What a change!
Showing posts with label Eiffel Tower. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Eiffel Tower. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Luke - 8 months
Luke turned 8 months a few days ago (Sunday). Here are a few pictures I took today of him. He seems a lot older than when we left for Paris. In the five weeks we have been here, he has started crawling, started actually playing with his toys before putting them in his mouth, started getting teeth (1 so far!), and started standing while holding onto furniture, bags, legs, etc.
What a change!
What a change!
Paris: Day 34 - the top of the Eiffel Tower
It is so hot today! I don't know the actual temperature but I cannot get cooled off. We have not had that many "hot" days since coming here but the last few have really been stifling. We also realized that after today we really only have 4 more days that we can see Paris. We took the Metro over to Rue Cler to experience a preservation of French culture. It is a street that has open veggie/fruit markets with fresh everything, fromageries, boulangeries, butchers, shops, etc. It really was neat to see but similar to the streets that we are already familiar with.
ready to go to the top - 899 feet to le sommet!
After Rue Cler we walked over to the Eiffel Tower. By this time we were already very warm but decided to brave the lines and attempt to make it up to the top. The lines were not too bad so we hopped in. The security guy at the entrance to the line told us that we had a "beautiful bebe" so that was very nice to hear! The line went fairly quickly to our surprise! After getting our tickets we crammed on the the elevator to the 2nd floor. These are the large elevators that run on a diagonal. We entered the elevator along with many, many other people. We got off at the 2nd floor and then went up a flight of spiral stairs and then got in line for another elevator. This one was smaller and it went to the top.
The view really was amazing and we were up so high! It was fun to find the parts of Paris that we are familiar with. The city looked like a toy model from all the way up there. Then when you are done you wait in line to go back down to the 2nd story and get off and wait in another line to go all the way back down!
After all of this we were pretty tired and I was so hot! Luke really needed to eat and cool off as well. We found a park near the tower and found a cool grassy area under a tree. I fed Luke and he got to crawl a little around in the grass! What a cutie!
luckily, a (somewhat) short line!
the elevator to the 2nd level
waiting for the elevator
899' above Paris!
Sacre Coeur at Montmartre
along the Seine River
Paris - Arc de Triomphe on the left side
Eiffel Tower's peak
Luke viewing the sights
view from the park beside the Eiffel Tower
Luke cooling off after a hot visit to the top of the Eiffel Tower
Phil and I were both kind of bummed that we were not able to climb the stairs to the top! I think it might have been a little crazy of us in this heat! Maybe next time!
Luke enjoyed himself. Even though it was hot he was babbling happily in line and talking. I am glad that he was rewarded with a little "grass" time after all of that waiting!
play time! also known as dead-leaf eating time!
After cooling off at the park and playing in the grass in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower, we were ready to find something to eat! We headed back to Rue Cler to find the boulangeries that we had seen earlier. We got some drinks and cookies at a grocery, and then we found a boulangerie that had plenty of mouth-watering treats! We got a fougasse and a quiche, and we also got a slice of cheese cake. The cheese cake was fluffy and not very sweet. It was more like a cake than a cheese! It was wonderful! It was a lot better than American cheesecake that is so rich you can barely eat it. We took our finds back to Champs du Mars, the mall-like park between the Eiffel Tower and the military school, and found a bench in the shade to sit and eat them. They were excellent! We headed back to the metro, and unfortunately had to throw the last few bites away because we were full!
fresh butter at the fromagerie
quiche at the boulangerie
Philip & his jambon (ham) fougasse (flat baked bread)
Allison & her champignon (mushroom) quiche
What an eventful and exhausting day! Luke is in bed (hopefully for the night) and Phil is studying for his finals. He is organizing his notes and making outlines. It is funny for me to watch because he took his class notes by hand and on notebook paper! I know this is not that strange or odd but at home he has all of his notes/outlines and everything really on the computer. He can cut and paste from documents and notes and put together packets to use during the final. It is a lot more work to write it all by hand!
This could be the last of our Paris adventures. Tomorrow is Thursday already and Phil really has to study. We still have some Metro tickets that we will hopefully use. Tune in for surprise adventures yet to come!
ready to go to the top - 899 feet to le sommet!
After Rue Cler we walked over to the Eiffel Tower. By this time we were already very warm but decided to brave the lines and attempt to make it up to the top. The lines were not too bad so we hopped in. The security guy at the entrance to the line told us that we had a "beautiful bebe" so that was very nice to hear! The line went fairly quickly to our surprise! After getting our tickets we crammed on the the elevator to the 2nd floor. These are the large elevators that run on a diagonal. We entered the elevator along with many, many other people. We got off at the 2nd floor and then went up a flight of spiral stairs and then got in line for another elevator. This one was smaller and it went to the top.
The view really was amazing and we were up so high! It was fun to find the parts of Paris that we are familiar with. The city looked like a toy model from all the way up there. Then when you are done you wait in line to go back down to the 2nd story and get off and wait in another line to go all the way back down!
