Paris Day 5 / Pt 3

Last night in Paris. 

It was sad knowing it would be our final night in Europe, but on the upside, it would be the last night we walk up and down these 7 flights of stairs. 

US has some great bikes (lookin at you Deus) but Europe had a much better consistency for great rides. 

And what better way to spend the last night than a romantic dinner? Ok, it was just a little Vietnamese place we found, but despite being "cheap" and run by mostly anglo-French folks, it was really good. Of course, being France, great food didn't really surprise us. 

Goodbye constant buzzing of scooters.

Early morning for the flight back to SF. Europe was a total trip and we'd totally do it again. 

Paris Day 5 / Pt 2

Again with restaurants using US state names. 

There's many things about the French that is exaggerated, but the stereotype that surrounds their amazing food is quite accurate. 

We would have brought back a lot of lavenders if we could have.

Paris Day 5 / Pt 1

Wrapping up our Parisian trip, the last full day which turned out to be a lot grimmer than what we had hoped for. It almost felt like we were back in London. 

The Locks of Love fad, we've seen it on pretty much every bridge here in Europe.

Just Michelle strolling along the streets of Paris.

Not the prettiest of days in Paris, but I was actually a little happy with the change in the weather. Just a last reminder of the months we had spent in London.  

Going to miss all of the little stores. 

Ahh the Latin Quarters. Probably my favorite area of Paris and Michelle's too, after Champs Elysees of course. 

Palm Springs

Despite having grown up near a desert all my life, I've never been one to enjoy that particular environment. When compared to mountains, forests, or coastal lands, it just could never compare. However, Palm Springs has always been my one exception. I'd visit relatives at least twice a year here and over time, I've grown a fondness for its natural beauty. Don't get me wrong, midday summer here is horrible, but as soon as the sun begins to set, it turns into a wonderfully surreal place filled with a smooth pallet of colors rarely seen anywhere else. Also, the architecture here has a great retro-modern flare who's design integrity is unmatched anywhere else. 

Paris Day 4 / Pt 4

Final part of Day 4. Forgot what Arc this was, but the bloody looking pillars were kinda creepy. 

The dramatic clouds continues to accompany us for the remained of the trip, not that I was complaining. 

The Eiffel was too much for this lady to handle. 

And here's another lady, this time being taken by a Centaur. 

I like trees Spring-Fall, but they still have a beauty to them when naked in winter. 

The Obelisk Place de la Concorde

And a cool old Merc that I've never seen before, a L319. Would be a fun truck to have here in the States as either a delivery/commercial van or just a trip wagon. 

Last stop for the day was La Defense, a much more modern section on the outskirts of Paris. 

Best known for La Grand Arche, a massive box structure that we've been able to see in the skyline in Paris. From photos I thought it was simply a sculpture, but in fact it's a useable building and you can even see all of the windows on the inside. Awesome place for a concert!

And to end the night, we went over to Parisian Chinatown which wasn't at all what we were expecting. Most cities have their Chinatowns built up a little for the tourists, but not this one. It was simply a neighborhood where all of the Chinese immigrants have lived and overall looked pretty slum-y, though to be fair, that's probably a more accurate Chinatown than the other versions. At least they had this Chinese McDonalds! Only in Paris....

Paris Day 4 / Pt 3

Part two of our visit to the Louvre. It's kinda surreal seeing some of these pieces of art that up until then, you've only seen in textbooks and internet pics. 

Fortunately, just because I've seen them before many times in images doesn't mean they appear less impressive in person. 

Kitties! Ok, really though, one thing we never heard about was the Louvre's expansive collection of ancient Egyptian artifacts. Unfortunately, save for mummies, the rest of Egyptian culture never really caught Michelle and I's interest, so we felt it more annoying than anything when we had to go through the huge halls several times trying to find a way out (they were constructing on part of the building which would have otherwise provided a looped route. Also, the exhibited top floor does NOT connect to the rest of the floors as we were misled to believe).

Michelle is trying to stay interested, but all of this extra-ancient stuff is beyond our tastes. 

Well, except for mummies of course. Because who doesn't love checking out dead corpses, right?

Ok, last pic of the glass pyramid. Really is a slick way of combining the older monumental buildings with a modern layout. 

Another thing we never heard of was this calming sculpture garden. Didn't really get a chance to check them out, but it seemed to be a serene location for folks to have a lunch break or students to sketch. 

The huge skylight helped set the calming mood. 

A view of the Parisian rooftops never gets old. 

There was an attached shopping center to the Louvre with this inverted pyramid as a center piece. During the evening and low-light times, it looked jewel-like coming down from the ceiling. Just another thing that I wished I had gone back to at night to check out. 

Even when spaces were empty, it still looked amazing. 

Next we'll go explore more beyond the Louvre and its obnoxious souvenir vendors. (Seriously, if they were this bad during the off-season, I'd hate to be around during Summer. I feel sorry for any family/timid tourist who doesn't shout them off). 

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