Champs Elysees

First, a few blogging notes: All throughout our trips through South America and SE Asia, we've been using Blogger and its associated app on our iPhones. It has been a great handheld way to write with seamless integration of our pictures. However, this trip, our iOS has updated, but the app has not. Thus, every time I use the Blogger app to type out our adventure, it crashes. However, it appears stable to insert pictures. So France is now brought to you by Notes (for typing), Blogger (for pictures), and Time (for the patience to complete faithfully). Typos have been a nightmare as it can take 2 or 3 crashes to fix an extra 's' somewhere. If only I weren't a grammar nazi that demanded it! On to Day 2!

Since Monday's can find Paris museums either chock full or, alternatively, closed, we decided on a classic Rick Steves walk. Where better to start than the Champs Elysees? Mostly because it begins with a bang. 

The Arc de Triomphe is a beautiful centerpiece of a crazy traffic roundabout. Started by Napoleon, used by the French Army, then the Nazi, then De Gaulle-led French again, it is a symbol of military victory in Paris. Also, as could be expected in a city this size, we casually ran into Austin and Ashley again. 

After discussing their girls back home and more on life, we parted ways for the time being to continue our Champs walk. 

Our next stop was the Qatari embassy that represents the original 'U' shape to buildings along the Champs. 

Next up along the glitzy, tourist-laden avenue was none other than McDonalds. Supposedly, the highest grossing location in the world. Mer got a Coke while Chris tried the coffee. (Mostly, the stop was our first pit stop)

Most of the next stretch was the glamour shops of Citröen, Louis Vuitton, Peugeot, Sephora, Mercedes-Benz, and others. We passed a plaque designating where Thomas Jefferson lived as foreign minister before becoming the 3rd president. 

We stopped again at a cafe Brioche Dorée where we had a pain chocolat as big as my head!

We continued down to find two "palaces," the Grand and Petit. 

We didn't go in, as it wasn't recommend by Rick, but they were picturesque nonetheless. 

We took a turn by the Charles de Gaulle statue to the Palais de L'Elysee, which is the presidential residence. We passed many an embassy, including the US. We then looped to the end of Rick's suggested walk at the Place de la Concorde. This was the hub of Revolution where the guillotine was erected and many bourgeois heads rolled. A memorial was brought in the form of the obelisk of Luxor from Egypt to commemorate democracy (by the reinstated monarchy no less). 

We then followed Rick's suggestion to go to the bridge nearby, the Pont de la Concorde, where we could see the the French National Assembly built from the stones of the demolished Bastille. In the middle of the bridge over the Seine, we could see the Orangerie, the Louvre, Saints-Chapelle, Notre-Dame, the Orsay, and Tuileries Garden. 

From there we made our way to the aforementioned Tuileries Garden for a pit stop and a rest. We found chairs in front of a pond and just sat and rested. One of us took a nap. 

Afterward, we decided to make our way near Rue Cler toward a cafe for dinner. It was a nice walk before we found outdoor seating at Le Royal. 

Mer had the lasagna while Chris had salad and beef ratatouille. 

From there we were on the outskirts of Champ de Mars as the park that sits beyond the Eiffel Tower. 

We sat on a blanket and denied those selling bottles of wine and champagne.

It was then we heard the rumbles and saw the approaching dark skies. We decided wet would be a catastrophe, packed up, and began to move out. We didn't even make it out of the park before the fat raindrops fell. Using our blanket and tree canopies for cover, we made our way to the nearest Metro. 

With slightly damp clothing, we rode a different way home. Again, the familiar red windmill greeted us home. 

The Champs Elysees was great. Onto the next day!