversary” engraved into the lock. It was so cute to see.

We finally got to the Eiffel Tower and it was partially covered by fog! We could only see about half way up for thirty minutes or so but then we finally were able to snap a few pictures when it appeared. We took the tour all the way to the top and enjoyed the night view and champagne at the top. Afterwards we walked through the Champs de Mars park and took pictures with the Bears from America and Spain, and I took one with Ireland. We ate at a little French restaurant that night where we could see the Eiffel Tower all lit up.

Sunday was a beautiful day. We started by going to the Basilique du Sacre Coeur and explored the Montemare neighborhood. The neighborhood was filled with painters selling their canvases. If they weren’t 100 euro (or I wasn’t planning on traveling another 6 weekends) I wouldn’t be able to resist. These were magnificent and each was different from the other painters’. The Cathedral was also beautiful and it overlooked the entire city. After a short tour of the Sacre Coeur we walked out into an overwhelming smell- a man was making fresh honey roasted peanuts right there on the street- of course we all bought a bag, and they were still warm while we walked around and ate them.

After that we headed back towards the Eiffel tower and had a boat tour of the Seine. It was another beautiful day and the boat ride was so relaxing. We were able to take new pictures in front of the Eiffel when we weren’t all bundled up in raincoats under an umbrella with half of it showing, so we were very happy.

We then walked down the entire Seine. We walked for probably two hours enjoying the view of the river and the book venders open on the sides. We were able to all buy amazing art that wasn’t quite as expensive as we had seen earlier that day. We had a very good French dinner with onion soup, French fries, and crepes, again being able to look at the Eiffel the whole time.

Monday morning we woke up and departed from our hostel. We visited the Arc de Triomphe and got breakfast and then headed to the airport to go home to Madrid. I do have to say I was ready to come back to Madrid where tea is 1 euro and not 7, the metro is a lot less confusing, the people are much more friendly, and the sun is always out.

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