Day 5 - Musee Orsay and then some

Our eyes peeled open at 10:30am this morning. To our surprise we did not expect to sleep in this late, nor did we think it was anywhere near 9, let alone 10:30. We did not feel guilty as we hiked and walked all day yesterday. Plus, we equated it to finally catching up on our flight sleep.

Left the hotel a little after 11am and walked down along the Louvre and stopped into a little cafe for a cup of coffee. I ordered us two cups, along with a Flan. When we got the coffee, Anna was not too happy with the size of the cup, nor that it was an expresso. She walked across the street and of all places went into a McDonalds and order another cup of coffee. To her surprise, she received the same size and an expresso. We both laughed at the comedy of it.

Prior to heading to any museum, we walked the Royal Gardens. Everything is just so grand and amazingly detailed from an architecutial stand point. We continued to walk along the side streets and view into the shops. After about an hour we ran across a nice little cafe and decided to have lunch. Anna had sardines and a bloody mary and I had beef tartar with a beer. Yummy!!!

Bellies full and we were off to the Musee Orsay. The museum was built in the 1860's as a train depot and was abandoned for several decades, until 1977 when the government decided to turn it into a museum. Today it houses impressionist artworks from the 1860's up to 1917. We stayed at the museum until it closed at 5:30pm.

Leaving the Orsay, we walked back across the river back to our hotel room to take a break for about an hour before heading out to dinner about 5 blocks away. The place was quite fancy, but the service was lousy. Mama had Monkfish and I had Skate Fish. I believe mine was the best. It was a very soft, buttery fish. It was definitely a first for me and an enjoyable one.

We ended the night by walking around town, peaking into shops and basically taking in all the views, sounds and smells. Got back to the room around 11pm.

Day 4 - Eiffel Tower

After lunch at Saint Michel near Notre Dame, we grabbed a taxi and may our way over to the Eiffel Tower. The ticket and security line took about 30 minutes to get through, but several people stated that this was not a busy day. I could not have imagined waiting an hour or two. Schiffers’ luck as usual.

Got our two tickets and up we went to the base of the tower, which is up around 10-12 floors. It has a restaurant and view area around most of the platform. At this height, you could already see quite a bit of Paris as it is all at an even elevation. Next, we took another elevator straight up to what is known as the Summit (Top in French). Once out of the elevator your eyes are struck with an awe inspiring view of the whole of Paris. What a view!!! We did the best we could with trying to capture the views with photos and videos. Oh – Yeah – and I did kiss Mama at the very top!!

Being that we made it to the top of the Eiffel Tower, we pretty much felt we had completed our mission for the day. However, since it was going to be dark soon we definitely wanted to see the tower in all its nightly glory. We walked to the government buildings across the river at its highest point and took some pictures once night fell. The image in person was really truly beautiful. It is mind boggling that someone around 150 years ago architected this landmark and that it is still being used today.

We grabbed a cab and headed back to the hotel. Dropped off some unneeded items and off we skipped to the Christmas market. Food was on dad’s mind and it was the first thing I stopped at. Both mom and I ate, did a little shopping and strolled through the neighboring streets before heading in for the night.

Day 4 - Notre Dame

Passing of time and sleep definitely was starting to get us back on track. Although we still slept in today, it was only till 8:30am. I got up right away, took a shower and started to try and replay the events of the past two days and put them to paper. Mama slept in a little longer until around 9:30am. Once she was dressed, we both headed downstairs and had the buffet here at the Saint James. Not too shabby!

After breakfast, we headed out of the hotel and walked along the Rue de Rivoli. That is also the street the Louvre is located on and headed across the river once we pasted the museum. Notre Dame is located on a small island in the middle of the Seine River. You would notice that or even think you were unless you looked at a map.

We spent about an hour in the church and lit a candle for Oma, Tommy and Alexandra.

The architecture in this building is astonishing when you think the main part was built in 1360. We did notice however that most of the outside spires, gargoyles, figures, statues and wall ornaments were very worn to severely damaged. One would expect that given the time period and the brutal strength of Mother Nature.

We walked around the entire church and grounds and headed to grab a little bite to eat.

Day 3 - Visit to the Louvre

Eyelids started fluttering around 10:45am. Wow, I thought – awesome – didn’t really want to sleep this long, but we needed it after the day of travel we had. The next thought that crossed my mind was – oh no – we just missed breakfast.

Anna and I took our time and rustled around the room until 11:45 when finally managed to head out. First stop the Louvre. Grabbed some tickets and before heading in through the gates, we stopped at a café within the Louvre and got a sandwich and some drinks. The sandwich was a long bagette with Jamon (ham) and Fromage (cheese), along with a little bit of lettuce and mayonnaise. It was better than expected and well needed.

Now powered up, we entered and explored the exhibit halls for the next 3-4 hours. The pictures don’t do any justices and definitely can’t convey the grandeur or opulence of the place. The selection of artwork, paintings, sculptures and artifacts are beyond amazing. We simply do not have anything quite like it in the states. It is definitely a French national treasure!

