Our morning was bitter sweet. While we were excited to be heading to Paris, neither of us wanted to say goodbye to A&D. We'd had so much fun together, we contemplated whether we could bribe them into coming to Italy with us too! But we had to settle for saying goodbye to Dave and knowing that at least we'd get a bit more time with Alyce in Paris. Before heading out we grabbed a quick bite of breakfast and acquired the best souvenir possible - 4 jars of incredible, homemade, still warm, salty caramel!!
During our time there A&D had been nice enough to suggest some places we might like to stop en route back to Paris. We decided to stop and see the Cathedral at Chartres and were glad we did. Unlike most cathedrals, which strive for symmetry between their large architectural elements, this cathedral prides itself on the opposite. Due to its staggered construction, the cathedral is comprised of one truly Gothic looking spire and one much more Romanesque.
(The cathedral at Charte from the front)
(The rose window in the nave of the cathedral - the photo is abit overexposed, but you get the picture)
(Flying buttresses at the rear of the cathedral)After our stop in Chartres, we made the remainder of our journey to Paris and, with the help of our GPS, found our hotel without incident. Once checked in we had to return the car to Europcar, a trek of two miles straight up a single road. This certainly sounds as easy to you as it did to us. Nearly an hour later we handed the keys over, so thoroughly stressed from the traffic we'd both nearly forgotten we weren't still living through DC rush hour. But we used the walk back to our hotel to relax and by the time dinner came around we'd managed to forget about our traffic nightmare.
We enjoyed dinner at Le Cerise ("The Cherry"), a restaurant A&D had recommended, before heading down to see the Eiffel Tower at night. Our guidebook had mentioned that while we would still encounter tourists, seeing this spectacle at night would be more relaxed and far less crowded. We arrived just in time for the 10PM lighting and we were pleasantly surprised to find the book was right, some tourists, but not nearly the mob scene you'd expect during the day.
(The Eiffel Tower lit up)
(The Eiffel Tower from the opposite bank of the Seine)
After our ET visit, we decided to enjoy the beautiful weather and walk along to Seine to the Champs Elysees and up to the Arc de Triomphe. The Champs Elysees, while glitzy and glittering, held very little appeal. Yes, it's a material Mecca, lined with couture shopping, but window shopping for things we can't afford has never appealed to either of us, so we moved quickly up the road. Planted in the middle of a giant traffic circle at the end of the Champs Elysees sits the Arc de Triomphe, memorializing France's military participation beginning with Napoleon.
(The Arc de Triomphe at night)
After walking under the roadways to see the inside of the Arc, we decided it was time to turn in. Got a little lost on the walk home, but all in all, a great day!
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