Paris

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Off to Paris for a long weekend with Kate, Dale and Kates sister, Zoe. Landed at the airport to find that there was a transport strike on in town with only a select few of the metro lines running which caused mass queues and people so jammed in the trains that I really found it hard to breathe at times. We had a hotel booked in for the northern part of Paris at the Anver area - which turned out to be near the red light district. The place was fine and included free breakfast in bed of hot chocolate, croisants, juice, buns etc so even better. From our room we looked out onto the spectacular Sacre-Coeur. Being close to winter, the weather was very cold and miserable but this did not dampen our spirits in exploring this fantastic city. We managed to get around to some of the main sights from the Notre Dame, Arc de Triomphe, Eiffel Tower, Catacombs, Lovrue and the Moulin Rouge. The largest roundabout of Arc de Triomphe was quite a sight and we were thankful we were not having to drive through this maddness. Poor Zoe froze on the Eiffel tower but the cold weather also stopped the crowds from showing so we managed to climb around without to much hassle. Zoe and I loved the Lovrue and managed to see some of the spectacular artwork on show such as the Mona Lisa, the winged victory of Samothrace and the Virgin on the Rocks. Spent some time exploring the fantastic shopping area of St Germain, eating too many chocolate crepes, bakery delights and roasted nuts. We headed out to a traditional French resturant one of the nights and tried the delicousy of Snails. I loved all the cute little lanes fill of fashion shops, cafes, chocolate shops etc. We all really loved this city and could have easily stayed here a lot longer.

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