Bonjour! Aaaand that’s about the extent of French I know. I arrived in Paris from London this morning via the Eurostar. It took 2 hours and was a fast and pleasant ride.
I’m staying at the Hotel Pont Royal and it is gorgeous! The staff are extremely kind and the room is elegant and large. I’m on the sixth floor and when I open the window I have a view of the top of the Eiffel tower on the left and all of Sacre Couer on the right. Here is my view.
Once I got settled, I did a short walk along the river before going on a tour of the Louvre. I didn’t get lost at all. Hmm, maybe I’m getting the hang of this. I also have yet to see a car that doesn’t have scratches or dents or worse! They drive like maniacs here.
Our Louvre tour guide was a good dude, he was originally from Holland. He said he came here for a trip and didn’t go home. He showed us the big things, like Venus de Milo, Winged Victory and Mona Lisa. Mona was stunning. It’s too bad it’s so busy in there. It would be nice to sit in front of it and appreciate its beauty. Hard to do when there is about 60 people in the room and they are all just taking pictures and talking. I didn’t think that would ruin my experience of it, but it did. Oh well, I did get to see another Leonardo that was just as beautiful, The Virgin of the Rocks.
After the tour I walked through Napoleon’s state rooms. Wow are they ornate to the max. You know how American’s say “go big or go home?” I believe the French originated that title. The ceilings and floors and walls are works of art, and that’s not including what resides within them.
I also tasted the best quiche. I have no idea what it was, but it had mushrooms in it and was so good. I think I will just eat pastry here.
There is no wireless access in my room at the hotel, it’s just in the bar and lobby downstairs. I hope to upload as much as I can, but it might be few and far between.
Here are some photos from tonight. I walked along the river again and ended up hanging out on this one pedestrian bridge that is full of young people sitting around eating baguettes, drinking wine and smoking. Looked like everyone was having a great time. Also, the bridge has thousands of little locks attached. Don’t know the history behind it, but it was pretty cool.
