Day Seven - Last day in Paris...
This is our last day in Paris, which to me, is very bittersweet. We head out early to avoid the ques at St. Chapelle... I think we arrived at about 930. There was no line at all, and after a quick security check, we were into the courtyard and the Cathedral. I%26#39;ve been here many times, and it still takes my breath away when you walk up that little circular staircase and come out into all that stained glass. Husband is in awe. I told him this was my favorite place in Paris, but I guess he didn%26#39;t grasp the concept of what he was about to see. It%26#39;s too bad they were doing renovations on the alter though, as they had the entire front of the church covered up with scaffolding and tarps.
After this, we decide on Musee Rodin, another of my favorites. Husband is immediately taken with it, because of the gardens. Its another VERY cold morning, but the sun it out, and we%26#39;re bundled up and walking and all in all very pleasant. We walk through the front and back gardens first and get some fabulous pictures. There are still some roses blooming and the trees are changing to yellow and the skies are blue. Perfection. Really.
Next, we tour the mansion itself and watch all the art student sketching the sculptures. I was a little dissapointed that the room that housed the hundreds on small plaster studies is no longer on the tour or closed off the public now.
We decide next on L%26#39;Orangerie. So we head back to the Jardin Tuileries and find that it doesn%26#39;t open for another 35 minutes. So, down into the garden we go, huddling all the way as the wind is so strong and it%26#39;s REALLY cold today. We find some lounging chairs next to a pond and lay ourselves out in the sunshine. We lounge, and then walk around the gardens and I%26#39;m thinking to myself it%26#39;s going to be a long time until I can come back to Europe and walk around in a garden like this again...
Unfortunately we were waiting in vain, because the museum did not open when it was supposed to... or, at all. Since it was newly reopened, it%26#39;s hours were not in my guidebook, so I%26#39;m not sure if it%26#39;s just closed on Tuesdays or what. Oh well.
At this point, I%26#39;m hungry. We head down the side street of the gardens, pass a WH Smith!!, and then find a small cafe right across from Chanel. Husband and I had WONDERFUL food here... again, I had steak frites, and he had a spicy sausage that was fabulous! The cafe was jumping and very packed, we could tell this was a local favorite... and the food was why.
We decide to head back to the hotel to pack, so we don%26#39;t have to do this tonight after the Seine cruise. So pack we do, and a short nap. After a few hours of packing, napping and watching CNN (what else?) we head back out to the Latin Quarter for dinner as we%26#39;re hungry, but not really sure what we want. After careful consideration (after all, this is our last night in Paris) we decide on fondue. We chose a TINY little place that was almost completely empty... but quickly filled up because again, the food was so good. We had both a meat and 3 cheese fondue and shared... so so so good. The waiter/owner was again, anxious to speak english with us, and when he found out we were from Texas was so excited to share his love for Walker, Texas Ranger. Husband and I laugh, yup, that%26#39;s us. It was really cute actually.
Our bellies full, we huddled together and walk toward the Seine and the Pont Neuf to catch the boat. The trip was nice, although not quite as romantic when it%26#39;s so cold you can%26#39;t sit up top in the breeze. It was a really nice last look at Paris though, although it made me somewhat sad. I%26#39;m going to miss her so much!
Day Eight - Going home
Going home was a long day. However I will say this, after the fiasco with the RER to Versailles we decided just to take a Taxi to CDG. SO MUCH EASIER! It only cost us about 45e (about 10e more than using the RER combo) and was so much easier that dragging husband and luggage around train stations. I HIGHLY recommend just sucking it up, paying the extra money and just hiring a Taxi.
That%26#39;s it folks :) Our trip has come and gone. We had such a good time, we had such PERFECT weather (it didn%26#39;t rain ONCE while we were there). I told husband that if we ever get the chance to go again, it won%26#39;t even be a decision, we%26#39;ll go in the fall. It was absolutely picture perfect.
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Thanks for your wonderful trip reports - entertaining and informative! Congratulations on the exciting news in Trip report number 6!
%26lt;%26lt;I%26#39;m thinking to myself it%26#39;s going to be a long time until I can come back to Europe and walk around in a garden like this again... %26gt;%26gt;
Almost 14 years ago I had a similar experience except I found out as we were packing the night before we left. We didn%26#39;t visit Paris (or anywhere too far from Australia!) for 10 years - at the time I thought it seemed to be too difficult and expensive with children. 24 hours on a plane with 2 kids was just too difficult to imagine! We finally spent 2 months in Europe in 2004 (August and September) and are preparing for our next big trip (December and January) right now. Travelling with kids is very different to romantic trips with your husband but you will go again... Paris will always be there waiting for you...
Enjoy the next phase of your life - it goes so quickly. Sometimes I wonder where the last 14 years have gone. Yep I could have used a few more trips to Paris but there%26#39;s not much else I would change.
Congratulations HarleyB
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Thank you for sharing the wonderful details of your trip. What a great story you will be able to share with your child.
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Thank you so much for all these great trip reports, I read them all, enjoyed all the detail, and almost.....the foods. Gongratulations on the great news of the little one, what a wonderful news for a wonderful trip! I actually learned a lot from your reports which is excellent for my upcoming trip to Paris during Thanksgiving, I also read your post about packing, did you find you pack just right for the weather?
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Thanks for taking so much time to write down such detailed reports. I read through them all and I could feel your enthusiasm oozing between the lines.
Congratulations on the great news! What a way to discover you%26#39;re pregnant. Good luck with your new nine-month voyage.
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I LOVED reading all your adventures!!!!
Tell me, is it cold??? Really cold???
What would you wear during the day???
I know this might sound foolish to a seasoned winter traveller but we are from Australia and NEVER need a coat in winter.
So I need help!
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Everyone told me I was packing too much... but as I changed clothes frequently (it was MUCH colder at night than during the day) I wore everything I brought... I packed PERFECTLY. I definetly used my scarves a LOT... used my hat the last night we were there as it was the coldest... and wore my gloves several times. If you%26#39;re going anytime soon, take all of these, and a good jacket.
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Great reports, thanks for posting.
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Srotty,
Thanks for your wonderful post. I had been following your pre planning posts. My only regret is that I left for Paris Oct 28 to Nov8 before I could read your posts. They would have been a great help. Your photos were great! We had a wonderful trip as well. The weather turned chilly. A little rain the first day but that was it. Gloves scarves and hat would be needed now. With needing a coat every day it is a good idea to just wear a different scarf daily so all pictures do not look the same.
Congrats on the good news!
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Thanks for your beautiful descriptions. It made me feel so nostalgic for Paris. We were there for a week at the begining of October and I was so sad to go home and cannot wait to go back next year for even longer. We have been going every year for the past 7 years,so we can go to the races at Longchamps to see the Prix de Arc de Triomphe. We find something new to see every time amd fall more and more in love with Paris every year. I can%26#39;t understand the people on this forum who say they have been before and have seen all the tourist attractions and what can they do on this trip? In seven years we have still not %26quot;seen it all%26quot; and like you it%26#39;s interesting to revisit old ground.
This year for the first time we rented an appartment at 18 rue Tournefort,in the 5th, instead of staying at an hotel. We were lucky and had a great experience. We loved the apartment and the freedom it gave us to %26quot;live like a parisienne%26quot;. I f you return to Paris I would recommend to anyone to do the same.
Thanks again
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Who did you rent your apartment from. We are going in February and are thinking of renting an apartment instead of staying at a hotel.
Thanks
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