Bonjour! Well, after a LONG trek of dragging suitcases down cobblestone roads, trains, more dragging suticases up and down underground stairs, another train, more dragging at London's Heathrow Airport, a quick 45 minute plane ride to Paris, we landed! Carina was in 7th heaven. She LOVES Paris--maybe not quite as much as New York City, but she LOVES Paris! The minute we landed, she was already teaching Robby all kinds of survival phrases such as "Pardon" (Excuse me) and "je ne sais pas" (I don't know) and "je ne parles pas francais' (I don't speak French). She kept translating all the advertisements and even speaking to me in Swedish in France! Then came a LONG wait for our infamous baggage, a LOT of questions to random strangers about where La Rue des Ecoles (the street our hotel is on) might be (all we had really was an address on a sheet of paper), another crowded train ride of 45 minutes to the heart of Paris, we emerged into the sunlight from a train station called St. Michel Notre Dame and turned around. Right in back of us was the amazing cathedral Notre Dame! Wow! What a surprise! But where was our hotel???? We walked circles up and down tiny street lined with merrymaking and quaint buildings with balconies and flowers everywhere, cafes, and laughter, we looked and looked and finally found a nice young man who directed us to the right street. We are staying at Hotel California St. Germain, and it's lovely. We have a suite--very modern with air conditioning, wireless, internet, and loads of room compared to the hotel in London with a tiny room and barely enough room for our suitcases.
Carina and I collasped on the bed utterly exhausted but within a few minutes to go ready to attack the map--the Metro system, the bus system, the city street map, and Carina's lists of all me "must see" in the short time we're here. We decided on the Eiffel Tower first, and it was a great decision. All we knew from our concierge was to take bus 63 going west. We didn't even know there wasn't a magic stop called 'Eiffel Tower.' But as fate would have it, we ran into Canadian couple who had been here 3 days who were bursting wih excitement, stories, tips, and a wonderful, DETAILED city street map passed on to us (who had gotten it from another tourist) and who wanted nothing more but for us to do the same when we left. The gentleman gave us tons of ideas and saw what Robby might have been interested in immediately--weaponry, the tomb and crypt of Napoleon, etc., etc. They helped us alight at the right stop, and what a treat! We came in on the back side of the Eiffel Tower where there were no tourists and got nearly a private viewing. Carina, who has just taken photography, was delighted to take many unique shots. In fact, at the end of the day, for once she had taken more pictures than I did!
We soon entered crowds of people in a carnival-like atmosphere surrounding the Tower. We decided to take the stairs up, and it was quite the challenge. Enthusiastic for the first one hundred, we soon joined the ranks of heavy breathers and red-faced tourists, but we prevailed and made it to landings one and two. Then, thank goodness, we took a very eeried elevator ride all the way to the top. It was breathtaking to say the least and the perfect way to start a little trip to Paris. Everywhere we looked, we could see famous sights--the Arc de Triumph, the Champs d'Elysees, Notre Dame, Montmartre, etc., etc. We stayed up there until sunset and a sudden lighting up of the Tower. I think everyone needs to do this sometime in his or her life! We came down into the crowded and looked for something to eat. Carina suggested a streetside booth--crepes! Perfect!
Interestingly, we walked and walked to find our bus number 63, and there on the bus were our Canadian friends. We got so engrossed in chatting, exchanging stories, and looking at pictures that we missed our stop, but with Robby's help of noticiing the Pantheon and Carina's notice of a metro station, we found our hotel and the coziness of the room. We were so hyper we couldn't sleep, but eventually did, and here we are!
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