Comfort Hotel Paris-Bastille

... which had a giant Christmas tree in front of it. And then to Luxembourg Gardens, which we spent a grand total of about five minutes as because it was raining and pretty much all of the vegetation was dead. Not very impressive unfortunately. So while it sort of sucked being in Paris during winter because it was freezing and all the gardens were dead, it was also really cool because of all the Christmas decorations.

Before this we had pretty much been taking ...

... about that picture was remarkable. There are probably paintings out there equally remarkable, but they can’t all be the most famous can they.
After a few hours in the Louvre our bellies began to cave in on themselves so we went to find a baguette. It wasn’t easy, but we found a decent priced sandwich store. When we got home it was late so we wandered around the suburbs to check out what was going on. It was a Friday night so we expected ...

... Immigration/customs was non existent..there i was clutching all my "necessary documents" like they were soo important ..and there were the guards, just standing there talking.. people just walked right past and to the exit so i did too, and that was it. I guess this is why France is having problems with their overload of problematic immigrants?!

I found the bus i had to take into town, and as i was waiting for it i saw a bus full ...

... going to court. I had a swiss army knife with me I had to check. This procedure became routine as most places we went to required a metal detector and a bag search. The church itself is absolutely beautiful. It has a ton of amazing stained-glass that I read was all removed and stored safely for both world wars. Words cannot describe it you just have to experience it. I thought many times throughout this trip that the French (at least older generations) sure ...

... ago. The buildings are old and archaic and kind of look like they belong to a monestary. The Latin Quarter is beautiful. The buildings are long and old, and there are cafes everywhere. The books were really heavy, so we decided to drop them off at the dorm before heading out again. After we did this, we went to the Eiffel Tower. We walked along the Seine to get there, and took photos. I took some photos of the part of the ...

... of places back. ;) After walking for an hour the Champs Elysses intersected the roundabout where the Arc de Triomphe is located, which is the largest triumphal arch in the world. The detail on the arch was stunning, and we even got to climb to the top! That was the first climb of many in the City of Lights, and each view from the top offered more than the last. Simply amazing. After the Arc de Triomphe we bought some sandwiches, uncorked a bottle of wine, and ...

... up and headed off to explore the wonder that is most likely the most famous museum on the planet. I was expecting a wait, but pretty much just breezed in like I owned the joint. I, unlike many, did not head straight for Mona or Venus. I took my time getting to those two and explored a good chunk of the museum over the course of about 4 hours! The actual painting of the Mona Lisa is much smaller than I always thought. I couldn't ...

... complemented by the myriad stained glass pieces throughout the cathedral. Most of these were taken out in World War Two to prevent them being damaged. The only light other than the dim glow cast by these stained glass windows are the small golden orbs of the thousaunds of tea candles throughout the interior. The exterior of Notre Dame is decorated with gargoyles, large human sculptures and other figures. Next we walked onto the ...

... was the Louvre The Louvre Museum is one of the largest, oldest, most important and famous art gallery and museum in the world. The first royal "Castle of the Louvre" was founded in the centre of Paris by Philip Augustus in 1190, as a fortified royal palace to defend Paris on its west against Viking attacks. In the 14th century, Charles V turned it into a palace of the arts, but Francois I and Henri II ...

... any worse than the bed I was on and offered to swap with the guy so that I would be able to get out in the morning without tripping over bodies, beds and bags. I warned the guy about the springs beforehand but he jumped at the chance. Until he sat on the bed. But this arrangement really was best and he said he'd survive. Surprisingly, the fold out bed wasn't too bad. I slept so well, I didn't hear the 5th person come into the room.