Paris: Day 2

The second day of my Paris trip began with a visit to a very beautiful church, called Sacred Heart, to the North of Paris Center.  It is located on top of a big hill.  Again, it was very beautiful.  We went inside to tour, but, photos were not allowed.  There was a mass going on, so maybe that was why. 

After that, we went to Moulin Rouge.  It was close by to Sacred Heart.   We just walked down the street.  That was nice too, but, boring.  So, we proceeded to Luxembourg to visit the Luxembourg Garden.  That was very large and beautiful.  At one end is one of the two main police stations.  There were a lot of people just hanging out in the garden. 

Moulin Rouge

At the Luxembourg Gardens.  The police office in the back.

One thing I would like to note is that, all of the building in Paris are worthy of a picture.  It is unreal.  I have never been anywhere as beautiful as France.  Good thing for digital cameras because you would need dozens of rolls of film to capture the beauty of Paris.  I apologize for being sparse with the text, but, it would take hundreds of words to describe each place.  I’m letting the pictures do a lot of the talking.  One thing they all have in common is they are huge, old, and gorgeous.

We proceeded to walk to the Pantheon where many of France’s famous people are buried.  It was another beautiful building.  From there we walked for a while until we got to a beautiful area where the Military Academy was.  Napoleon is buried here.

The Pantheon

Outside the Military Academy.

Next, we walked to the Louvre.  This time, we went inside.  It was free for students on Friday evening, saving about 10 Euro.  Hands down, the most impressive museum I’ve ever seen.  Nothing compares, and rightfully so, as it is the largest museum in the world.  The size of the Louvre is impossible to describe.  It would take an entire month to properly tour that museum.  We only had about two hours.  We could have spent more time there, but, we were tired.  Of course, we saw the Mona Lisa.  It was the biggest attraction there and I had to fight to get to the front.  It did seem like her eyes follow you.  Then, we went and saw some of the Egyptian work.  Amazing.  We saw hieroglyphics and caskets and mummies.  So cool.  One really unique thing about the Louvre is that there were musicians playing around every corner.  Sometimes, only two or three, other times as many as six.  They were playing classical music…I think it was a Friday night thing.

The Louvre from a 3rd story Window.  You can vaguely see the Eiffel Tower in the background.

Musicians in the Louvre.

Venus de Milo

There was a huge crowd to see the Mona Lisa.

The ceilings in the Louvre.  All of them looked like this.  Unreal.

A 4 thousand year old WOODEN Egyptian carving.

Outside the Louvre as we are leaving.

After the Louvre, we walked around the city towards a subway station and passed the Comedy Center/ Theater and Bastille.  The city was beginning to get crowded.  It was Friday night after all.  However, we were tired.  We didn’t even stop for a drink.  We headed home, completing another 8hr day in the city.  But, we weren’t done yet…

Bastille

THE COOLEST THING I’VE DONE SO FAR…Was return to the Eiffel Tower at midnight.  Pierre said that he wanted me to get pictures of it at night.  We went to the tower and it looks magnificent all lit up.  It looks like it is made of gold.  We got in a spot with a great view of the city and he told me to turn on my camera for video.  I did this and at midnight, the tower began to sparkle.   Gorgeous!!!!  It sparkled for about a minute.  After that we made our way to the tower itself and stood at the base.  Very impressive.

Midnight!