I love Paris in the spring time....

Day #14: Tuesday, April 26

Paris: Sunny, approx. 22 degrees....

Today is our last day of the tour. We have done so much in the last few days, it’s all a bit of a blur!! Today’s plan is to do a walking tour of Paris. Our guide, Trish, has an English Dad, French Mum and studied university in Canberra. Her accent is a corker: at times English, flawless French and then a touch of ocker Aussie every now and then. She was a star! A great introductory tour to Paris.

And what a tour it was!! I wish I had of been taking notes as Trish was a brilliant guide and we learned so much with her. So as much as I’d love to tell you all about the different places I visited in Paris, I’m not 100% sure where we went!! I will have to get a copy of the map with our route highlighted from Bruce at some stage.

Along the way on our 7 (!!) hour walking tour we saw:

The Opera House with its beautiful statues and gold work…..

The Opera de Paris Garnier is located at the Place de l'Opera....

'The Dance'....which was considered a bit naughty back in the day....

Apollo....

Either 'Harmony' or 'Poetry'....

Place Vendome where we saw beautiful gold suns representing Louis XIV, an obelisk (reminded us of Turkey) and the Ritz where Princess Diana was staying when she was killed….

The Sun King....

The Ritz is over my shoulder and to the right....

The Place de la Concorde where we saw tombs for members of the Resistance during World War II, the spots where the guillotine was used during the Revolution  (Madame Defarge where are you???), another gilded obelisk and the Arc de Triomphe in the background…..

Ahhhh....spring.....

The Resistance fighters....

The guillotine was used here....creepy, but so cool!!!

Blimey I look tired....

We walked through the Tuilleries Gardens where Monet’s waterlilies are displayed (next time I’m THERE!!) and up to the Louvre. It’s closed on a Tuesday, but we were able to see the small inverted pyramid underground. Hello The Da Vinci Code….

The big glass pyramid of the Louvre is through the arch....really!!

The inverted pyramid....

We stopped for a hot choccy and some Perrier on the Left Bank….

An art deco (??) Metro sign....it is by someone famous...maybe...???

Ahhhh....Paris....

Time for a sit down and a hot choccy with Jean...

Possibly the world's most expensive Perrier and hot choccy, but it was great to sit. I was hacking away and our lovely waitress told me to go the Pharmacy and get "blah blah blah" for my cold. Who says the French are rude???? Oh....the other waiter was a bastard.... *Grin*

The alleyway where the guillotine was first tested….MADNESS!!!!

If we hadn't of had Trish with us, we would have passed this insignificant alley!!

Bought baguettes and had lunch in the Luxembourg Gardens. Beautiful gardens with beautifully manicured grass….which you can’t sit on. A little weird, but understandable with the number of visitors who come through here….

Some tulips to remind us of Turkey....

What do you mean I can't walk on the grass??

More tulips....I love Spring!

The Pantheon…..

The Pantheon houses the remains of some famous French people including Voltaire, Victor Hugo, Marie Curie and Louis Braille to name just a few...

Viva la revolution....

An outdoor market/food area….

How plump and red are those strawberries!!!

Some vino...

A baguette to go with your wine and strawberries??

How about a selection of cheeses?

Some sliced meat as well??

Along the river….

I could have stopped and looked at all of this stalls every time we came across one...books, paintings, crap souvenirs...my idea of heaven!!

Old copies of 'Match' including Edith Piaf, Jackie O, JFK, Elizabeth Taylor, Katherine Hepburn....

Notre Dame, which was just amazing!! I’ve wanted to go here ever since copying the stained glass windows in Year 8 History all those years ago….

The queues went amazingly fast!!

The "Mays" of Notre Dame...this Mays was there!!
From 1499, the goldsmiths of Paris would offer to Mary
a green tree as a gift for the 1st of May, the month devoted to her (didn't know that!).
Then later on, works of poetry in chest of gold.
Even later, painting by famous painters.

Fantastic stained glass windows!!

I remember drawing this is in Year 8 History....

My arty farty shot which came out pretty well!!

I wonder what he did or didn't do to lose his head....religion is just not my forte....

Past a Tudor style house….

A water fountain on the street where there is a list of the names of all the French Jews who were murdered in World War II…..not France’s finest hour…..

Ash filling her water bottle....

Some of the names on the Wall of Remembrance....

Marais – a district (??) where there are many private hotels. For example one used by Louis’ mistress and, at one point, Mozart….

Mozart stayed here!

Gardens with grass that you can sit on (gasp!)....

Louis the XIV in a groovy pose that the boys later tried to emulate and I was sadly unable to capture pictures of them doing so....does anyone have some???

And then back to the Opera House on the Metro, where we decided who was going shopping where. The kids went one way, the adults the other after. Jean, Helen and I headed off to the Gallery Lafayette: a massive department store. We ran into Nick and had champagne (non-alcoholic of course!) at the Veuve Clicquot bar. Then it was separate ways again. Can you believe I was too tired to be bothered with trying on shoes. Unbelievable but true! I MUST have been very sick as well as tired!!!

The roof of Gallery Lafayette....it reminded me of the mall in the Petronus Towers in KL....

And I was too sick and tired to shop!! The shoes were in the basement....

Jean, Helen and Nick...the ladies are enjoying a (non-alcoholic) champagne....

Shopping is thirsty work!

A freshen up at the hotel and then we were off for our farewell dinner. L‘Atlas cleverly put us in a back room by ourselves. The whole time on tour we have had a set menu, but tonight Bob loosened the purse strings and allowed us to order from the menu. WOO HOO!!!

After much deliberation on my table, we decided a selection of foods was required. We started with French Onion Soup….which was just known as Onion Soup, oysters and escargot to share. Escargot are like chewy, rubbery garlic buttery things. At least that’s what I got out of it. Not bad. Not too sure if Hadley enjoyed them…..

Onion soup....it's French....

The big mouth trying the escargot....

Hadley looking excited by the prospect of eating escargot....

....but not looking so pleased here!

Then it was Boeuf Béarnaise with pomme frites and Jean talked Martin and me into sharing a strawberry tart. All washed down with 9 Euro non-alcoholic cocktails….the kids certainly had a crack at them. And no wonder, the citrusy one was AWESOME!!

Jean's white asparagus entree...

Oysters...or should I say huîtres??

The Boeuf Béarnaise....

It was then back on the Metro back to the hotel well after midnight and sweet dreams on a full belly.

We really don’t want to leave, but home is starting to call!! The airport and Singapore await before we fly into Melbs....I can already here my pillow calling!!