Paris in 24 Hours

Yes, we only had one week of vacation and spent two of those days in Paris. Yes, we could have stayed in England and seen lots of other wonderful, amazing, historical, English things. But, Paris is only a two-hour train ride away from London. There's no way I was going to let the opportunity to return to my favorite city pass me by! So, after a whirlwind five days in England, Lee and I packed our overnight bags, woke up before the crack of dawn, hopped a train to London and boarded the Eurostar to Paris. 

We had such fun and, incredibly, managed to visit all of the major sights. Instead of taking you on a chronological recap, I'll post by sight.

First up:

La Tour!

One very happy Miss Lee.

Your guide on this journey, moi!

Sparkly Tower!

My camera doesn't take the best of night-time pictures.  Combine that with a hefty dose of operator error, and the result isn't exactly award-winning.  But, I like it, all the same.

This one was taken at the tail-end of our night-time Seine river cruise.  Such a lovely way to end the day.

But, wait!  There's more!

The Arc de Triomphe:

To reach the Arc, one must pass UNDER the road.  Too many people died trying to cross the insanity that is the Place Charles de Gaulle-Etoile. 

I found it impossible to get a good picture of this behemoth. 

These pictures really do not do it justice.

Beneath the Arc is the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.  No perpetual guard like at Arlington, but solemn nonetheless.

Next stop:

Montmartre and Sacre Coeur!

Yes, we took the funiculaire up the hill.  Climb all those steps, are you crazy?

No, we did not accidentally walk onto a Michael Bay movie.  These dudes were everywhere.

After walking down the hill (no, we didn't take the funiculaire down; we're not THAT lazy), we decided to take a ride on the carousel.  It was absolutely some of the most fun we had on the entire trip.  There was a little girl in the teacup in front of us, just twirling around and around and around and around. 

Good times!

Next stop:

Notre Dame!

But first, breakfast at Les Deux Magots.

Ready to go!

My favorite picture from the entire trip.

Enough with the piety already.  Where's the next palace?

Ah, right.  The Louvre!

One might think the signs would be better kept.  One would be wrong.

Sooo, we didn't actually go into the Louvre, but we snuck a peek in the window.  See the statues?

One last look at the Eiffel Tower.

A few miscellaneous parting shots:

Interesting...

When I win the lottery, send my mail here.

Blenheim Palace

Or, a quaint little place in the country.

Blenheim Palace, home to the Marlborough family and Sir Winston Churchill.  We walked through an enlightening and unexpectedly emotional exhibit of Churchill's life.  I did not know he was a painter, did you?  Go, if you can.

One wing.  There's an equally-impressive one on the other side of the courtyard.

Can you imagine what this was like with water filling the moat? 

Why does this poor fellow have no head?  I'll bet one of the three stautes on the roof knows what happened...

Old-timey security system.  Bet you wouldn't steal the silver with these monitoring the exit.

I somehow think this would look a bit... much... on my front door. 

I've tried to think of something to say about this other than "It's so pretty."  But, since I can't, that'll have to suffice.

This made me giggle every time I saw a similar sign anywhere we went.  "Toilets."  Not "Bathrooms" or "Restrooms."  Just "Toilets."  Succinct, no?  And how very convenient to be near to the Cafe.

This is a big place.  I'm standing in the courtyard between the two wings you saw above and looking out toward that statue on the horizon.  It's really far away.

We've finally reached the gates at the edge of the courtyard.  Embiggen the picture to see the staute beyond the gate.

There it is!  Still pretty far away...

And, this is as close as we got.  The white things are sheep.  They are all over the place!

There's little else I enjoy more than seeing how the other half live. Well, maybe just the other 1%?  Ha!  :)  The Duke of Marlborough and his family continue to call Blenheim Palace their home and do actually live there part of the year. 

The gift shop was fun to peruse.  I even purchased a fine china tea cup that I am now afraid to use.  But, it looks pretty in my cupboard. 

Next stop, Paris!