Eiffel Tower!
If you walk to the second platform of the Tower, you get a discount on the tickets. I got an additional discount because they charged me the 24 and under rate. I love Parisians...they thought I was under 24! The walk to the first platform was about 300 steps. Oy!
View from the 1st platform
It was another 300 steps or so, to the 2nd platform, then the line for the elevator to the top wrapped arount half of the tower (almost two sides!). The wait was painfully long. In hindsight, it's worth it to pay the extra euro (I think it was only 2 or 3 Euro savings) and ride all the way to the top. On the way down, stop on the 2nd platform if possible and check out the view. It's easier to spot buildings and such from the 2nd platform.
At the top of the Eiffel Tower. The Arc de Triomphe is to the left of my head.
Dave at the apex; the Arc is to the left of his shoulder!
After the Eiffel Tower, we tried to find a post office to change money. By the time we arrived, it was too late to change money. Boo! I was able to use an ATM though. No commission fees, but ATM charges. All in all, I think withdrawing the max daily amount from the ATM, might be the way to go. I'll soon find out when I look at my bank statement! After the ATM, we stopped at a supermarche for some sandwich "fixin's" and discovered that they had an enormous selection of wine! There were some wines for less than 2 euro! I heard angels sing for the second time! We purchased sandwich stuff and some wine and headed back to our hotel. After eating our sandwiches and drinking some wine, we headed to Sacre Coeur. Someone told us it was open 'til 10pm. The church was in our neighborhood, only about a 5-10 minute walk (all uphill!). The walk wasn't too bad, although I had to stop to rest...it gave us a great opportunity to check out the action in our neighborhood. There were tons of bars and eateries!
Dave at the back/side of Sacre Coeur
The front-ish of Sacre Coeur
Eiffel Tower from the front of Sacre Coeur
We only went into the church for a minute. The gift shop and stairs to the top were closing. We had had enough stairs for one day anyway! Inside the church was breathtaking! They were preparing for nightly mass.
There was a statue of St. Pierre. Everyone was touching his foot and saying a little prayer. Although, I'm not too religious anymore, I thought, what the heck. I walked up and as soon as I touched his foot, music started playing and nuns were singing as mass began. If ever there was perfect timing. Dave said it was a sign that I should move to Paris and become a nun. Yeah, I'd be the Martin Luther of Sacre Coeur. I told him of some of my issues with the Catholic church, but I won't bore you here. However, Paris had some amazing churches!! Being raised in a devout Catholic household; I could definitely appreciate it all. Even if someone wasn't raised in a religious atmosphere, they would be hard pressed not to appreciate the magnificance...
On the steps leading up to Sacre Coeur, there was more music, drinking and people just hanging out...
After Sacre Coeur, we went to the metro to meet our friend, Etienne, who lives in Switzerland. He took the train to hang out with us for a while. Of course, our hotel gave his room away, so once they arranged another room for him in a neighboring hotel, we visited and finished off our bottle of wine.
