Day 9 Paris

Woke up this morning to this lovely view from my bed.  

Cam & I set off to department store (C & A) this morning to buy him a much needed hat & scarf.  The train was slow due to some issue on the line (frustrating not knowing what was happening as all announcements were in french and we had no idea what was going on).  Got there eventually and the store was easy to find.  He managed to find what he wanted ok & I was drawn to the incredible selection of warm coats & jackets at such reasonable prices...there were sooo many that I liked but managed to choose just one - lovely blue colour with fur hood and only 35 euro on sale.  It was a bit on the big side but the only one like it & I don't think it matters too much that there is lots of room in it.  We have seen many men & women on the street with fur trimmed hoods, so I felt it was a need.  Also got some gloves for the boys that are phone friendly (ie can use phones without removing gloves).  This was just what Nick needs as he is spending a lot of time messaging Sharlene while we are out & about.  It's almost a relief when she goes to bed & we get his attention back.

Our next stop was the Pantheon where we had arranged to meet Nick.  By the time we got there I had managed to lose the gloves I'd bought Nick ....can't criticise him now for losing things.

The Pantheon (a secular temple) has impressive corinthian columns and inside is the final resting place for Victor Hugo, Emile Zola, Voltaire....and many more.

 The interior was spectacular & on a grand scale & then we went down into the crypt to see the tombs.

We then decided to find a typically french cafe for lunch.

 We were hungrier than usual so thought we would try out their fixed price menu (where you get an entree, main & wine...or a main, dessert & wine for a very cheap price but with limited choice)....all for 15 euros.

We certainly found an authentic cafe as there seemed to be no tourists and instead of a menu we were shown a blackboard with the menu written in french that even Nick struggled to interpret. Nick chose entree & main...while I chose main & dessert.  We both got a nice red wine.  Nicks entree was a salad which was really a plate of very yummy hot potatoes...not the usual salad.  Our mains were some sort of lamb cut with grains of some kind in a very tasty sauce.

 Cam got pork and lentils in another very tasty sauce.

The boys decided to share a piece of tart while my dessert was a crepe with chantilly cream (which was the highlight for me).

It was fascinating watching meals being served in different ways at the table....meat being sliced in front of them, a very creamy cheesy mash being spooned from the pot & many meals served on wooden boards.  We also saw somoeone choosing cheeses from a large trolley of cheeses...just pointing out what he wanted and chunks being sliced to his plate.  At one stage a section of the floor just inside the door was lifted and there was a lift type thing that they put bottles on and sent down underground....then replaced the floor.  

Don't know where the time went but after 2 hours we were done & feeling very sleepy.  No time for that though as we headed to the Louvre.

 We got pretty much straight in there after going through several security checks. Once again the scale of the place was overwhelming and we didn't really know where to start...we wandered a bit directionless as there is no obvious route around the museum.  It became clear we were going to get lost and potentially miss some of the best bits so put Cam in charge of the map (he seems best at it) & told him which highlights we wanted to see.  This worked pretty well, with just a few minor wrong turns..and several extra stair climbs.  We managed to see the main attractions...Venus de Milo, Colossal statute of Ramesses II & of course the Mona Lisa. I enjoyed the statues, some of the artwork and the impressive painted ceilings. The boys seemed to like the Egyptian area...and the whole place in general. You'd really need to visit several days to see everything and appreciate it properly. There were a lot of people sitting and looking at the art & many others sketching various statues. We did more of a power walk through the museum....and according to my phone climbed 28 flights of stairs today. 

Nick left us at 5pm to go to university & by this stage we were feeling weary ourselves....poor Nick - hope he stays awake in his lectures!  By the way, Nick managed to lose his scarf somewhere in the museum...it was really hot in there.  Hope we aren't going to lose a 3rd item!  Will have to get him a new scarf as it's certainly needed here.

Cam's foot started to ache in sympathy with mine, and we struggled to find the way back to the entrance. Eventually found a round-about route back to the metro & back to our apartment (via the bakery of course).  We tried a baguette with grains to go with our cheeses & very scrumptious sweet treats tonight...

- the eclair was delicious & full of chocolate cream, but the mozart cake (lemon, berry & shortcake layers) was especially nice!