Once we left the Lourve we walked its ground a bit and meandered over the Seine River and stopped at a small café right on a busy corner. The place had heaters outside, so we opted to sit where all the action was. Ordered a beer, some wine and an assortment of cheese and got our people watching on.

Back across the river and off to the Christmas market which was located almost directly across the street from our hotel. The market was in the gardens directly south of the Louvre and lined the gardens for the better part of a half of mile. The small huts inside had all kinds of craftsmen, gift shops, various foods and of course some rides.

After checking out all of the food options, I ended up getting a Curry wurst and some fries. Mom ended up sharing my curry wurst as I do not believe she ever got anything else to eat. Being she never got her baggage, we found a vendor selling jackets and quickly got her one. She also managed to find some socks along the way. We did not get any trinkets on this visit, but will definitely go back and get some before we leave this week.

We left the Christmas market around 9pm and headed towards the Arc de Triumphe. After about a .5 mile walk we hit the Champs Elysees and starting making our way to the center. The Champs Elysees was lit up with red Christmas lights the entire way. It definitely made the walk far more memorable. Suprisingly, some of the stores were still open and we stopped in a Foot Locker and got Mama a new pair of Nike VaporVX shoes. With all the walking, she needed something beside her little slippers. Now with a new spring in her step, we marched further on to see the Arc de Triumphe and then took a break to finally eat dinner. Mama had a flank steak and I had duck. Both were really delicious.

Headed back to the hotel and got in a little after 1am. We were both glad to see the bed.

Day 1-2 - The Surprise has been Paris-Sprung

Leaving Charlotte at 2:34pm…or so we thought. I told Anna we were leaving later in the morning, so she would be ready and could not back out of repacking. Once I got her out of the house, around 10am, I informed her as to when our flight was and that we were go to USNWC for a walk prior to heading to the airport. Luckily we gave ourselves plenty of time, because the day was the Monday after Thanksgiving. Can we say BUSY at the airport!!

Checked in and read. As we got to the gate it showed that the flight was delayed an hour. Made me quite a bit nervous as we did not have much cushion in DC to catch our flight to Paris. Not but 15 minutes later, the flight delayed another 30 minutes. Now that was a problem. We would not be able to catch our connecting flight. Apparently our incoming plane has wheel issues. I immediately got on the phone with customer service (was on hold for 55 minutes) and rebooked ourselves in DC with Air France on a flight that was an hour and half later around 6:30pm.

We thought that would be enough time. We – I – was wrong. The flight landed in DC at 6:08pm. Exited the plan at 6:19pm. Both of us ran like the wind hoping we wouldn’t miss the flight heading to Paris. Down the last escalator and saw our gate. People were still boarding.

Wow – cutting it close. Out of the breath I headed to the counter and spoke with the attendant. Flight is booked and unfortunately we are not able to get on the flight. I was confused (easy to do). I tell the flight attendant she must be mistaken – we have the confirmation and tickets. “Sorry,” she says, “You did not check in”. “What?”, I said, “That’s crazy! How can I check myself in from the air?” I believe since we got there at the same time as it was supposes to be leaving, they gave our seats up.

Back to customer service again. New flight – now London – four hours later at 10:05pm. Rolled with the punches at headed to restaurant for a couple of beers and some Brussel sprouts and Siracha Fried Cauliflower. I have to say the cauliflower was quite good and would have definitely loved to have gotten the recipe.

Got on the plane and powered down some movies and meals. Mama managed to get some shut eye and we eventually arrived in London at 10:45am local time the next day. We had about an hour layover so we did not have to rush to the next terminal. However, everything in London seemed to be crawling and apparently the terminal we need to get to was some distance away. Arrived about 35 minutes later and noticed our plan to Paris was CANCELLED! This can’t be I thought!

London was plagued with heavy fog earlier in the morning and all outgoing flights were cancelled. Upset and irritated we headed back to customer service. Waited in line for a line over an hour and managed to get a rebooking on Air France for a 3:35pm flight. Supposedly we were to arrive in Paris at 5:40pm. Since we had about 5 hours of down time we thought of what better way to spend the time than at a restaurant. We eat at the Commission. French Onion soup and Maple Chicken Wings. Oh yeah!! I was pretty yummy!!!

No more delays and we boarded the plane. Arrived in Paris at around 5:45pm. We were both pessimistic about getting Anna’s bag at the baggage claim. With all the flight delays, changes and reroutes, there was probably little chance we would get the bag. Luckily, we had mine and my backpack with all the medicines, etc…

Grabbed a taxi and finally got to the Saint James Albany Hotel a little after 7pm. Both of us were totally exhausted, but we were both looking forward to heading out and at least getting something on our bellies. Follets was the choice, as recommended by our concierge. It was a restaurant a couple of blocks down from our hotel. The food was pretty good. Not amazing, but better than expected.

Done for, we headed up to bed and after some showers, we finally closed our eyes.