Cities of Light Prague to Paris City tour and Latin Paradise Dinner

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Our first full day in Paris began with a bus tour of all the major sights of the City of Light. We visited Norte Dame whose fire in 2019 nearly destroyed this historic landmark. The church is under reconstruction and, as such, you can't get near the edifice. We were only able to view the building from a distance. The Mayor of Paris wants construction complete by 2024, the year of the Paris Olympics,which is unlikely. It will be more like 2030 if they are lucky. The Grand Dame will survive but she will need time to heal.

We toured the city in comfort and visited the Eiffel Tower. (Cathy and I have tickets to go to the top tomorrow), the Luxor Obelisk, a gift from Egypt, and the former site of the Guillotine where, during the revolution, over 2500 heads rolled in the square, filling the cobbles with blood. The last beheading was in 1977. France no longer has a death penalty.

We drove by many museums and former palaces of kings and queens, especially those of the Sun King, Louis the 14th. He built many grand palaces, including the amazing Versaille. Barb and Dan went to Versaille this afternoon, while Claude, Rosemary, Cathy, and I stayed in town. The bus visit ended back at the hotel where Cathy and I took a nap! This vacation is killing us.

Another good point to impress here is that TOURING is not a vacation. You may be up early, walk long distances, and dine rather late. So, be prepared with proper clothes for the seson. Be sure you check the weather before you pack so you can have the right clothes and, especially, several sets of comfortable walking shoes. This is not the time for ladies' high heeled fashions. A good pair of sneakers will be worth gold by the end of the tour.

After our nap, it was time to take the subway to Montmartre. This is an historic artists' enclave and is a destination worth visiting. The subways in Europe are clean, inexpensive, easy to navigate, and most of all SAFE. Just control your belongings, watch out for pickpockets, and mind your business. Be aware of your surroundings. Just do not be an easy target and you will be fine.

We took the subway and soon arrived at Montmartre and bid farewell to the tour guide as Cathy and I wanted to explore on our own. This area is a criss cross of small shops, souvenir stores, cafes, and restaurants. There are jewelry stores, candy shops, clothes, and so much more. We walked up and down, left and right, for hours. It was great fun.

A subway ride brought us back to the hotel where we quickly had to dress for this evening's excursion to the Latin Paradise Caberet. Now this was something. We took the bus to the Pigalle area of Paris. At one time the US Navy sailors stationed here called this area Pig Alley as it was known as the red light district where the 2300 registered prostitutes plied their trade. This was also the location for strip clubs and the world famous Moulin Rouge. Our night club was the oldest adult club in the city and was renovated by Eiffel himself and reopened the same day he opened his namesake tower.

All I can say is the evening was amazing. We were showed to a front row table stage left. We sat eight to a table. Each table had two bottles of champagne, a red wine, a white wine, and I asked for a blush wine which was promptly delivered. First course was a salad of sushi (raw fish with some baked noodles, avacado paste, and shredded lettuce) servrd with some fresh baked French bread. We then had a choice of baked fish, vegetarian meal, or beef. Cathy and I chose the beef, which was a great choice. The meat was rare, very tender and delicious. This was served with mashed potato, topped with bacon. Finally we had desert of a chocolate cake with chocolate cookie bottom and chocolate curl top. All the while we were entertained by the "warm up group."

There was a main singer, several dancers, and backup dancers doing various songs in French and English. She was excellent and this was the warm up!

As we were served dessert, the main act began and what an act. We had a wide variety of singers, dancers (topless from time to time), male dancers, comics, and stage production dances. The lights, sounds, and bodies were amazing. The show was non stop for a solid two hours. The evening was exceptional. We got back near midnight. The highlight of the evening was our younger son Chris and wife Lily welcomed their first child, a daughter, the same day. What a way to end the day!

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