Comfort Inn Les Mureaux

... br>Around lunch time we headed out of the museum, grabbed some grub (I had quiche Lorraine), and headed to Pont Neuf where we took a boat cruise down the Seine River. Paris is very easy to navigate because the Seine runs right though it, and some of the best images of buildings can be seen on the water. The price was great (12 euros), and since it wasn’t too crowded, we could move around the boat and take pictures. It was very ...

... states. i felt more at home speaking spanish with this couple than ive felt this whole trip! they were so nice and i totally could hold the conversation with them. that and the whole ride i sat next to this *********d bum...haha. wow, what an i eyeopener this trip is already turning out to be. im sad at times to be alone...but at the same time im learning so much about myself. i can be independent figure things out alone. I mean i navigated ...

... You get to go in the different orbs. It has history, artifacts from the Fair, and some great dialogue about society. One of the areas is just for children, so we spent some time there. There were scads of Dyson parts; and kids, and their parents too, could build robots with the parts. When we finished at the Atomium, it was windy, rainy and cold, so we didn't feel like touring Mini Europe in that kind of weather. Instead, we ...

... Hebrew to a bunch of Israelis. That was kinda fun. Then we started our Jewish walking tour. The first stop is actually Notre Dame Cathedral. There is a statue on the cathedral of Synagoga, who represents Judaism. Then we went off on the rest of the walk. What was nice about it was that it went into a Paris neighboorhood, off the beat and path. It was nice to walk through the winding streets ...

... Even if I'm dead when I go. I'm going back. I loved everything about it. The only thing that was embarrassing was the first French person I encountered, I attempted to ask him where we could buy the bus shuttle tickets to our hotel, and I spoke Spanish to him out of habit. I felt like an idiot. I realized what I had done and switched to French, but he totally hated me, I could tell.

... scalps and ensuring that our hair was clean, and meticulously cut. Karina's long hair is now a cute bob, maybe a couple inches off her shoulders. Jan had a trim, and I had quite a bit cut off. If you know me, you know I have a tendency to look like a Campbell's soup kid, but I like the cut better today. I stopped and had lunch in a cafe, a croque Madame, which is a grilled ham and cheese sandwich with a fried ...

... bit of rain, Jenn looked stunning in her bright yellow Poncho - I cut a dash in mine I am sure. Caught up with Mickey last night, only saw 2 parades, one in the rain with miserable kids, one in the dark with lots of lights and bangs - with screaming miserable kids, then had his birthday celebrations, lots of candles and fireworks, I must admit, they do put on a good show The weather today is looking much better, should be ...

... Elysees . I am so glad we did, it gave us a chance to really soak up the atmosphere, listen to the people chattering (everything sounds better when people are speaking French), and get a brilliant view of the approach to the Arc de Triomphe. In a fit of madness (or ignorance), we decided to walk to the top of the Arc de Triomphe, only realising half way up that this thing is bloody high! The longest spiral staircase I have ever seen nearly killed us (go ...

... by any stretch of the imagination. Major sights such as the Arc can be viewed quite well from this vantage point... but the crowds mean pushing yourself to the front so you can get some decent pics. At 10.00pm, the lights came on and flickered away for 15 minutes just as I was taking my photos which was unbelievable timing for me. I enjoyed admiring this terrific tower but was equally glad to escape the throngs of people once I had accomplished ...

... the next week, and being able to communicate with people in my native tongue. So there you have it. My hectic 24 hours in Paris and the harrowing return. Who knows? Maybe my Austrian friend was right. Maybe I was crazy to do it all. I know that I certainly left with some sadness - that I was just starting to get the hang of Paris when I had to turn around and go. But you know what? It was fun. I really can't think of a thing I'd change. Even the ****** stuff was good ...