Trip Report Part 2 of 3: Paris

We only spent one real day in Paris, as we arrived at around 10pm local time on the 1st, and departed at 1pm on the 3rd. It was an eventful day of doing the cliche touristy things. We climbed the Eiffel tower to the second observatory, which as far as I know is the furthest up as you reach can by stairs. It was right around 700 stairs each way, and the view was worth it. We then explored the outside of the Louvre and the surrounding park, where we were robbed at string point by a pair of Kenyans (inside joke, sorry). We would have attempted to go inside, but the line was so enormously huge (the movie Eurotrip wasn't kidding) that we put that ambition aside.

Our hotel in Paris was located right next to the Gare du Nord train station, and while the staff spoke great English and was helpful, the room made the two star rating seem generous. I found it odd how expensive Paris hotels are compared to those in Britain, where I was able to get a very nice 4 star hotel for close to the same price. We had three good meals, including a Parisian breakfast at a classic French diner, and dinner at a nice Italian spot close to our hotel. Lunch was spent at "The Great Canadian Pub", which we had to check out once we saw the sign. It did feel fairly Canadian, if mostly due to the hockey merchandise everywhere.

Below are a few photos from our day:

Looking up at the Eiffel tower. The number of souvenir peddlers at the base is astounding.


A view from the first deck of the Eiffel.


A view from the second deck of the Eiffel.


The entrance to the Louvre (the pyramid looking thingy) and some of the surrounding building in which the museum itself is located.