Arc de Triomphe and a sandwhich

We ended our last day by eating a sandwich in a park near the Arc de Triomphe. The sandwich was from a near by bakery in our hotel area that we had passed many times on our days there. The bread was soft and the meat and cheese were fresh. I spread topanade on mine that added another rich flavor and our dessert was surgared, dried strawberries. As we ate, a father walked with his daughter in his arms. He softly sang a song to her while she took tiny bites from a large sandwich. I wondered what could be possibly be singing about? Was he singing to help along his daughter's digestive system? Who knows. It was a poignant moment. That was the last memory I have of Paris-- it's people.

Square du Vert Galant, the pretty park at the tip of the Île de la Cité

A friend in Canon City had been quite persistent that I go to this park and go to the fartherest tip of the Ile. When we arrived a young man was playing his bass, and it was such beautiful music. They were filming, so we tried to stay out of the way. An Asian man was having lunch under the willow tree at the tip. We sat at the edge for awhile enjoying the view, then left the man to have his lunch in peace.

Eiffel Tower

Do yourself a favor and purchase tickets online to view the Eiffel Tower. It saved us much stress and wasted time. The Eiffel Tower, Paris's famous landmark, is a breath-taking sight to behold. It's iron beauty can be enjoyed both inside and along the lawn. Heidi and I were about 10 minutes late in getting to the gates, however, we were still admitted in. On Bastille Day @ 9 a.m. in the morning we were part of the first group to begin celebrating France's revolution with a view from the tower.

Parks of Paris

The English love their wildflower, wild-looking gardens, while the French prefer geometrically balanced and manicured gardens. The gardens were a beautiful and inspiring part of Paris that cannot be left out of my journey tellings. Heidi particularly enjoyed them and on one occassion we rested very comfortable in a quite square of threes.

Jazz in Paris

Paris is known for its' jazz clubs, so I positively had to experience one. John once said he'd much rather sit through a jazz concert than a rock concert and I agree! Really good jazz can take your mind to all sorts of places; it can take you up as well as down. We'd looked for Jazz and found this spot recommended and we jumped in with both feet, not really knowing what we'd be getting into. It turned out to be fun. When we saw an older married couple going in, we felt a little better. This was not going to be too crazy. The seating was intimate and I chose the front row. A grandmother, mother and daughter were there. The daughter was maybe six. Thankfully we'd found a family friendly place and thanks to new laws there was no hazy smoke floating around, Mom you wouldn've been safe.

The band was great. The couple behind us had come specifically to hear them. The night featured all Peggy Lee songs. When I heard this, I knew they were going to play Fever. The drums began to beat, the singer began to sway and I snapped my fingers along to the music. Paris, Peggy Lee and Fever. Great combination. Everyone had a good time.

Thanks for finding the place, Heidi.

Paris Metro

Different from London in that it announces lines by the names of the ending streets. I was warned of this in Rick Steves' books. London lines are announced by direction and color. Compared to the London subway, the metro was dirtier and smellier, due in part to there being absolutely no bathrooms anywhere in Paris. They seemed a little less patroled and therefore seemed a bit more hazardous. I couldn't really pick out Paris fashion as quickly as I was able to see London fashion. It did appear, finally, but not on everyone as it had in London. Paris fashion seemed to be a class thing, and those not dressing fashionably dressed much like you might see in Canon. However, in London I saw EVERY person dressed in fashion. Believe it.

After a few tries, Heidi and I were able to conquer the metro and our travel to destinations became faster. Heidi, we have to work on getting to places on time, but I think we did a pretty good job getting around.

I always wondered how everyone was able to walk so fast to their next connection or exit. Did everyone now exactly where they were going? In the movies it looks so overwhelming. What if I'm not sure and need to stop, will the crowd push me along?
I found out that once you know the name or color of your train, the signs are what keep people moving. They are placed just far enough apart to keep you going, not looking for the next place. It's quite amazing. When we did need to stop, it wasn't so bad, there were always large maps and exit names posted before each entrance. Very doable, very affordable.

Open air markets of Paris

I didn't buy anything here, but doesn't this scene look French? Yes!



I spent too much time at this vendor. Everything was amazing. You can see the sweeted fried fruit that could replace any desire for candy, ever.



I think I am an official "foodie", in other words when normal people are just eating, I am eating, tasting, looking, feeling texture, and analyzing the layers of the food. I think watching Foodnetwork has made me one. Naturally when we sought out a French market, the vendors with fresh tapanade and olives, and dried fruits made me smile. This vendor romanced both Heidi and I by letting us try anything we wanted. Everything was fresh and tasty. It was fun to walk from table to table looking for useful things. Linens, purses, kitchen tools.

This was one of the things on my wish list for Paris. I still drool over the sugared dried strawberries.

July 14th Bastille Day

Parisans don't call it Bastille Day, they just call it July 14th, much like our July 4th, or as close as they can get. Dates were changed a few time for the Paris trip and it just so happened that we were able to celebrate with France on this wonderful holiday. Bethany, John Ryan, Coco and his girlfriend all joined us at the Eiffel Tower for fireworks and music. It was over the top! This is my top highlight! The fire works started low and small and by the end were shooting out of the Eiffel's top. Heidi helped me take a few pics that came out clear. Afterwards we booked it to the metro and were part of the mob trying to get on the trains. People as far as you could see, leaning into eachother. We watched police try to keep the crowd in order and heard a few shouts and then we heard through the crowd that the police had opened up the gates, no tickets needed. This helped move things along. The trains were stuffy and full of quiet, tired people. You'd think even the Parisans would be tired enough to forego the PDA, but oh no! I had front row seats to a young business-dressed couple performing Oscar-quality gum swapping, but without the gum. They were in their own little world. It was 1 a.m. when the trains closed and we found ourselves standing outside a metro hailing a cab. A French woman split the cab with us and helped us communicate to the cabbie. We were home close to 2 a.m.

Bastille Day commemorates the anniversary of the storming of the Bastille on 14 July 1789; the storming of Bastille fortress-prison was seen as a symbol of the uprising.

Le Marche near our hotel

We found this on our final day. A charming bread and pastry shop, which I'm told is hard to find together in paris. We bought the most scrumptios sandwhiches for our lunch later that day. Half the fun was looking and talking with the woman inside. We purchesed different things and tried a bite of this and bite of that. Fun.