Paris - the City of Light

The Third Installment:

We knew a trip to Europe wouldn't be complete without seeing Paris, so we jumped in the car and headed to Paris for a couple of days.

It was a long drive to Paris from Germany, especially with all 3 of us crammed in the back seat, but we knew it was worth it!

After arriving in Paris at about 6:30 at night, checking into our hotel, and figuring out the metro system, we finally headed into the city. And the very first thing we saw, as the subway came out of a tunnel to cross the river was...the Eiffel Tower! I screamed instantly and totally embarrassed everyone - it was great!

We met up with our French friend, Brigitte first thing in the morning and headed to the Louvre.

We saw the surprisingly small Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo - 2 of the most famous pieces of art that the Louvre has to offer.

We made sure to touch "Point Zero" in front of Notre Dame where, legend has it, if you touch it, you will return to Paris sometime in your life. We made sure to touch every inch of that thing, just in case!!

Our boat tour on the Sienne was a hit - it was something that none of the group had ever done before and we all LOVED it! I'd recommend it to anyone!

Our last stop before the sun went down was Sacre-Coeur and Montmartre - the highest point in Paris. It had an amazing view of the entire city and was PACKED with people!

Brigitte's daughter, Lucille made reservations for us at a fun French restaurant. We made quite the group - 9 people from 4 different countries! The French - Brigitte, Lucille, and Eddie, The Germans - Martin, Susi, and Dean, The Americans - Brad and Becky, and the Vietnamese - Ahn!

We closed out the night at the Arc de Triomphe and Champs Elysses (the Rodeo Drive of Paris). We were a little late to get good pictures (it was past midnight), but it was still a sight to see!