Sunset was approaching, and we decided to move on to the Eiffel Tower so that we could still maximize our day. Our feet already hurt a lot by this point from all the walking around the streets of Paris, so we decided to take a bus to the Eiffel Tower. The bus deposited us at the gardens of Champ de Mars, which provided a great view of the Eiffel from the back (obviously, it looks the same on all sides, except for the accompanying background). Even at this time, there was a long queue to go up the Eiffel, and it was a past sunset by the time we got to the very top of the Tower.

What a magnificent view it was! With a breathtaking 360 degree view of Paris, we watched as sunlight disappeared and the city started to turn on all its lights. What’s more, as nightfall approached the Eiffel itself was bathed in a cool blue light – we could only see the full effects of this as we went down.

After gorging on pictures of the Paris cityscape, we finally decided to go down. We were in for a final treat though – for the Eiffel Tower was not only basked in blue light, but also had shimmering stars around it to mirror the European Union flag! This was a very beautiful and rare sight indeed, and we made sure to get all the pictures taken of it.

We were pretty tired at this point, and hungry for dinner – but as we were about to leave, we noticed that the cruise around the river Seine was still going even at around 9:30PM. So we quickly grabbed a sandwich and hopped on the ship for a relaxing cruise around the river. The shipped went along the Seine with a commentary on the sights from the Eiffel Tower to Notre Dame, and on the way back.

By the time we got back, we were cold, tired, had achy feet, and hungry to boot. We decided to take the Metro home – only to stop for sandwiches near our hotel (a non-touristy area) which tasted really good at a fraction of the price of the food we had eaten earlier in the day. Then it was time to rest, and prepare again for the next day!

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Since we were well-rested, we got off early and decided to head straight to Eiffel Tower. Along the way though, we saw signs to Champs Elysees and Arc du Triomphe so we followed that instead. We took some photos of the Arc then headed down Champs Elysees where we gawked at the expensive shops.

We were getting a bit hungry at this point but decided that we didn’t want to eat in this tourist trap. So we found our way into, Quick, a European fastfood chain (yes, it is quite sinful to have fastfood at fine dining city Paris but hey we were hungry and didn’t want to spend too much!)

We walked down Champs and looked for our next stop, Notre Dame. Along the way we got to see other Paris landmarks namely the Grand Palais, Petit Palais and Invalides. As we were headed to Notre Dame too, we passed by Musee d’Orsay so we decided to just do that first.

At Musee d’Orsay, we got to see the masters of Modern Art- Monet, Picasso, Whistler, Renoir, Van Gogh, to name a few. Although we are not artsy folks, we still enjoyed our time at Musee d’Orsay because of the variety of works that the museum had to offer.

After the museum we walked down the Seine, enjoying beautiful views of the bridges and vintage sellers lining the path. But once again, Gabby started to get grumpy and wanted some snacks. So we had to stop at one of the restos facing the Seine and had crepe and a bread. Well aware that this place is a tourist trap, we kinda expected it when we were charged 16 euros for a so-so meal (we made sure to visit the grocery that evening to buy snacks so we don’t have to spend so much the next day).

And so we walked towards Notre Dame, passing the Fountaine de Saint Michel where Gabby bought pain du chocolat at a nearby boulangerie (I guess he was not so happy with our expensive snacks).

At the Notre Dame, we lined up with all the other tourists to see the beautiful cathedral that was the subject of Victor Hugo’s novel. Unfortunately, the entrance to the top of the cathedral was already closed by the time we got there.

We got up really early to catch our Easybus to Luton Airport. We were scheduled to leave the hotel at 5:30, catch the bus to Baker St where we will get picked up at 6:15am. But it took a while to get ready and fix up so we just asked Nicky to call us a cab. In London, when you call a cab, they usually get to your place ten minutes after the call is made. So at a little past six, we were already zooming through the streets of London (the sun has not risen yet at this time) trying to make it the stop before 6:15. A minute or two after we alighted, the bus came, whew!

The trip to Luton is like a trip to the Clark Airport. You also go through an expressway and it takes about an hour to get there.

At the airport, checking in was painless. There weren’t any long lines and they briefly checked ticket and passport. We noticed too that dimensions for hand carry were very specific- if it can’t fit into the slot then you can’t hand carry it. They also have a separate check in area for “oversize luggage” so better if you have a bag that’s around 70L only so you can check it into the regular check in area.

We had brunch at the food court area, eating our stash from the grocery and just buying chicken poppers and onion rings at Burger King with the rest of our sterling. We waited for another 30-40 mins then it was time for boarding (we noticed that the boarding gates were not pre-determined and only flashed onscreen upon actual boarding). Flight is just two hours to Paris.

From the Charles de Gaulle Airport, we were supposed to take the RER B to Paris. RER is a train from outskirts Paris to Central Paris. From where we got our baggage, it was a bit far to get to the train area. Before boarding the train, Gabby got us tickets through a machine. The machine said “RER, Bus, Metro”. There are several types of machines, depending on mode of payment – card, notes, coins. Gabby got us two tickets “To Paris”. We didn’t exactly know what it covered but we got it anyway.

We were supposed to take RER B to Gare du Nord then transfer to another line to get to Stalingrad where we had to transfer again to a line that will take us to Crimee, the metro closest to our hotel. It seems a bit complex but it is not since the metro system in Paris is not that difficult to navigate.

Our hotel (thanks to Kathleen and Philip!) was a five-minute walk from the metro. The street is lined with Sandwich shops, restaurants and stores. Hotel Paris Villette is along Rue Curial and is a quaint hotel. Our room at the 6^th floor is simple with all the basic elements that you need in a hotel. It is clean, has a decent bathroom and even has desks, side tables and a closet. The staff is friendly and speak English (of course they are friendlier if you try to greet them in halting French).

As soon as we got to our room, we felt the exhaustion from the past few days of the trip take over us. We decided to just take a nap but ended up sleeping till late at night, too late already to go out so we just slept again. And good thing we did because it was an investment for the activity-packed days to come!

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