Day 3: How to conquer Paris in a day....

So..we were feeling a bit unfulfilled. The rain and jet lag had dampened our plans for Day 2. Sri had put together a master plan for our Day 3 and we were going to abide to it as best as we could!! We woke up all energized only to see our window foggied up and rain pouring down on the streets of Paris. No worries...we're going out and the rain will just have to deal with us!!

Picked up a chocolat du pain and Sri got croissant au raisin to kickstart the day. We were off to the Louvre! Figured it wouldn't rain that much in there!! AFter buying our tickets....we looked at each other in utter disbelief. Where the heck do we go next? Even the welcome area was like a maze. we went straight for the jugular - the Mona Lisa!! Suffice it to say that we weren't really prepared. We kinda just followed our whim of the moment. There were signs of Mona Lisa all over the museum and we still got lost. But, on the way, we did run into some amazing works. We saw greeks, romans, crusaders of the medieval times. We saw french and italian paintings. We saw sculptures and egyptian tombs. But, i wanted to see Mona and Venus!! and, there she was...among a throng of tourists. She had her own room!! After looking at all the paintings, we noticed that Da Vinci's creation was quite small compared to the average. Ok, a couple quick shots and we moved on. Speaking of sculptures, we saw Venus de Milo next. She was amazing. The goddess of love, Aphrodite had lost her arms....but, still is one of the most prized pieces in this museum. The Louvre itself is a work of art. The ceilings are adorned with translucent glass and the walls have meticulous carvings.


Ok, we were done. We probably saw 25% of the museum...but, at this point...we were just looking for the 'sortie' signs to get out!! So tired. Visually...it was too much sensation. Physically...our feet and backs were achy. Out we went.....to sunshine!! yay...perfect timing. Next was lunch!! We found a street cafe that made crepes on the sidewalk and jumped right in. After getting energized, we bought an umbrella and headed up north on the metro to Montmarte. The Sacre Coeur basilica was one of the most impressive looking churches (aside from Notre Dame) and perched high above the city. This side trip might have been one of the most fulfilling of our week. This district was very quaint and had many distinct narrow, winding streets that were colored with shops and boulangeries. We walked and walked up the streets until we saw remnants of the church. Uh oh...here comes the rain...and the wind. We trudged on and made it.....wow, what a view!! We took pictures and pictures. Lil' Akhil was cold, but cheerful. Montmarte: done.

It was about 4:30 and we were just getting going. Paris is well known for its fashion and shopping. Well, we decided to visit the shopping mecca in the Galleries Lafayette. This place puts every mall that I've visted to shame!! We got yelled at for taking pictures inside....sri was trying on one of Dior's expensive hats!! Tsk, tsk.

We walked by the Opera district (quite the architecture, also) and hopped on the metro back to the hotel. After a quick clean up, we were right back out. This time.....two of the major Paris icons - Le Tour Eiffel and the Arc de Triomphe!! We ventured out to one of the more popular photo spots and took some night pictures of the Eiffel Tower. Every hour on the hour is when the tower glitters and it truly is a sight to see. We did our best with the rain....but, made one last pit stop...at the Arc de Triomphe. Even though we made it here on Day 1, I wanted to check it out from another angle....the famous streets of Champs D'Elysees. The french armies rode through here to be honored and celebrated and you couldn't find a better landmark. It was a great way to end the night and one of our busiest days yet. Paris....what a beautiful city......la ville lumiere...