How are you going to keep her down on the farm after she's seen Paree!!!

Bonjour!
My dream trip of going to Paris has finally become a reality🗼🗼🗼 on Monday, September 18, Neal and I boarded a Delta flight direct from Pittsburgh to Paris.  The flight went smoothly landing in the morning of September 19 and after  getting the keys to our flat beneath the  Eiffel Tower, we were on our first adventure in discovering Paris.  We managed to find the Paris tourist office to pick our museum pass.  And, of course, while walking to the bus stop by the Palais Garnier, we stopped at Pierre Hermes for their world famous macarons. We found our back our cozy little pensione just long enough to pick up a camera and walk over our neighbor--the Eiffel Tower.  And we were there for the next three hours venturing all the way to the summit!! And the views of Paris were breathtaking🗼🗼🗼 we then ventured and found a lovely neighborhood fruit market and cheese and wine shop.  We came back home just long enough to change clothes so we literally could walk around the corner to a lovely restaurant highly recommended to Neal by the first girl he ever  kissed called Restaurant de la Tour. The food was amazing.  I had a duck fois gras and cheese salad along with duck breast in
a phenomenal raspberry sauce.  Neal had autumn zucchini soup with shaved Parmesan with duck leg confit.  Great way to end an exhausting day🗼🗼🗼

On Wednesday, September 20, We took Rick Steves' favorite bus 69 to the Louvre where we embarked upon an 8 1/2 odyssey in search of Neal's 40 favorite art masterpieces. Although the art work we saw was magnificent and inspiring, it was like playing "Where's Waldo?" In the Louvre as it is an enormous palace and directions in finding exhibits  were confusing at best.  However, the Louvre itself is a masterpiece of architecture beyond description with each hall and wing having its own special detailed features. While we were in the Louvre, we took a well deserved lunch at Angelina's where we had the most decadent African hot chocolate.  Picture melting an entire bag of
Godiva chocolate and then drinking it with real whipped cream on top! It paired well with the New
York-Paris macaron, one of its house specialty desserts!!!  And, yes, we are eating our way through Paris!  We then took a night ride on the Seine river to see the city at night.  We were exhausted once again and just went to a local cafe called Cafe la Dome where we both had the special Boeuf burgoniogn at 14 euros with spaghetti.

On Thursday, September 21, we took the bus to the Museum  d'Orsay and went on a guided English speaking tour of the major masterpieces of the impressionists--Monet, Manet, Renoir, dega, Van Gogh and cezane. Although we did not eat at the museum, their gorgeous res taurant and Cafe would be a delight for anyone.  Then we headed over the the musee orangerie to see the full size round room with the water lillies at four different times of the day. Neal headed over to take a picture of the obelisk on Concordia plaza and bridge.  We went home to get ready for our. Night at the Moulin Rouge which was really a phenomenal show complete with our bottle of champagne.  And in true Paris tradition, we ate crepes at the cafe Suffren at 11 pm at night.

On Friday, September 22,  we walked to rue grenel and Rue Cler where we saw some great food chops. we then sauntered to the army museum where we observed a military awards ceremony complete with military band and official fly over.  We then saw Napoleon's tomb at the Dome Church at Les Invalides.  We strolled over to the Rodin Museum to see the thinker, the kiss and the hands as well as the gate of hell and city burghers of Calais.  We went back to rue cler to stuff ourselves with crepes--mine was Nutella and banana.  With full stomachs, we walked off some of the calories by heading to the top of the Arc de Triumph.  Each high view allowed us to see different perspectives of


the city. It was here that we first saw the Grande Arche that is a big rectangle office building with the middle building and is in the direct line of the arc de triumph and mimics it.  Dinner that evening was at Le Cassenoix which means nutcracker.  The best and most fabulous food--a Michelin recognized restaurant that was around the corner from our apartment,  in fact, both restaurant we no more than a. Two minute walk from our place.  Both were run by a husband and wife team with the husband being the chef and both are closed on Saturday and Sunday.

On Saturday, September 23, we got up early and went to the top of montparnasse office tower.  The second tallest building in Paris.  Because of morning haze, the views were not that great, but we learned the names of some buildings heretofore unknown.