Today is actually Friday, May 9, as I'm posting after the fact, and our port is Lehavre,
France. Today we join 6 others from our
cruise critic roll call and head to Paris.
Our guide is Christophe Butaire, a driver/guide we hired after reading
some wonderful reviews. It will be a
long day as the drive to/from Paris is 2 hours each way. Our group is among the first to disembark the
ship at 7:45 am and there is Christophe waiting for us.
The drive to Paris is beautiful. We pass by little villages that look so
quaint and orderly. The fields are lush
and green.
Just before 10 am we arrive
in Paris and see our first glimpse of the Eiffel Tower in the distance.
First stop, though, is at the Arc de Triomphe. It honors those who fought and died in the French Revolution and the
Napoleon Wars. Beneath its vault lies
the tomb of an unknown soldier from WWI.
The eternal flame burns in the memory of those unidentified soldiers who
died in both WWs. Yesterday, May 8, was
VE Day, which is the anniversary of the end of WWII. Parades were held and there were still
bleachers standing on the sides of the round-about near the Arc.
Then it was off to see the
Eiffel Tower. We held a very slight hope
that the line to go up the Tower would not be very long. Our group had tried to buy tickets online as
soon as they opened up for this day, but it was sold out just a minute after
the tickets went on sale. The line to
buy tickets today was very long so we were satisfied with staying on the ground
and just taking photos of the Tower.
Next Christoph drove us to
the L’eglise des Invalides. It was a veteran’s hospital and now an army
museum. It also contains the tomb of
Napoleon and his son.
At many places we were
able to stop the van and get out for picture taking. Others, we just drove by and Christoph
pointed out the places of interest.
Paris is a beautiful city and there are statues, beautiful buildings,
monuments, and lots of city life just everywhere you look.
La Conciergerie is a former royal palace and
prison. It is part of the larger complex
known as the Palais de Justice, which is still used for judicial purposes. Hundreds of prisoners
during the French Revolution were taken from La Conciergerie to be
executed on the guillotine at a
number of locations around Paris.
Few travelers and tourists
visiting Paris, France, realize that the famous cathedral of Notre-Dame is actually situated on an island. The Ile
de la Cité is usually referred to as the epicenter of Paris, as well as the original
site of the earliest settlement in Paris--- a muddy town on the banks of a
muddy river that grew to be known as one of the most beautiful places in the
world.
We stop at Notre Dame, Paris’ most beloved church with towers and gargoyles. A 700-year old cathedral, dedicated to “Our
Lady” (Notre-Dame).
Next to the
cathedral there was a big tent with the most wonderful aromas coming from
inside. It was an International Bread
Festival.
Heading back
over the river, we cross on the bridge famous for its locks. This seems to be a tradition in Europe now
for young lovers to place a lock on the bridge and then throw the key into the
river, locking their love for each other forever.
The Louvre is Europe’s
oldest, biggest and greatest museum starring Mona Lisa and Venus di Milo. Housed in a U-shaped 16th century
palace, accentuated by a 20th century glass pyramid is Paris’ top
museum and home to Mona Lisa, Venus di Milo, and hall after hall of Greek and
Roman masterpieces, medieval jewels, Michelangelo statues, and paintings by the
greatest artists from the Renaissance to the Romantics. Our hope is to return someday and spend hours
in this magnificent place.
Then it was on
to the Moulin Rouge, a caberet. Moulin Rouge
is best known as the spiritual birthplace of the modern form of the can-can dance. Originally introduced as a
seductive dance it evolved into a form of entertainment of its own and led to
the introduction of cabarets across Europe.
Van Gogh lived
in this apartment and there is a plaque indicating so. Don’t know if this is where he actually cut
off his ear….
Montmarte is Paris’ highest hilltop. We strolled along
the streets filled with artist vendors and eateries and chose a place to have a
quick lunch. We selected what we wanted
from the glass cases. We chose a quiche
and a wonderful almond tart pastry. It
was delicious.
On the Montmarte hilltop is the five-domed
Roman-Byzantine basilica of Sacre-Coeur, which took 44 years to build. The exterior is laced with gypsum, which
whitens with age. From this point we had a spectacular view of Paris.
We saw so much more during our day in Paris. We definitely want to come back and stay for
several days in order to get a real feel for this City of Lights and to be able
to go inside the many fascinating museums and churches. A day in port is simply not enough for this
beautiful city.
We headed back to Lehavre and our ship with one last
glimpse of the Eiffel Tower.
Our day in Paris was wonderful, and it was a splendid way
to celebrate my birthday.
Next port....Rotterdam, The Netherlands!
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