My last day in Paris. Time to visit the one remaining landmark on my list.
The Arc de Triomphe. Eat your heart out Lance.
It’s in the middle of a huge roundabout and we had to cross several intersections to get to the stairs that lead to the underground tunnel that serves as the entrance.
The tunnel takes you under the street and back up to the base of the Arc. Then everyone climbs almost 400 stairs of a narrow circular staircase to get to the top. Exploring Paris is a great workout.
More great views of the city
Another view of the Eiffel Tower. It’s everywhere you look in Paris. On the right side of the photo you can see the edges of the huge scaffolding that covers about 1/3 of the view from the top. Another winter refurbishment. It’s a definite tradeoff, but coming in the off season meant that we didn’t have to fight lines of crowds to access the various monuments and museums. I’d rather enjoy an obstructed view in peace.
At the top of the Arc is an fun gift shop where I bought a few things including a mug with the Paris metro map on it (I smile every time I look at it) and an adorable children’s book called This Is Paris.
Next we decided to stroll down the Champs de Elysee and work our way back toward the Eiffel Tower. I found myself a Starbucks and ordered a cappuccino for the journey.
Walking along the Seine.
Beautiful walking paths are everywhere
Stopping for a group selfie with the ET in the background
Today was a day for relaxing, leisurely walking, and soaking it all in.
I’ve decided the Eiffel Tower is beautiful from any angle
We go to great lengths to get great shots.
(more photos with flat children.)
We walked through the Champs du Mars (the big green space that runs back from the ET) on the way back to the hotel, stopping for some window shopping and last minute souvenirs. Then it was time to pack before heading out for one last evening in Paris. We were scheduled for a night cruise on the Seine, taking off from the base of the ET, so we could best see the lights of Paris.
It might be even more beautiful at night.
My iPhone took some amazing pictures. It was so nice I didn’t have to carry a separate camera.
)
On the hour it twinkles for 5 minutes. Just when you thought it couldn’t get any better . . .
(Are you sick of Eiffel Tower pictures yet?)
The view from our cruise. It was an easy, hourlong sail up the Seine and back with an audio guide describing the sights over the loudspeaker. Then one last (late) dinner — by day four we were eating at 11pm, just like real Parisians — before our day ended.
The next morning. Time to head home. I’m glad I packed light — just a backpack and my knitting bag. I still didn’t wear everything that I brought. It was a good amount of time to be away. I felt like I had seen everything I needed to see and was happy to go home and tell my family all about it. We arrived in the rain and left in the rain, but our 4 days in Paris were clear and sunny. It couldn’t have been more perfect.
Au revoir Paris!