Leaving Paris for Calais
And all of Paris plays a part.
You'll stroll two by two down what we call La Rue,
And soon all Paris will be singing to you!"
*Need to stop watching Anastasia!*
Our full day in Paris yesterday started with a city sightseeing tour. The bus made its way through the streets and wide boulevards of central Paris, passing by its many elegant apartments with their cream-coloured walls, blue-grey roofs, and balconies of curlicued black iron.
The local guide pointed out each attraction as we drove past - L'Arc de Triomphe, commissioned in 1806 after Napoleon I's victory at Austerlitz; the wide Place de la Concorde with its gold-tipped Egyptian obelisk; and the cream-and-blue La Conciergerie, which was the first royal palace in Paris.
We got off the coach in front of the (also) cream-and-blue City Hall, shivered across the river Seine and arrived (still shivering) at the Notre Dame de Paris. We took photos of the newly-cleaned façade before proceeding into the cathedral.
The interior of the cathedral was mostly dark, lit by candles on a few chandeliers and the many stained glass windows lining the walls - especially the cathedral's large rose windows.
We left the building and walked around its perimeter, where the guide pointed out the gargoyles and the (uncleaned) blacked spire of the cathedral.
We hopped onto the coach again and passed by more pretty buildings, including Les Invalides with its gold-domed church.
Then the Eiffel Tower finally came into view in the distance, and we all clambered out to spend the next 15 minutes photographing the tower and its vicinity.
The final leg of our city tour took us down the very long, very straight Avenue des Champs-Élysées, passing by many high-end boutiques.
We also passed the Greek temple-like Église de la Madeleine (a church), before reaching our meeting point - L'Opéra.
Above: L'Église de la Madeleine
Above: Palais Garnier, otherwise known as L'Opéra
The next four hours were spent walking up and down (and having lunch along) the Champs-Élysées, which took an incredibly long time since the avenue was neverending.
Then, with only around an hour left, we hurried to the Louvre, an enormous complex of (surprise!) cream-and-blue buildings. We only knew we were in the right place when we saw the famous glass pyramids from afar. But first we walked under the mini triumphal arch before taking more pictures of the Louvre's compound and the pyramids.
There were many people walking around, sitting by the fountain, and of course queuing to get into the museum. We obviously did not have time to join the latter (very unfortunately), but as we made our way out of the complex, we passed a huge glass window overlooking a section of the museum's interior...
Finally we entered the Metro station across the road, and reached our hotel less than half an hour later.
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