Paris - Day 1

It's Wednesday, 6:17pm, although my body thinks it's midnight. I returned a couple hours ago from a very successful trip to Paris. It was short and sweet: I loved being able to show my brother and his girlfriend some of my favorite sites while also exploring some new ones.

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Day One

Instead of taking the subway to our hotel we decided to get off in the middle of the city (next to la Cathedrale Notre dame) and walk.

On the way to the hotel, we passed the Louvre, the Tuileries, and Les Invalides ("The Invalids!" Zach would say). In this next picture, our hotel is on the right, and - what's that in the near distance? Yeah! It's the Eiffel Tower! I only took 30 or so shots of it...

Walking through Paris, I found myself paying more attention to the people: who are the tourists? How are the men and women dressed, and how are they relating to each other? Can I understand what they're saying? Part of me loves the anonymity of big cities. Hiding in the shuffle, participating when I want to.

Later that night, we headed across the river toward the Champs Elysees. We pushed through that crowded street as quickly as possible to get to the Arc de Triomphe. Inside and from the top were some spectacular views.

We ended the day by going out for dessert (I got chocolate mousse and a cafe au lait - mmm) and then back to our favorite spot, the Eiffel Tower. More pictures and recaps to come.