Paris: Day 7

Allison was feeling better today, so we walked around Paris to find the Louvre, the Arc de Triomphe, and the Eiffel Tower. The Louvre is huge - it has 13 miles of hallways filled with art. The outside is a work of art itself, with statuary and fountains, some glass pyramids, and an arch. This area of Paris is laid out much like Washington D.C., with a center line running from the Arc de Triomphe to the obelisk, to the pyramid and an archway of the Louvre.

Part of the Louvre


The pyramid in the courtyard at the Louvre



In the Louvre's courtyard looking toward the Arc de Triomph


The obelisk at the other end of the Champs-Elysees from the Arc de Triomphe



The Arc de Triomphe


After walking through the courtyard of the Louvre and through the gardens attached to it, we walked down the Champs-Elysees to the Arc de Triomph. It was pretty awesome as well, quite large and imposing. You couldn't walk to it though, you have to walk through a tunnel and come up beside it. We put that off for another time, as we wanted to make it to the Eiffel Tower and it was starting to get cloudy.

Alli and Luke walking through the Jardin des Tuileries


We walked through some typical Parisian streets, with bakeries, stores, and more on our way to the Eiffel Tower. We bought a snack at a bakery (Allison got a shortbread cookie with nutella spread in it like a tart, and I got a small loaf of bread with chocolate/chocolate chips in it). The Eiffel Tower was as large as we thought it would be! It started to rain before we quite got underneath it, so we decided it would be best to head for home and come back another time to ride to the top. You can go up to the first level, the second level, or the top. I believe that the second level has a restaurant you can eat at while you are up there. It was worth the 4.5 mile walk to see it!

Allison holding my chocolate bread with the Eiffel Tower behind her


Allison and Luke with the Eiffel Tower behind them


The Eiffel Tower


We decided to walk back, and we walked faster and faster as we saw the dark clouds coming. Eventually it started to rain steadily, although not a downpour. For some reason, we decided to keep walking instead of taking the metro, so we walked home in the rain as fast as we could, with me carrying Luke because the stroller was getting wet (we forgot the cover in Bloomington!).
After we got back to the apartment (it had stopped raining the last 1/2 mile or so), I went back out and found a sandwich and a salad at a local bakery on Rue St. Antoine. It was a ground hamburger panini with what tasted somewhat like thousand island dressing. It was good!