We got there before the elevator to the top opened, so we waited in line for a good hour, I'd say. Remember how a hobo stole my jacket in London? I wish I had it now. It was still early in the morning, which was why it was chilly, but I was wearing a knee-length skirt and v-neck because I knew we'd be doing a lot of walking outside and I knew it warm up and be pleasant! But I was horribly cold until then.
The views at the top were amazing!! I could have stayed there just taking pictures and freaking out about the fact that I was on top of the Eiffel Tower... Enjoy pictures:
At the bottom, we all reconvened and took some more incredible pictures:
After snapping 2083506 pictures, we grabbed a metro map, rolled up our sleeves, and got ready to metro our way all over Paris and hit a bunch of touristy stops.
Touristy stop #2 (Eiffel Tower was #1): Arc de Triomphe
This is a cool monument - it stands to honor those who have fought and died in the French Revolutionary and Napoleanic wars. It has the names of the French victories and their generals (I think) engraved all over it. We didn't go inside, but spent some time looking at it and passed it a couple times over the next couple of days.
Touristy Stop #3: Champs Elysees
The picture above is not mine. But it's to give you an idea of this street. It's close by the Arc and it's pretty famous for its shopping, theaters, cafes, etc. Fun place. We stopped and watched some street performers do their show. They referred to me and my friends as the "Spice Girls". I call Mel B.
Touristy Stop #4: Sainte-Chapelle
This chapel was consecrated in 1248. That's a year, not a time on the clock, by the way. Things were built that long ago in Europe. I love it. Again, we didn't go inside. We wanted to make sure we had time to go inside and visit places for free... and it was about 10 euro to go inside. Go google image search Sainte Chapelle when you get the chance. It's crazy. I would like to go inside at some point in my life.
It was a beautiful walk on the way to our next touristy stop:
Touristy Stop #5: NOTRE-DAME CATHEDRAL
Dear readers, this historical catholic cathedral is for sure within my top 3 favorite things I did/saw during the whole trip. Construction started in 1163, and it opened in 1345. I heard the bells ring. The bells, each of which weighs about 13 tons, and one of which is named Emmanuel. This is real life, folks. I couldn't take enough pictures of the outside. There will be more.
There were many places, especially churches, that didn't allow photography inside, which is fine. I was never upset about it. I was, however, significantly happier when I could snap photos. Enjoy.
Breathtaking. Fortuitously, there was a mass service going on, so I got to see Notre-Dame filled, not necessarily just with tourists, but with people going to church. It was refreshing to see an old, beautiful building fulfilling the purpose with which it was built over 800 years ago.
As I promised, more pictures of the exterior:
Quick shoutout to my fellow adventurers for the day:
We stopped for a little rest near Notre-Dame, where some people shopped, and others used the most unique public bathroom pictured below. It would speak to you in French while you were using it, then, after you were finished, it would usher you out (or something) in French, then self-clean. Between each use. Brilliant idea, but it was kind of scary. Scary, because it was more complicated than most public bathrooms, and it didn't speak English.
Enough about bathrooms.
Touristy Stop #6: The Catacombs of Paris
Please go here and read a little bit about the history of the Catacombs. This underground grave site has an eerie history involving digging up existing cemeteries, carts loaded with bones, and over 6 million people, whose remains are now in this ancient Parisian tunnel network. It was totally creepy and totally cool:
It was cool and a little bit humid. Quiet. Creepy as heck. We turned the corner and saw this:
Remember, folks: these are real bones. Usually in the displays and museums we're used to, bones are either completely fake, or they're fossils. These are the skeletons of actual people.
Touristy stop #7: Restaurant by the Eiffel Tower
Since we'd been spending most of our mealtimes rushed at gas stations or small bakeries so that we could move on to the next thing, we decided to slow down, and stop at a nice French restaurant. It was relaxing, and even though we were polite and quiet, the waitress still was kind of mean to us. I think it's because none of us were going to get alcohol, which brings in more revenue than us "just water, please" type of people. Here was my meal:
Yes. Escargot. I had it. Because I'll try anything. I won't necessarily like it, but I'll try it. If I was going to try escargot ever in my life, I figured that France would be the best place to do it. My thoughts on the dish: I like butter and garlic. So it tasted pretty good. The snails themselves don't have a super exciting texture (think raw shrimp), but between the shell, and the butter and garlic, the vehicle the snails came in was enjoyable. I probably won't order it again.
Touristy Stop #8: The Eiffel Tower at nighttime
It's magical. It just is. The tower is all lit up, then for 5 minutes every hour, it SPARKLES. It's so dreamy.
Touristy Stop #9: Crepes and the Carousel
We were in Paris. We had to.
Touristy Stop #10: Hotel. Bedtime. Immediately. Exhausted.
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