Daily Log - Tuesday, October 17, 2006

We have arrived!!

Our plane was on time, and we had an uneventful flight (just the kind we wanted!) A few of us lucky ones got some sleep, and a few unlucky ones did not. The biggest problem was that John Guimond felt a bit under the weather during the flight, but he was better when we landed.

Our 12 weary travelers arrived in Paris at 7 a.m. local time (which was 1 a.m. for those of you at home in Massachusetts, and the time our bodies told us it was!)

We were met by a lovely local guide named Monique, who took us on a bus tour of the city. Mind you, most of us had been awake for more than 24 hours, and it was hard to keep eyes open, even when looking at the marvels of Paris!

We checked into our hotel around noon, had a bite to eat at a cafe across the street, and TOOK NAPS!!!! Well, all of us except Kathy Riordan, who bravely set off by herself via the metro in search of the Monmartre cemetery to visit the grave of a friend.

Our strength somewhat regained after our naps, we set off for a spot on the Seine near the Eiffel Tower, where we boarded a Bateaux Parisian boat at 8 p.m. for a one-hour cruise on the beautiful River Seine. Along the way we passed under a dozen of the famous Paris bridges, and marveled at the famous monuments on the banks of the river - such as Notre Dame and the Louvre - all of which were lighted up in the clear night. Spectacular!

One high point: as we were waiting for the boat to depart, the millennium lights on the Eiffel Tower were lit, as they are for 10 minutes on the hour. It was breathtaking!

Many of our tired travelers headed back to the hotel for some much-needed sleep. But three hearty intrepids - Sr. Maureen Kervick, Peggy Clark, and I - decided that since we were right there at the base, we HAD to go to the top of la Tour Eiffel and look down on the city of light! THAT was an elevator ride to remember - I had to keep my eyes closed! But we made it to the very top, and admired the incredible view.

We are looking forward to visiting the Chartres Cathedral tomorrow -

Annie

Unless otherwise stated, the content of this page is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 License.