For our last day in Paris, we did a little triage: so many things we haven't done and only a day left in the city. We debated: the Catacombs, the Jewish Museum, the Carnavalet (city of Paris history museum). Having spent yesterday with the dead and so much time in churches, we decided to spend a little time with the Jews and that history here ( Read more... )

In Paris, many museums are closed on Mondays. We took advantage of this fact by taking the day to do things that aren't museums. Early in the day, that thing was Pere Lachaise cemetery. We had to get there first, though.

The subwayI haven't talked about riding the Paris subway because we haven't done it overmuch. It's not like the New York subway ( Read more... )

After yesterday's grand disappointments and frustrations, we decided to take it easy today. We woke a little later, ate a nice egg and cheese breakfast, and followed a Rick Steves walking tour from the Place de la Bastille through the Marais to the Pompidou Center. We had perfect, clear weather (which we've had since Friday morning--Wednesday and ( Read more... )

The exhaustion is beginning to tell. I think both Elizabeth and I are beginning to feel the lack of good sleep, the lack of familiarity, and the press of time. We chose to spend ten days in Paris because it was clear we couldn't do everything we wanted to in seven. At the same time, in order to beat crowds and spend our time well, we've been ( Read more... )

Morning businessThe original plan for yesterday (Friday) was to go to the Musee D'Orsay in the morning and then spend the afternoon at the Catacombs. What we realized when we rose was that we were pretty much out of groceries (we've been eating breakfast in the apartment each day to save a little cash), and had to do something about that. We also ( Read more... )

With our Museum Passes in hand, it was another day spent (partly) in a museum. This time, it was the Musee de Cluny, France's National Museum of the Middle Ages. The museum, built in the former town house of the abbot of Cluny going back to the 14th century, is larger inside than it initially appeared to me, housing relics of the period from late ( Read more... )

The day started early. We got up at 6ish with the sun still set, washed up, had a light breakfast, and headed over to Notre Dame to finally see the interior. Folks, this is the way to site-see: Get up early and beat the crowds. I got to experience what this church is like when it's populated mainly by the clergy and the sparse and scattered ( Read more... )

My first order of business today was to get some bread to accompany the breakfast Elizabeth was to prepare for us. I headed toward Rue Monge, where E's Google-fu showed us that most of the local boulangeries and other food-related business resided. As I approached Rue Monge, I realized that the square that fronted the line of food-related shops I'd ( Read more... )

We arrived in Paris exactly on time and, after navigating the endless hallways and thoroughfares of de Gaulle airport, finally got through passport control and into a taxi. We ended up not arriving at the apartment until about 11AM because there was a massive accident with numerous injured snarling up the main route from the airport to the city ( Read more... )