Sunday we saw some of Paris's big hitters: The Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame Cathedral and Sainte Chapelle. All super easily accessible by train and foot, we trekked all over the city center.
We tried to get to the Eiffel Tower early to avoid lines. To say it's a 'tourist draw' would be an understatement, right? However, due to the season most likely, we got our tickets and only had to wait for the elevator to come back down to get on. No line! Even from the base it's an elegant and stunning structure. The boys were quite excited to see the icon they'd come to identify Paris with.
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| Silly Josh! |
From the second level we could see all of Paris! The open-air deck allowed you to walk all around and take in the views of the city. It was grey and a little chilly, but otherwise clear which made for great viewing. Another elevator up the tower brought us to the enclosed upper level. From there we could walk up a short flight of steep stairs to the open-air top most level. Van and I opted to stay in the enclosed top level and take in all we could see from there. Everyone else walked up the steps to a very windy, cold view of Paris. It was all pretty incredible!
There was a small Christmas market just at the base, along the side of the Parc du Champ. We walked thru and found a Raclette stand. Here they held a heated metal rod close to a half wheel of raclette cheese keeping it just melted. When you order a sandwich they move the rod, scrape off the freshly melted cheese onto a split baguette and viola! Yum. Van and I went for the Raclette while Josh and Wes had German sausage on baguette which were also delicious. There were nougat stands - yes, huge wheels of nougat flavored different ways, sweet and savory - mulled wine and hot cider, winter hats and scarves, and lots of other little trinkets, as well as small ice rink. We found a small park across the lawn and after such excitement took a few moments to regroup before moving on.
We hopped back on the subway and took it to Ile de la Cite to see Notre Dame and Sainte Chapelle. Notre Dame was a stunner, as expected. We found the Point Zero of Paris. It was from this marker that all distances in France were measured. Inside the church we found that services weren't quite over. As a matter of fact they were still going on and we entered right as a woman from the choir started a beautiful solo. In such an enchanting space it felt very special. We took our cue and walked around the nave down the aisles and around the back of the main alter, taking in all the little side chapels. Given that the line for the tower tour was over an hour long we opted to move on to Sainte Chapelle, just across the street.
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| Notre Dame |
This was my and Van's favorite church. He had been talking about stained glass in school, and that is one of the things this little church is known for. I pointed out the windows from the outside as we approached, as well as the grotesques and the Gothic spire, "Cool mom. Let's go in now." We entered through the lower chapel, Chapelle Basse, which is like a mini version of it's big brother one level up. Up a stone spiral staircase we went and entered the Chapelle Haute. Van's reaction was, "Wow." He was very impressed, which made me so so happy, on top of the joy I felt looking up at the stunning starry ceiling. We took in the stories of the windows and the gold trim work of the walls and ribbed vaults. All of this made for a warm, rich and colorful space.
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| Sainte Chapelle |
It must be noted that all the boys were very well behaved in the churches! They were quiet, calm and respectful. All the parents were very proud of them.
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