Day 1: Paris
Our first day in Paris started off with a traditional French breakfast of croissants with jam, juice and coffee (hot chocolate for Addison) before heading over to the Louvre. The line for the Louvre was massive, but we spied some people who already had tickets cutting the line, so we went in search of a tourist office to buy some tickets. After some searching and a delicious lunch of buckwheat crepes we found the tourist office and bought the tickets. Heading back to the Louvre we were able to cut the line and go straight inside. The entrance is via the glass pyramid, but then you under ground and the surrounding buildings are actually the rooms of the museum. The one thing in particular which is most famous in the Louvre is the painting Mona Lisa. Its actually a lot smaller than people think, and people were pushing and shoving towards it just to get a look. After seeing it we looked around a bit more of the museum then headed back out into daylight. Next we walked along to the love lock bridge. There were hundred and thousands of locks on the bridge and really no space wasn't filled. On our way to the Nord de Dame, we got a picture drawn of us. The Nord de Dame was also quite interesting, but we didn't go inside, but instead walked around it and along the river. On our way home we stopped at a supermarket and bought some things for dinner and headed back to the hotel to cook tea.
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| Outside the entrance to the Louvre courtyard |
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| Addison and I outside the Louvre |
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| Me and Lisa |
Day 2: Paris
We got up early to head to the Eiffel Tower to try and get in early before the line was massive, but it seemed everyone else had the same idea and the line was about 1,000 people long when we got there. After waiting in line for about 1/2 hour an official came to tell us we could take the stairs, where the line was only 10 mins or wait another 2 hours for the elevator. We decided to take the 690 stairs to level two, which wasn't too bad and at the second level you can take the elevator to the top. At the top we had a wonderful view of all of Paris! After the Eiffel Tower and lots of pictures from the bottom we went to the Hardrock Cafe for lunch and a cocktail. After lunch we spent the afternoon walking back towards the area near the Louvre and found a French bakery with lots of yummy treats and had one for afternoon tea. We then headed home for an early night after an exhausting day of stairs and walking.
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| At the top of the Eiffel Tower |
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| At the top of the Eiffel Tower together |
Day 3: Paris
On our third day in Paris we visited the Montmartre, which is also the old artists quarters of Paris. We took the underground then had to walk uphill to where the Montmartre church sat on a hill. It was such a lovely so we enjoyed walking around the small market and then into the artists square where there were artists selling their artwork and also drawing pictures of you. We were tempted to get another picture done, but decided we would stick with our character one we already had. After some lunch from the market and a delicious waffle that was stuffed with chocolate bars we walked down the hill to see the iconic Moulin Rouge. In the evening we visited the Arch de Triumph which gave us a pretty view of the city. We then revisited the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower to see them lit up at night.
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| Montmartre |
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| In the artists quarters at Montmartre |
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| At the Louvre |
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| Eiffel Tower at night |
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| Eiffel Tower at night again |
Day 4: Paris/Disneyland
On our last day in Paris we decided to live every child's dream and go to Disneyland - well Paris Disneyland anyway. It wasn't as magical as I had hoped but it didn't rain so we were in luck! The Disney castle was pretty impressive though. We went on almost every ride and the big exciting ride twice. One ride we had to shoot at aliens from our little cart - and surprisingly I won! For lunch we went to a country inn diner and enjoyed some burgers and fries. In the afternoon we got lost in Alice in wonderlands maze and rode the teacups. Then we had to head back to the hotel to pack for our check out the next morning.
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| Disney Castle |
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| Delicious French bakery treats |
The actual last day in Paris was spent searching for an engravers to engrave a padlock to add to the lovelock bridge until we decided to give up. Definitely a niche market lacking in Paris for engravers! We caught our train in the late afternoon and was delayed on our way back into Germany, so weren't home until late that night in Mainz.
We definitely had a wonderful holiday travelling around Europe and got to see and experience so many amazing and new things!
