Paris Trip Report - Day 2

After getting some rest and bathing (did I mention our hotel did not have a stand up shower, only a bath tub?) we were ready to hit the pavement for Day 2 in Paris. We started the day with petit dejeneur which quickly became my favorite meal of the day - croissant, baguette w/ butter and jam, fresh orange juice and a nice steaming mug of cafe au lait. I still miss it. Nathan and I keep trying to re-create it, but alas it does not quite hit the mark. The French women are all so thin and gorgeous I cannot see how this is a typical breakfast!

The plan for Day 2 was to take the metro to near the Marmottan Museum - this is dedicated mainly to Monet. We'd thankfully been given some metro tickets in advance, but still had to buy more - took about 4 attempts to finally get it right. Ugh, it is sometimes so difficult to be in a place where you don't speak the language. Definitely out of our comfort zones, but we persevered. We got a little lost on the way to the museum, but really didn't care because we got to see more of Paris!



It was worth all of the walking to get there - takes you through Monet's career. Really beautiful. We also walked through some great Parisian neighborhoods, which I would equate to Manhattan's upper East side. Lots of kids, nannies, parks, bugaboos, etc.

Tired feet already!

We then walked to the Eiffel Tower. Finally, the first glimpse of this city's famous symbol:







Jules Verne Restaurant - need to make a reservation 6 mos. in advance!

It was mobbed there, we decided to come back in the evening to make the trek up the tower.
We took a break at the park next to the tower to regroup. Yes, I am reading Rick Steves.




On Rick's recommendation, I was very excited to visit Rue Cler, but it ended up being a major disappointment. I think we were off in the timing, it just didn't seem "alive". We had lunch at Cafe PTT - the only thing that was memorable was our waitress, who was annoyed with us because we didn't speak French.

En route to the next stop, we had a chocolate break...


Went to Napoleon's tomb at the Hotel des Invalides...








Went to the Rodin - absolutely beautiful museum and gardens. This is where Rodin lived and it just blew me away. He used to move his sculptures around his gardens - the first lawn ornaments?



My favorite - not by Rodin but his mistress Camille



The roses were out in full bloom.


We went back to the hotel to clean up for dinner at Le Grand Colbert. This is the French bistro from the movie "Something's Gotta Give" with Diane Keaton and Jack Nicholson. I know, I'm kind of a dork for seeking it out, right? I did have the roast chicken and it was a great experience - loved the food and the service again great. Very handsome and attentive waiters! We should have a picture of us here, but the ladies sitting next to us were lacking in camera skills. And day 2 comes to a close...