On to Paris...Bonjour!

What can I say about Paris? It's a place I have always wanted to see, and it truly does live up to the hype. It is a beautiful city and contrary to popular belief, we did not find the French to be rude at all. This was our first stop after we joined our tour group. Our first night there happened to be Chad and my anniversary and we got to see (and climb) the Eiffel Tower for the first time. Pretty sure that will be our most exciting anniversary ever. Sorry Chad, not sure that we can top that one!


The line was long to take the elevator, so we hiked 1665 steps to the second level of the Eiffel Tour and got a great view of the city!

At night, on the hour, the Eiffel Tour shows its grandeur by adding the finishing touch of sparkle lights. It was a magnificant sight to behold!

The view of the Arc de Triumph from the Champs Elysee (a street renowned for its ultimate Parisian shopping experience).

Our tour manager giving us a history lesson on the Arc de Triumph. It was built after Napoleon's defeat on Austria in 1805 for his soldiers to march through into Paris.

Our second day in Paris was a free day, so we tackled the city by foot. This is in front of the Louvre, which was once the home of Louis 14th and is now the second largest museum and gallery in the world. To say that it is ginormous is an understatement. We saw the original Mona Lisa there and the Venus de Milo.

We are in front the of the Notre Dame Cathedral which was full of gorgeous stained glass windows. The pictures cannot do it justice.

The back view of the Notre Dame Cathedral

On our last evening there, we just hung out on the lawn of the Eiffel Tower and enjoyed the sunset.