May Day, the French Labor Day! And, people are selling little bouquets of Lilly of the Valley, everywhere, on the streets! In the villages, and in Paris you see people with the flowers in their lapel, or holding little bouquets! Well, our 25th Anniversary trip to Paris was wonderful! Paris is everything that everyone raves about!
We headed out on Friday morning via the train to Paris from Avignon. We had practiced how to get to Avignon train station and where to park so that we would not be in a sweat. Smooth trip, except we got on the wrong train to Paris. No problem! We just got there earlier! We had to switch trains, and in doing so, we caught an earlier train! But we did learn how to check to see if it's the right train!
We stayed at the Marriott Champs Élysées. We were in a great location! We had a view of rooftops, and when you turned to either side you either saw the top of the Eiffel Tower, or Sacre Coeur, in the other direction! The room was quite large, by Paris standards! The city was crowded because it was a holiday weekend. The French have off May 1st, for Labor day, and May 8th for Armistice day. Armistice day is a big celebration day all over France. Their memories are still fresh pertaining to what it was like when they were not free.
We walked up to the Arc de triomphe, and the French eternal flame, about 10 minutes away, in the rain. The rain didn't bother us a bit! It is a fabulous memorial! Later in our trip, when we went to Normandy, we would see pictures of the Arc with the Nazi flag flying from it. We walked for about an hour all together. At a cafe on the other side of the boulevard, we ordered the plat de jour...veal blanquette (creamy white sauce), rice, and salad. A small pitcher of wine, some bread, and voila! That night, we ordered soup in our room for dinner, and it was so rich, we had a hard time eating it! Bruce got pea soup, and I got the onion soup. My soup had so much butter, cream, and cheese on top, that I had to fight to get to the broth beneath! I was afraid if I ate it all, I would die in my sleep, by morning!
We headed out on Friday morning via the train to Paris from Avignon. We had practiced how to get to Avignon train station and where to park so that we would not be in a sweat. Smooth trip, except we got on the wrong train to Paris. No problem! We just got there earlier! We had to switch trains, and in doing so, we caught an earlier train! But we did learn how to check to see if it's the right train!
We stayed at the Marriott Champs Élysées. We were in a great location! We had a view of rooftops, and when you turned to either side you either saw the top of the Eiffel Tower, or Sacre Coeur, in the other direction! The room was quite large, by Paris standards! The city was crowded because it was a holiday weekend. The French have off May 1st, for Labor day, and May 8th for Armistice day. Armistice day is a big celebration day all over France. Their memories are still fresh pertaining to what it was like when they were not free.
We walked up to the Arc de triomphe, and the French eternal flame, about 10 minutes away, in the rain. The rain didn't bother us a bit! It is a fabulous memorial! Later in our trip, when we went to Normandy, we would see pictures of the Arc with the Nazi flag flying from it. We walked for about an hour all together. At a cafe on the other side of the boulevard, we ordered the plat de jour...veal blanquette (creamy white sauce), rice, and salad. A small pitcher of wine, some bread, and voila! That night, we ordered soup in our room for dinner, and it was so rich, we had a hard time eating it! Bruce got pea soup, and I got the onion soup. My soup had so much butter, cream, and cheese on top, that I had to fight to get to the broth beneath! I was afraid if I ate it all, I would die in my sleep, by morning!
When we got back to our room that night, the hotel had sent us their congratulations on our Anniversary, a bottle of champagne, and a chocolate dessert that was yummy!
The beds were luxurious, and service impeccable! We do recommend the hotel! However, we probably slipped backwards in using our French! Everyone spoke English to us!
The beds were luxurious, and service impeccable! We do recommend the hotel! However, we probably slipped backwards in using our French! Everyone spoke English to us!
I am going to write a blog about each day we were in Paris. This was the first day!
I think you have the makings of a book! Your narratives are so vivid I feel like I am there with you.
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