We were up early Friday morning with a busy day ahead of us. Our first stop was the Louvre. Our plan was to get there at 9 o'clock when they opened. You could spend days in the Louvre, but since we only had 2 days left in Paris we were going to have to make it quick. I wanted to see the Mona Lisa, the Winged Angel, and the Venus de Milo.
After the rainy, gloomy day we had the day before, Friday was absolutely beautiful!! Although a tad chillier than I had planned so I was glad I packed some leggings to wear under my dress.
From our hotel we walked to the Louvre and got there just before 9.
We also saw the Eiffel Tower as we got to the Louvre.
Our hotel was two blocks from the Tuileries Garden and right in the middle of it. The Lourve is at the end of the Tuileries Garden. This picture is from the Lourve, looking into the Tuileries Garden. At the other end of the Tuileries Garden is the beginning of Champs Elysees which leads to the Arc de Triomphe, which you can barely see at the end of this picture.
The outside of the Louvre was amazing! It is huge and so ornate! I also love the pyramid in the middle.
We had the Paris Pass, so we thankfully didn't have to wait in line to buy tickets and got right in at 9. I had read that the Mona Lisa gets busy and is hard to see, so that is where we headed first. Along with everyone else, of course.
At the top of this staircase was the Winged Angel.
We stopped to take a few pictures of it and then continued on our way to the Mona Lisa.
There she is:
I was so happy to see this! Every one says it is so small and I thought it would be tiny, but I actually thought it was pretty good size for a portrait.
There was already a crowd but it was easy to make your way to the front. I am glad we got there early though. I can only imagine what the crowd looks like later in the day.
This was on the opposite side of the Mona Lisa.
And on the wall beside the Mona Lisa.
Right outside was a room of statues.
Here's Michael being... Michael!
As we were walking to find the Venus de Milo, we went back by the Winged Angel.
Taylor and Cameron:
Steve and Nancy:
Something to note: Nancy does not smile in pictures. She's not mad, sad, or upset. She just refuses to smile in pictures, no matter how much we tell her she looks better when she smiles, she won't.
More people were coming in and headed to the Mona Lisa.
We walked through some beautiful galleries as we made our way to the Venus de Milo.
Venus de Milo:
The Tamas':
At this point, everyone was ready for breakfast so we left. As I said before, we could have stayed in the Louvre for days, but I was happy to see my top 3 plus a few extras.
You enter and exit through the pyramid, so we made our way back to the pyramid to exit.
This elevator was so neat!
Steve and Nancy had a hard time with all the walking we had done so far and the stairs, so they rode up in the elevator while the rest of us took the stairs.
I read about Cafe Marly before our trip and wanted to go there so bad, so we headed over. It is inside the Louvre and has a patio overlooking the pyramid. Here was our view for breakfast. Not bad!
Cafe Marly:
Michael, Mary and Gary:
Mike photo bombing me:
In France, Spain and Italy, freshly squeezed juice so very common. I had freshly squeezed orange juice at a McDonalds in the Barcelona airport- crazy! I had grapefruit juice at breakfast this morning and it was amazing! It tasted like you were drinking a grapefruit. Nothing added! It was wonderful!
They are also big on hot tea. I had some Earl Grey this morning and it was also fabulous! Every place I had tea (even on the cruise ship), served it like this. A tea kettle of hot water and a cup with a tea bag for you to brew your own tea. It was also served with real sugar, not the chemical crap we use in the US.
For breakfast I had the croissant trio. Chocolate on the top left, regular on the top right and raisin on the center bottom.
They were all wonderful, but the regular croissant was my favorite! Yum!
Stephen had hot chocolate that was amazing! It was pieces of chocolate melted with cream. So good!
If you are ever in Paris, go eat at Cafe Marly. They serve breakfast, lunch and dinner and are open late.
In addition to the large pyramid at the Louvre, there are also a few smaller pyramids:
You can see the small ones below if you look closely.
I wish I wasn't making a weird face in this picture because I love it so much. Oh well!
We left the Louvre and walked down the Seine river to Pont des Arts.
This bridge is covered in locks from lovers who come to declare their love for each other. After they lock their lock, they throw the key in the Seine river.
The views of the Seine river are beautiful from this bridge.
Here is Michael locking his lock for he and Laura.
And here is me locking our lock.
Stephen threw our key into the Seine River. We are officially sealed together forever. After being together for 14 1/2 years and married for 7 1/2, I was glad we got that taken care of- hahaha!!
Us with our lock. I love this picture!
Shelley and Mike with their lock.
Another view of the Seine with the Eiffel Tower in the background.
The view of the other side of the Seine river. This is an island and the Notre Dame Cathedral is at the far end. That is where we were headed next.
We crossed the bridge so we were on the opposite side of the Louvre and I took this picture of the bridge with the Louvre in the background.
We are just getting started folks! Paris Day 2 continues with Notre Dame Cathedral, a big red bus, the Eiffel Tower and more. Stay tuned!
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