Tuesday 24 December 2013

Our Last Day In Paris....

We woke up late this morning....what a surprise... too much of the good life last night!!! Looked out the window....Winter had hit Paris....it was cold and pouring with rain, just as well we had a late check out.

View From Our Window

We went out for a little while, bought some lovely ink drawings of Parissien buildings, then made our way back to the hotel.....the rain was winning!!!! So we have sat in the lovely lounge catching up on emails, checking in on-line for our flights back to Australia, blogging etc. Then a nice tea and cake before heading off to the airport.

So is this the end of Our Mid Life Crisis Gap Year????

NO!!!!!!!

The next part of our adventure is just beginning. While we have been on our holiday we have been trying to buy a few acres of land in the beautiful Victorian country town of Daylesford. So that will continue .... once we have got some land we will let you in on the next part of our journey!!!

Daylesford Here We Come!
Will It Be Ours? Not Sure Yet.

So soon we will be home celebrating a late Christmas with our family and friends...so for all of you that have been following us up to now we would like to wish you all a Very Merry Christmas with a lovely photo of our Grand Daughter, Michaela.....

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Our Mid Life Crisis Gap Year continues.................

 

Monday 23 December 2013

Exploring Paris

We got up reasonably early today, just before 9am!!! The goal for today....see as much as Paris as possible!!

I would have to say we did a pretty good job, what with the use of foot power and the Paris Metro we got to see a fair bit. The weather was very grey all day, but luckily it did not rain...looking at the weather all around Euurope at the moment Paris is having pretty good weather, believe it or not!!!

So instead of writing heaps about what we did, this post is more of a picture gallery with just a few words, so here we go.......

We firstly made our way up to Montemarte....

Basilique du Sacre Coeur
Christmas Markets At Sacre Coeur
Artist Market At Place Du Tertre
Great Little Bakery In Montemarte
Montemarte Streets

We then made our way down towards Moulin Rouge, and found out that it was not the only windmill in the area........

Windmills

We finally got down to the famous Moulin Rouge, what a grotty looking place!!!! And the streets all around are so seedy, sex shops everywhere....Lesley would not let me go Christmas shopping in any of them!!!!!

Moulin Rouge
Heaps Of Sex Shops....

We then headed back to the Latin Quarter via the Metro for a short rest before heading out again...

Saint Germain du Pres Church

Next it was back over the River Seine for more exploring.....

Pont Neuf
Pont Des Arts Walking Bridge
Louvre Museum
Arc De Triomphe Du Carrousel
Musee d'Orsay
Place De La Concorde
Place De La Concorde Obelisque
Place De La Concorde Fountain
Nef Du Grand Palais
Pont Alexandre III
Entry To The Petit Palais
Arc De Triomphe
Back To The Eiffel Tower

Then it was back on the Metro to get a few more photos around Notre Dame.

Notre Dame Cathedral

So after an exhausting tour of Paris we had a rest up for an hour or so before heading out for the night. We first went out for drinks, but it was a bit early and most bars were closed...then we found a lovely little Parissien street with a tyical bar..........The Highlander!!!!!! So we sat there and had a Mojito or to...or three.

The Highlander...A Typical Parissien Bar???

We had booked into Chez Fernard a small French restaurant next door to the hotel, which is quite well rated and is known for its good French fare.

We had a wonderful night, the food was fantastic and the staff were great (very friendly). Somehow we managed to get through three courses and they were all delicious.....French Baked Onion Soup, Cep Mushroom Raviolis with Foie Gras Sauce, Legendary (their words..and it was) Beef Bourguignon with Steamed Potatoes, Grilled Beef Fillet with Truffle Sauce and Potatoe Puree, Creme Brulee with Orange Zest, Smooth Chocolate Lava Cake with Salted Butter Caramel Ice Cream.............yummmmmmmmm!!!!!

We also met some nice people at the restaurant, Jack and Judy from Virginia USA, and we finished off the night by having a night cap back at the hotel bar with them, so more holiday friends that we will be keeping in touch with.

So after a massive day there was only one thing left to do.........sleep!

 

Sunday 22 December 2013

Paris Day Two

The big goal today was to get to the Eiffel Tower, and the quickest and easiest way to get there was via the Paris Metro, which I must say is very easy to use....thank goodness. When we got to the station nearest the tower it was just a short walk along the banks of the Seine....we actually walked along the Promenade d'Australie,,..I think we need to put some money in to get this improved, not the prettiest part of Paris by a long way!!!!

Views Across The Seine
Promenade d'Australie
The Eiffel Tower Comes Into View

There were Christmas Markets all around the tower area so we went exploring those for a while.....you cannot keep us away from these things!!!!

The Christmas Market In The Trocadero Gardens

Just nearby they had set up an ice skating rink that was full of French families and some "well insured" tourists!!!

Ice Skating Near The Eiffel Tower

Lesley even hi-jacked poor old Santa Claus, goodness knows what demands she was putting on him!!!!

Lesley With Santa

Even took a "selfie" at the tower, pity it looks like I am wearing it as a hat!!!

Us At The Eiffel Tower

As we got closer to the tower we found another Christmas Market,, you guessed it, another walk around!!!!

Christmas Market Near The Eiffel Tower
Photo Bombed!!!!!!!!

We then walked to the tower to find that most of it was closed due to high winds!!!

The Eiffel Tower Up Close

So after a whiule we made our way back to the Metro and to the Latin Quarter for a cheap 10 euros, 3 course meal, not the best food, but good value for the money!!

Around The Latin Quarter
Lunch

The rest of the day was taken up with wandering around the Latin Quarter and just taking in the sites, then back to the hotel for afternoon tea.