After all of this we were pretty tired and I was so hot! Luke really needed to eat and cool off as well. We found a park near the tower and found a cool grassy area under a tree. I fed Luke and he got to crawl a little around in the grass! What a cutie!
luckily, a (somewhat) short line!
the elevator to the 2nd level
waiting for the elevator
899' above Paris!
Sacre Coeur at Montmartre
along the Seine River
Paris - Arc de Triomphe on the left side
Eiffel Tower's peak
Luke viewing the sights
view from the park beside the Eiffel Tower
Luke cooling off after a hot visit to the top of the Eiffel Tower
Phil and I were both kind of bummed that we were not able to climb the stairs to the top! I think it might have been a little crazy of us in this heat! Maybe next time!
Luke enjoyed himself. Even though it was hot he was babbling happily in line and talking. I am glad that he was rewarded with a little "grass" time after all of that waiting!
play time! also known as dead-leaf eating time!
After cooling off at the park and playing in the grass in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower, we were ready to find something to eat! We headed back to Rue Cler to find the boulangeries that we had seen earlier. We got some drinks and cookies at a grocery, and then we found a boulangerie that had plenty of mouth-watering treats! We got a fougasse and a quiche, and we also got a slice of cheese cake. The cheese cake was fluffy and not very sweet. It was more like a cake than a cheese! It was wonderful! It was a lot better than American cheesecake that is so rich you can barely eat it. We took our finds back to Champs du Mars, the mall-like park between the Eiffel Tower and the military school, and found a bench in the shade to sit and eat them. They were excellent! We headed back to the metro, and unfortunately had to throw the last few bites away because we were full!
fresh butter at the fromagerie
quiche at the boulangerie
Philip & his jambon (ham) fougasse (flat baked bread)
Allison & her champignon (mushroom) quiche
What an eventful and exhausting day! Luke is in bed (hopefully for the night) and Phil is studying for his finals. He is organizing his notes and making outlines. It is funny for me to watch because he took his class notes by hand and on notebook paper! I know this is not that strange or odd but at home he has all of his notes/outlines and everything really on the computer. He can cut and paste from documents and notes and put together packets to use during the final. It is a lot more work to write it all by hand!
This could be the last of our Paris adventures. Tomorrow is Thursday already and Phil really has to study. We still have some Metro tickets that we will hopefully use. Tune in for surprise adventures yet to come!
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Paris: Day 33 - evening boat tour on the Seine River
Alicia left early this morning. She left our apartment around 8:00am in order to catch her 11:45am flight. I have received word that she arrived home safely! That is a great relief!Tonight was our boat tour of the sights on the Seine River. It was pretty much my most favorite thing that we have done here! I love boat rides. It was nice to feel the breeze on a hot night! Luke liked it too! It was his first boat ride ever. He liked holding on to the rail and looking over the edge!
We saw a lot of the sights. We saw (and went under) many bridges, Notre Dame Cathedral, Musee d'Orsay, Louvre, National Assembly, and the Eiffel Tower. We have seen all of these things many times before but not at night all lit up. It was all very fun and free (paid for by the school.)
It was so fun to see the Eiffel Tower all sparkly! Apparently every hour for 10 minutes it is glittery! I loved it! We had a great time and then it was so nice out still that we walked home. Enjoy the pictures!
Our Boat!
Luke and I waiting in line
Notre Dame Cathedral
Luke and Daddy!
The Plages
Luke + I + Eiffel Tower
Glittery Eiffel Tower
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Paris: Day 30 - Versailles
Today we left Paris to visit Versailles, the palace built by the Sun King, Louis XIV. He was called the Sun King because it was said that France and the court revolved around him. It is a magnificent palace and is very ornate. We went to the Austerlitz train station to buy tickets, and we found out that some of the tracks are shut down in Paris, so we ended up having to take the metro to the west side of Paris and get on the train there.
the Eiffel Tower
waiting for the train!
The train ride ended up being not very long, and the palace was easy to find. All we had to do was follow the mass of people that was headed there. Luckily we bought our ticket to the chateau at the train station (thanks Rick Steves!) and avoided the very, very long line to get tickets. We checked the stroller and went right into the palace.
in front of the entrance at Versailles
Alli & Luke outside the palace
The rooms are all very ornate and they were fun to see. The Hall of Mirrors was spectacular, with the long room of chandeliers and mirrors with the windows overlooking the gardens. The Hall of Mirrors was where Otto van Bismark declared William I the Emperor of Germany and also where the Treaty of Versailles was signed ending WWI.
one of the rooms - the ceilings were all like this!
Luke, Allison, & Philip in the Hall of Mirrors
The gardens were unbelievable in size, and we ended up not seeing much of them. The gardens closed early because of an evening fountain show, so we did not have much time to walk around them by the time we finished touring the palace. There are many different sections of the gardens and 300 fountains (left from 1500 originally!). We saw the fountains going when we first walked in, and that was the last show of the day. There is also a man-made canal built to replicate Venice, Italy - when it was constructed the king brought gondolas & gondoliers from Italy for it - in the shape of a cross. The long part of the cross is a mile long! Past the canal are a few more palaces that were built by Louis XV (I think) & Marie Antoinette in order to have a place to get away from the life at Versailles.
