Gay Paris they call it. We found Paris to be much like New York, but with a lot of real old landmarks instead of tall buildings. It is a very large and busy city. We took a day tour by minibus to see all the famous sites (very briefly), including the Eiffel tower, Notre Dame, the Arch, the Louve museum, St. Louis island, the Moulan Rouge, the famous shopping street (forgot the name), and a few of the 35 bridges. There is definitely a lot to see in Paris, plan to spend a week. We spent four days and didn't get back to see a lot of things.
Natalie freezing in front of the Eiffel tower.
Natalie freezing in front of some parliamentary building at a large park
(For more info, take the tour).
We went into the Notre Dame, but couldn't find Esmarelda anywhere (or her goat). Trust me, we looked hard. We went to the Eiffel tower, but the line was so long (and it was so cold) we didn't wait to ride up. We planned to go to the Louve and see the Mona Lisa, but my stomach was not well so we took it easy that day.
The Notre Dame, home of Quasimoto.
We did get a whole lot of fresh seafood. I was expecting the famous French cooking (with sauces and fancy presentations), but we found Paris full of seafood. Every street corner had stands full of oysters, crabs, shrimps, and numerous other shellfish. Jeanette was in heaven, one day she ordered and ate a platter of 36 large oysters. Still not sure why my stomach wasn't feeling well. There is food from anywhere in the world and many great restaurants.
We went to the Moulan Rouge for the famous Can Can dance. It was quite a show of dancing as well as some acrobats, a juggler, a ventriloquist with a talking beagle (the dog had his jaw wired to open via remote control, it was funny), a horse, and a python. We got seats in the first row. Before the show, Natalie was dancing in front of the stage to the dinner music (everyone was watching her, we got complements after the show). Oh, and the show dancers were very good too. Their costumes were very elaborate (although some were missing pieces of their costumes).
This is we in the front row at the Moulan Rouge.
(Natalie is resting after her performance.)