A Weekend in Paris

Wow!! What a weekend.

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On the weekend of October 21 - 23, Erin and Bhodi took an extra day off and jumped on the TGV train to Paris.

The Following is a brief description and a fraction of the photos from this amazing weekend.

I hope you enjoy, Tell your friends, and write me feedback to let me know what you thought of my work.

Thanks;

Bhodi

Friday, October 21st

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Friday Morning.. We wake up with the rest of the crew and have breakfast as if it were a normal work day, but when it is time to go to muster, we take quick showers and head to the train station in St. Nazaire... We are taking a train to Paris this morning.

The train ride was nice TGV (high speed commuter rail) the whole way (about 2 1/2 hours). We shared a bottle of wine and met a Cuban Jazz Band that was touring Europe by Rail.

We arrived in Paris at about 1230 & were off in a mad frenzie to see everything.

A strange photo to start it out? Well, for those "Davinci Code" fans out there, this is where the first key & the Roseline was found at the Cathedral of Saint Sulplice.

Erin stands apon the Roseline

The Church claims that stories like the Davinci Code are completely false and based on not a degree of fact. A close up of the Obilisque from San Sulplice makes one wonder.

From San Sulplice, we continue on and across the River Seine to stop by the grounds of the Musée du Louvre.

And, of course, another couple sites mentioned in Davinci Code.

Of course... The Louvre is not just about Pyramids & Paris is not just about the Davinci Code..

There is beauty and artistry abound.

After our visit to the grounds of the Louvre, we found a Metro and headed up to Montmartre to check into out room, before exploring further.

Once we checked into our room and took a brief break.. We headed up to the nearby Sacre Cour (Sacred Heart Cathedral), atop Montmartre Butte.

We were told that the view from Sacre Cour was amazing, and it is true. After all.. It is the highest geographical point in Paris.

If you recognize that view or this carousel.. You may remember seeing it in Amelie. Montmartre is where she lived and where the film was made. We never did find the Two Windmills Cafe.

By the way... Did I mention the view from up there.. It was definately worth the climb.

Now... To explain the next couple images... The Boulevard that is nearest to our Hotel is Avenue de Clichy.. Known widely as the "Red Light District" and made Famous by the Moulin Rouge.

We just had to check it out.

Avenue de Clichy is definately the place to find Neon in Montmartre.

Red light district or not.. It was actually very nice and not nearly as seedy as say.. Amsterdam. And.. We did find a very nice and authentic Irish Pub full of very nice and authentic Irish people for a very nice and Authentic Irish Supper before returning to our room to prepare for an adventure filled Saturday.

Saturday, October 22nd

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On Saturday, although we had just spent our first night in a real bed in a while, we just could not sleep in. After all... This was OUR Saturday in PARIS!!

The view out our hotel window

After a breakfast at the hotel, we took the Metro straight to my favorite place in Paris.. The Eiffel Tower.

The sunlight and blue skies were really touch and go on this day.

I was chasing good light all day.

For anyone who has every wondered what the very top of the Tower looks like.. From up close: Well there it is.. Lots of Cellular Antennas.

The view from atop the Tower is (as expected) truly amazing. Here is a view of Sacre Cuer - perched atop Montmartre Butte. [Near our place of Lodging].

Here are some other shots of this amazing view.

Ever heard someone say "Don't Look Down"? Well.. I had to.

WOW!

Talk about "Chasing the Light".. I spent a good 5 Minutes waiting for this lucky shot.

This is right across the river Seine from the Tower, and provides a great view of the tower at night, as we will see later.

Eventually we did realize that if we were going to see more of Paris, we would have to come down from the Tower, so we walked past this fountain on our way to the Seine for our walk to Notre Dame Cathedral.

This is just one of the many bridges we passes along the Seine. All four corners of this one are guarded by towering gold statues. Truly breathtaking!

Here are some more of the sights along the river.

Starting with the finest sight.. My Companion.

Finally.. The coolest [in my book] way to tour Europe:

A river boat like the Amara Zee.

I'm told that you can even stay on board these for the weekend.. Like a hotel on the water.

At last.. After a much enjoyed, yet long, walk along the river.. We have arrived at Notre Dame.

The visit was very nice and the Cathedral is as awe inspiring as one should expect, however.. We were appauled by how noisy the people were inside the Cathedral and how many flashes were going off. "Dumb Tourists", we say.. At least I turned off my flash and we whispered the whole time.

Here are some shots of the inside of the Cathedral of Notre Dame

And then one the many angles of the Outside of the Cathedral.

After Notre Dame, we took a leisurely stroll on the island, and then to the Spanish Quarter for some souvenier shopping and a stereotypical Parisian dinner at a side sidewalk cafe on a busy plaza nearby.

After dinner, we were on the Metro and back to the Eiffel Tower for some night shots.

Here are a few of my favorites:

And then... The "Money Shot":

After our second visit to the Tower, we decided to pay a visit to the nearby Arc de Triomph...

... Before retiring to our room with a bottle of wine, after a busy day in Paris.

Sunday, October 23rd

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We Started our day on Sunday by checking out of our Hotel and (with our bags on our backs), took the Metro for a daytime visit to the Arc De Triomphe and a walk down the Champs Elysees.

We had lunch on the Champs Elysees at the Fanciest McDonalds you can imagine. The place had 2 levels, a seperate Bakery/Cafe Counter, and [of course] I had a Bier with my Royal avec Fromage.

There are so many fascinating details to the Arch and it's surrounding area. Just a couple mentions are the intricacies of the ceiling of the Arch...

...as well as the geographic location of the Arch's Roundabout being about half way between the Classic old Paris of the Louvre and Paris' Modern Financial District.

From the Champs Elysees to the Musée du Louvre, we walk past a fountain encircled by at least 50 people... Some older, enjoying a sunny Sunday Afternoon.. Many younger, sailing small wooden boats adorned in colorful cotton sails across the fountain pond.

The next stop was the highlight of our Paris visit, and perhaps the most exhausting.

Of the MANY famous works of the masters that we saw on our march through the Louvre, two of my favorite photos (taken in the areas where photography is actually permitted) were these two of Psyche and Cupid & Venus de Milo.

So... By the time we left the Louvre, (with only a couple hours left before our train back to St. Naz), we decided to make the best of what was left of our time in Paris by walking to the train station by way of many of the same sights that introduced us to the city just 2 days earlier.

What a weekend.

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Thanks for stopping by.

I hope you enjoyed.

Don't forget to keep checking:

www.tallshipadventures.blogspot.com

and

www.ourprideadventures.blogspot.com

for more updates.

~~Bhodi