Alli & Alicia with the man-made lake behind
one of the 300 fountains
Philip & Allison with the gardens behind
Allison & Luke in the gardens
Once we were ushered out of the gardens with all the other visitors, we headed back to the train station and boarded the train to Paris. We got off at a metro transfer, and then we had to pack ourselves like sardines onto the metro. We got back to the apartment about 8:00, and we had a sesame baguette, aged & unpasteurized Comti cheese, salad with balsamic vinegar, and bow-tie pasta while Luke took a nap.
Luke & I at one of the metro stations
the Eiffel Tower
waiting for the train!
The train ride ended up being not very long, and the palace was easy to find. All we had to do was follow the mass of people that was headed there. Luckily we bought our ticket to the chateau at the train station (thanks Rick Steves!) and avoided the very, very long line to get tickets. We checked the stroller and went right into the palace.
in front of the entrance at Versailles
Alli & Luke outside the palace
The rooms are all very ornate and they were fun to see. The Hall of Mirrors was spectacular, with the long room of chandeliers and mirrors with the windows overlooking the gardens. The Hall of Mirrors was where Otto van Bismark declared William I the Emperor of Germany and also where the Treaty of Versailles was signed ending WWI.
one of the rooms - the ceilings were all like this!
Luke, Allison, & Philip in the Hall of Mirrors
The gardens were unbelievable in size, and we ended up not seeing much of them. The gardens closed early because of an evening fountain show, so we did not have much time to walk around them by the time we finished touring the palace. There are many different sections of the gardens and 300 fountains (left from 1500 originally!). We saw the fountains going when we first walked in, and that was the last show of the day. There is also a man-made canal built to replicate Venice, Italy - when it was constructed the king brought gondolas & gondoliers from Italy for it - in the shape of a cross. The long part of the cross is a mile long! Past the canal are a few more palaces that were built by Louis XV (I think) & Marie Antoinette in order to have a place to get away from the life at Versailles.
Alli & Alicia with the man-made lake behind
one of the 300 fountains
Philip & Allison with the gardens behind
Allison & Luke in the gardens
Once we were ushered out of the gardens with all the other visitors, we headed back to the train station and boarded the train to Paris. We got off at a metro transfer, and then we had to pack ourselves like sardines onto the metro. We got back to the apartment about 8:00, and we had a sesame baguette, aged & unpasteurized Comti cheese, salad with balsamic vinegar, and bow-tie pasta while Luke took a nap.
Luke & I at one of the metro stations
Friday, July 25, 2008
Paris: Day 29 - Louvre & night lights
After a full day of shopping in the Marais for the girls and catching up on reading for me, we headed to the Louvre. We moved pretty quickly, trying to get to all of the major pieces so Alicia could see them, and we went through the areas that Allison and I missed the previous times we visited. We did it in about 2 or 2 1/2 hours! We saw Mona Lisa, Winged Victory, Venus de Milo, Hammurabi's Code, and various other works of art. We also saw for the first time the Egyptian wing.
Allison hates mummies, but she was brave enough to not run through this section of the museum. I even got her to take a picture in front of a row of mummies! She kind of looks like she doesn't want them behind her though.
After the Louvre it was getting late, 9:00 or around that time, so we ate at McDonald's because the other food shops that we saw were closed. Allison liked having something familiar again! We walked to the metro by the Louvre and saw the carnival lit up, then took the metro to the Eiffel Tower. It was beautiful at night, although I was surprised it was lit up with blue lights. They have stars on it also, so my guess is it has something to with the European Union. We took some pictures and by then it was starting to sprinkle, so we headed back to the metro.
We took the metro to the Arc de Triomphe, which is also lit up at night. It was pretty neat to see at night - Allison said she liked it better at night than during the day! We walked down the Champs-Alysees to get to the Franklin D. Roosevelt metro stop, and we rode the metro home.
We finally got back to our apartment at about midnight! Luke was pretty fussy on the walk down the Champs-Alysees, and it took him quite a while to wind down once we got back. He was not able to fall asleep until around 12:45.
Allison hates mummies, but she was brave enough to not run through this section of the museum. I even got her to take a picture in front of a row of mummies! She kind of looks like she doesn't want them behind her though.
After the Louvre it was getting late, 9:00 or around that time, so we ate at McDonald's because the other food shops that we saw were closed. Allison liked having something familiar again! We walked to the metro by the Louvre and saw the carnival lit up, then took the metro to the Eiffel Tower. It was beautiful at night, although I was surprised it was lit up with blue lights. They have stars on it also, so my guess is it has something to with the European Union. We took some pictures and by then it was starting to sprinkle, so we headed back to the metro.
We took the metro to the Arc de Triomphe, which is also lit up at night. It was pretty neat to see at night - Allison said she liked it better at night than during the day! We walked down the Champs-Alysees to get to the Franklin D. Roosevelt metro stop, and we rode the metro home.
We finally got back to our apartment at about midnight! Luke was pretty fussy on the walk down the Champs-Alysees, and it took him quite a while to wind down once we got back. He was not able to fall asleep until around 12:45.
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