What a wonderful weekend in Paris! It was the perfect combo of visiting tourist sites and relaxing strolls as we snacked on local pastries.
We just finished filling out postcards and are now hanging out in the Admirals Club as the plane is prepared.
Hope you all had a very nice Thanksgiving weekend. We’ll see you shortly.
We found it! The Moulin Rouge – known in English as The Red Windmill….not nearly as exciting, I know.
The pictures in the lobby promise a nightly show much like the old Las Vegas shows. We opted out for tonight. Too many other places to see and people watching to do.
We ventured to the northern part of the city today – the Montmartre area.
As soon as you come up out of the Metro you know it’s a different world. This is the area of the bohemian revolution, Paris’ red light district, and – you can see this one coming – the Moulin Rouge.
But first, since it’s raining today and visibility is dropping with natural light, we headed to the very top of the hill to the cathedral – known as the Sacre Coeur. Seems a bit odd to have such a lovely church just minutes from burlesque shows, but there truly is something for everyone here.
Warning: be in shape before you try this climb. After carrying Jack around all weekend, I’m ready for him to carry me!
It was a long climb, but made it to the top of the Tower. Just kidding! The elevator ride took just a few minutes, and we were then graced with a clear night and an excellent view.
Paris is known for its romantic ambiance, and it must have taken effect…a young couple got engaged at the top tier of the Eiffel Tower. You’d think it was cliche, but it was actually very sweet.
We are now at the Eiffel Tower waiting to go up the first elevator.
We spent the entire afternoon on the Champs Elysees, which is a cross between Rodeo Drive and you favorite mall.
For the holidays a Christmas market extends the shopping possibilities by several more blocks, as they added booths of chocolate covered fruit, ornaments and trinkets from all over Europe.
True to form, we did our part to help the local economy – eating just as much stuff as we carried away in bags. 
It’s so fun to run into friends in foreign countries! Megan (red shirt) is in school over here and happened to be in Paris the same weekend. We caught up with her and her school friends on the Champs Elysees. She looks grreat and is doing well in her master’s program.
We are standing on top of the Arc. What a view of the city! This is much bigger than pictures allude to.
Napoleon was a big dreamer (he commissioned the project), but not necessarily original. There are dozens of these arcs all over Europe. We’re no better though. We have our own in NYC’s Central Park.
Found this great baby store and got something for Jack. I hope he likes the little angel wings on the back of his sleeper.
The shop lady was very helpful with sizes. We weren’t sure how many centimetres long he will probably be. Will we ever get on to the metric system like the rest of the world?
It’s morning in Paris and our first tourist stop is the Arc de Triomph. However, first things first. Breakfast!
Literally around the corner from our hotel is a market with fruits all kinds of good food.
We’re having some cappucino and a great breakfast so we’ll be ready to climb all those steps!
