Paris with Mom and Dad!

On Thursday, the 12 of May (this is still back in 2011 even though I'm posting over year later!) Mom, Dad and I (Kristy) spent the day in Paris!  We took a very early train up to have as much time as possible to see beautiful Paris.

After the 3 hour TGV (high speed train), we took the metro and started at the Tour Eiffel, the most prominent tourist site in Paris!  It was a beautiful morning and the Eiffel Tower did not disappoint.

 After the Eiffel Tower, we took a hop-on, hop-off boat down the Seine River.  I had discovered this was an easy way to save some walking without going underground or fighting the crazy Paris traffic.  View of Eiffel Tower on the river.

 And the Musee d'Orsay

 And a house boat along the way. 

 We got off when we'd gone all the way down the river to Notre Dame.

 We went through inside...

 admired the beautiful chandeliers, stained glass and other art...
 and then walked around outside a bit.

 
 Lockets on a bridge.  People put lockets on the bridges along the Seine when they get married and put their names and sometimes the dates on them.  This shows only a few of the thousands that adorn many of the bridges along the way.

 We had lunch across the river in the Latin Quarter.

 One last picture in front of Notre Dame.... 

and then we boarded our 'Batibus' once again to cruise back down the Seine River.

 View of the back side of Notre Dame from the river boat.

 Then we got off at the Louvre and looked around a bit.  One day does not give you enough time to spend going through the Louvre, so we just enjoyed the outside.

 Then walked down the Jardin des Tuileries towards the Champs Elysees. 

 I think we took the metro since I was wearing Dad out with all the sight seeing!  But we made it to the Arc de Triomphe and looked around a bit.

 After a little rest there, we hopped on the metro again... (not their favorite thing, but they were troopers!)

 and up to the Basilique du Sacre Coeur.

 We relaxed on the grass and steps on the way up...

 Then admired the view of Paris below!

 You can even peek through these trees and spot the Eiffel Tower in the distance!

After the Sacre Coeur, we were all ready to call it a day...but what a day it was!  We covered all the major landmarks and enjoyed a long lunch and an afternoon rest and snack on the Sacre Coeur lawn.  We headed back to the train station, grabbed some sandwiches for the ride home, and sat back and relaxed as the train sped us back to Grenoble.  Safe and sound at home around 11PM.  A very long but enjoyable day.  I think (and hope!) Mom and Dad were pleased to see so much in a day, I thought they did very well on my crazy schedule!  I'm so glad they were able to see Paris, a once in a lifetime opportunity!