"As we pulled into Gare du Nord on Thursday we already felt a whole lot more accomplished than last weekend…we made it to our destination!!! The City of Lights…Ile de Cite…Paris…where romance (and B.O. *coughs*) is in the air. Next step, make it to the hostel. This neighborhood is definitely NOT in the tour books. After navigating the Metro (another big accomplishment) we found ourselves in one of the poorer districts of Paris. And our hostel room, well it was more like a jail cell…the room was so small and the bunks were supported on cardboard. It was still light out when we arrived so we felt safe enough to walk around a bit. What a wake up call…there were signs of poverty everywhere. That night we went to bed wondering where is the Paris from the movies. The one bright spot could be seen from our tiny hostel room window. The Eiffel Tower was starting to light up across town and gave us hope for what we would see the next day."
"Our Bunks"
"Friday we got up and headed to the Louvre. We saw the classics, the Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo and beautiful ceiling work throughout the museum. Afterwards, we took a 3 ½ walking tour for FREE with Jack the Englishman that took us around to most of the major sites in Paris. We saw L’Opera Garnier, La Tour Eiffel, L’arc de triomphe de l’Etoile, La Basilique du Sacre-Coeur, La Cathedrale Notre-Dame, Le muse d’Orsay and many other statues and art pieces around the city. "
"Roula @ the Louvre"
"Jerelliah with the Obelisk of Luxor"
"It was a great tour, but by the end of it, we felt like our feet would fall off. That afternoon as we searched for a Jazz Festival we found a great shopping district in St. Germaine. Unfortunately, Prada, D&G, Roberto Cavalli, and Yves Saint Laurent are a little too rich for our blood so we just enjoyed some window shopping.""All of us @ Theater Festival (St. Sulpice Cathedral)"
"That evening we headed to the Eiffel Tower to see it light up. While we waited for sunset we perfected the Parisian art of people watching. We saw lovers and friends enjoying picnics under the base, street vendors selling souvenirs, joggers running through the park and a homeless man harassing them all. About 22:00 our trip to France was set off as we watched the Eiffel Tower light the night sky. What an amazing sight!"
" The Eiffel Tower up close @ night"
"We made it to Paris and back to Maastricht in one piece. Everyday our travel skills are getting stronger. What’s even more impressive is that all of our belongings made it back too!"
"There were signs like this one everywhere in Paris!"
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