Well, we had an eventful time getting to Paris! Our flight from Nashville to Philly was half an hour late, which wouldn't have been a big deal if our layover had been more than an hour! And, of course, our connecting gate was literally the farthest one possible from our arriving gate! So we ran, and we ran, and we took the shuttle, and we ran some more - and we made it! Only to sit on the plane for an hour and a half while they straightened out a lighting issue! That's how life goes, huh?
When we arrived, we took a taxi to our guesthouse, and discovered it to be even more lovely than we imagined. Cecilia and Jean-Claude, the owners, have three studio apartments that they rent out, and keep an absolutely lovely garden filled with roses and green grass and a lovely pavillion from which to enjoy it all. When we arrived, Cecilia had fresh bread, butter and marmalade waiting for us to snack on, and had stocked the refrigerator with orange juice, yogurt, water, etc! Our room is small, but comfortable, and the bathroom is spacious by European standards. The decoration is very homey and kitch, very similar to what you would expect in an American B&B. Altogether it's a very welcoming and comfortable place - a nice change after all the hotels I've been in in the last month.
We were seriously jetlagged of course, so we took a nap and managed to oversleep by about three hours. We finally got out the door around 4:00 and successfully navigated the metro system and arrived at the Eiffel Tower! We walked around, took in the Eiffel Tower, and decided to eat before mustering the energy for the climb. We ate a simple but satisfying meal around the corner and made our way back to the tower. For some crazy reason we decided to go by stairs as opposed to the elevator, so 30 minutes and 500 steps later we were on the Eiffel Tower! I had no idea that they had little sandwich and snack places up there, or souvenier shops, etc. So we walked around, and enjoyed the view from up there, and finally took the elevator to get to the very top! By far, the scariest elevator ride of my life - all glass, and all you can see is what is below you, and very little of the superstructure holding you up. But we made it, and the view was spectacular.
There is a Champagne bar up on the top of the tower, so Daniel got us glasses of champagne and we toasted our one year anniversary overlooking beautiful Paris from the the top of the tower! Afterward, we walked along the river for a while, and finally made our way back to the guesthouse. One the way back we stopped and had a fantastic meal at an Asian restaurant near to it. It was delicious! Daniel had some sort of spicy beef dish, and I had chicken with curry, and stir-fried noodles with vegetables. It was all flavorful and well cooked. We also enjoyed a bottle of bordeaux and we had sorbet for dessert. I kid you not, this was the best sorbet I have ever had! Homemade, real ingredients - it was fantastic. Daniel had chocolate, and I had mango and coconut. I think we'll be going back there several times during our stay here . . .
So there was Day 1 in Paris. I'll try to update whenever I can, and with pictures eventually. Love you all!
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