…a continuation if ISSUE 5: Paris, France 2014 (Part 1)

...and like that we were on our own. It was a beautiful thing. The question was... what to do first??? Just kidding!I had it all planned. We were hitting the streets first.... We had the delight of stumbling across a French farmers market full of fresh veggies, tasty snacks and colorful accessories. If you are renting a house off of airbnb.com I would highly suggest stopping by and doing some light shopping for some goodies if you find one of your own. Pick up some fresh veggies, cheese, bread, and maybe some chocolates... Have a home cooked romantic dinner in Paris!

Our walking journey led us someplace unexpected and wonderful.... We found the Pantheon!

The Pantheon was a very interesting place (the dome was under renovations). At first it seemed like a lot of other historical sights... Very decorative inside. Frescoes, statues, carvings... the works. Honestly, the historical aspects of the upper portion are a bit of blur to me. ...because the best lies below. The crypts were a true treasure. When you first walk in you experience a big mysterious tunnel. As you wander through you get see the beautiful "tombs" of famous historical figures such as, Voltaire, Marie & Pierre Curie, Rousseau, Victor Hugo, Alexander Dumas and many others. It's a great and inspiring feeling to walk among such incredible minds, and that is why I would mark it as a must see! It's definitely a great experience. PLUS...getting to the bathrooms was even an experience. You have to wander up a large narrow spiral staircase... but then again, you do that everywhere in Paris.

...and then the walk continued. We found what could be one of my favorite spots in Paris, the Luxembourg Gardens. There is a very large fountain in front of the gorgeous Luxembourg Palace where individuals can pay to rent & play with small vintage boats. But, past all of that are beautiful grounds that you can wander and explore! Within those gardens we found a miniature Statue of Liberty (I know nothing about her)... Brad said that I should not take a picture, so naturally I did! & I am glad I did. It added a special touch to an already magical day, that just kept getting better!

We decided to head back towards our hotel because the temperatures were dropping, and I wanted to change before our afternoon/evening activity. We were headed to the INCREDIBLE Catacombs. This was one of the very very very best tours that I have ever done. You leave feeling with what I would refer to as a strong sense of self and a broken heart. It is an experience to walk amongst so many unnamed and mysterious deceased human-beings. You walk through wondering about the story of each individual and how they came to be there. The ornately arranged mass grave was something special, and something that should be approached with careful reverance. Check out some of the pictures below.

That evening we walked back to our neck of the woods, found dinner & then wandered around the area. There were lots of galleries around our hotel, and it turned out to that there was alot happening in the artists’ area that Saturday night. There were light shows on buildings, gallery openings, and even short film screenings in the square right across from the hotel. It was quite chilly so we stopped by the cafe we had been to prior, Royal Turenne. Turns out that they made an amazing hot chocolate which was perfect because the temperature had dropped significantly and it was a little bit misty. I took my hot chocolate & we walked back towards the hotel, but we made it a point to stop and watch some of the funky films playing across the way before calling it a night. After all, we a had a big day the next day.... Disneyland Paris.

If you love American Disneyland... don't go to Disneyland Paris. It wasn't worth the ticket price. ...which is probably because the majority of the park business is owned by an Arab oil sheik, not Disney. Their Space Mountain might be a little better, but that is about it. OK, the Castle seems a bit cooler too! However, the food was terrible. There were no churros & that is shameful. The silver lining was that it wasn't busy which is probably why Disney had to bail this park out, no visitors. All this park was good for was a break from all the tours. ...Really, the only reason we had gone was because my husband had promised me a Disneyland trip, but because of our work schedules and his temporary move, it just never happened... So we decided to go in Paris instead. We had a lot of fun, but it was freezing! I mean COLD, and what made it worse was that it started to lightly rain while we were there too. I was so cold that I had to buy mickey mittens & I wore my scarf wrapped around my head most of the day.

That was our final full day in Paris, we'll never forget how "different" it was. As for our last morning, there was one thing we hadn't seen & we needed that to change before we boarded the Roissybus & got on a plane to Barcelona... The Arc de Triomphe.... We didn't tour it or go to the top, instead we walked to this street corner, took our pictures, and then headed back. It was time for the next chapter! We were ready for the next chapter!

ISSUE 6: Paris, France 2014 (Part 2)