Bienvenue à Paris

We were hoping to get an amazing view of Paris as we flew in but it was raining and cloud covered so this is the best we had.

Arriving at the Paris airport

It took forever to get through customs. They kept us up on the upper level until they cleared some of the lower level. About an hour from arriving to meeting up with the driver.

Our first glimpse of the Eiffel Tower through rain spotted windows of the taxi. Today was the rain day. Hopefully the rest of the trip will be sunny and dry. 

Mediterranean spurge: it's toxic white, sticky sap has been used to treat skin growths like cancers, tumors, and warts since ancient times. 

Our first walk in Paris. Still raining but supposed to stop soon.

We had brunch here. 

Pain au chocolat and croissant to begin. Can't say enough about the flakiness of these pastries. Wow! 

Croque monsieur (ham and toasted cheese on crusty bread) for me and…

Crêpe œuf, jambon et fromage (egg, ham & cheese) for Jo Anne. I think the little dab of salad on the plates is supposed to make you feel better about eating all the bread and cheese.

The cherry blossoms are plentiful and so magnifique!

The river Seine 

Self-explanatory. I’m going to try to refrain from sending too many Eiffel Tower pictures a day. However, since I simply must send the views from our room today, there will be more than one. 

There are six replicas of the statue de la liberté in Paris. This one is located just down from our hotel. 

After wandering the streets like a couple of tourists, we decided to stop in Monoprix, the Target of Paris. Couldn’t resist taking a photo of this package of hot dog jackets 🤣. Every hotdog needs a good Jacquei. 

View of the river Seine from our living room window. 

View of the statue from the dining room window. 

Same view at night

If you stand in the living room and hold your camera as far out in the corner of the window as you can, you get this view. 

Same view as the night lights come on. 

View inside the apartment on the dining room wall 😆. 

The apartment (home away from home for the next 9 nights). 

After getting checked in we are off for another walk. No grass will grow under our feet. Very interesting sponge like rock. 

Love all the displays in the markets. 

La Petit Chocolatier & Co. These are all ice creams (glacés).

These purses and shoes are all made of chocolate. 

Chocolate flower pots. 

We couldn’t find a good restaurant for supper so decided to stop in this Charcutier (Maison Gagnepain) and get some takeout to have in our room. 

Courgette (zucchini) and chèvre (goat cheese) quiche, carrot salad, saucisse viennoise and beet salad.  

Of course we had to also stop in the chocolate shop for some glacé for dessert. 

It has been a very long two days of travel and we are ready to get some rest. Tomorrow is another busy day, the first of our cooking days. 

18,248 steps

7.2 miles

4 floors

Bonne nuit.