And Yes, Paris Has Cats Too....

I am still culling thru all the photos I took while in Paris. Every trip I have been on in the past 2-3 years I have brought my laptop along and downloaded my images each day. This time the laptop never came out of it's case. It's not that I didn't want to see the pics, I was just so tired by the time I would return to the hotel that all I could do was take a shower and go to bed. And speaking of the hotel, I never took one shot of where we stayed. Believe it or not, one of my Arizona girlfriends recently took a wonderful trip to London and Paris and I stayed at the same hotel as she had earlier. She took lots of shots of the hotel, none for me. It was quite lovely. Very nice and super spacious as compared to other accommodations I hear. It is a toss-up whether I liked the shower or the buffet breakfast served every morning the best. And what a breakfast....all I am going to say is chocolate croissants every single day I was there.  And it was right in the center of Paris...about 3 blocks give or take from Notre Dame.

I added a texture to this iconic symbol of Paris

The first day we arrived we met up with our travel guide who was Italian but spoke fluent French, thank God.  She had arranged every detail of our trip....dinners at a different restaurant each night, Metro tickets, tickets to the Eiffel Tower, tickets to the Opera House, tickets to Disneyland France, tours of Notre Dame and the Louvre. She was amazing and a total delight. The morning we arrived in Paris at 6:15 AM Paris time our guide had scheduled a large and comfortable bus to pick us and all of our luggage up at the airport to take us on a 3 hour bus tour of the city, catching the highlights of the week to come. Although a bit sleep deprived (not a wink) we were all so eager to see the sights and experience the beauty of Paris no one was complaining. It was early Sunday morning so not alot of traffic or people, a perfect time to stroll the streets.  No strolling, just rolling. We did stop at the Eiffel Tower and a couple of other places but many of my shots were from the window of the bus. I was pleasantly surprised to have captured some great shots from that bus window.

Seen from a bus window.....

Shiny, shiny gold seems to be rather popular in Paris architecture...especially on the Paris Opera House, perhaps one of the most famous opera houses in Europe. They continue to have productions in this lavish hall, but it's most famous for the book written in 1910 "Phantom of the Opera" by Gaston Laroux followed by the musical, "Phantom of the Opera" by Andrew Lloyd Webber in 1986

And then I continue my fascination with lamp posts.....

Even early on a Sunday morning, a crowd was already gathered at the Louvre.

And just how many shots am I going to take of the Eiffel Tower??.....as many as I want to.  Among all of the beauty and sites that I was so blessed to see, I truly think that the first sighting of the Eiffel Tower had to be my most heart fluttering moment.  It is just so iconic and to see it up close and personal was spectacular.

And here is one more of the family standing in front or back or side, of it.  Really not sure what is considered the front, side or back.  She is terrific at any angle.

And yes, Paris has cats too.  We could usually spot them around the bistros, hoping for a hand-out from a patron.  Not a bad gig....

OK, 2nd installment of the many, many images still yet to come.

“The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.”  ~  Augustine of Hippo

Until next time.....

Yes, They Have French Poodles in France.....

Here I am again, late as usual, but with somewhat of an excuse.....Paris.  Oh what a trip. If you have never been, I encourage you to go. It is absolutely one of the most beautiful cities I have ever been in, granted I haven't done a lot of European travel, but trust me on this one. When you stand in front of Notre Dame, walk across the River Seine, stroll through those lovely Paris streets, climb up to the tallest spot on the Eiffel Tower, you will know exactly what I mean.

One of many views from the Eiffel Tower....

There were so many places I wanted to go, so many photos to take, but our schedule was so packed with tours, walking, Metro travel, train travel, Disney, that I just couldn't fit in all that I really wanted to do. The one day that I had free, Thursday, was beastly hot and by the time Thursday rolled around my hips, legs, and calves were screaming.  So my walk to the to the Luxembourg Gardens took longer than expected.  Walk a few, stop, walk a few, stop etc. I finally reached the gardens but as I sat and people watched, I thought, "I have to walk back!!"  Darn, I wished I had listened to myself as I kept telling myself to get up and start some serious walking. Next time.

I can't even begin to tell you how awe-struck I was with the architecture. Between the museums, churches, public buildings, bridges, apartments, fountains, and statues I was in eye-candy architectural heaven.

This was right around the corner from our hotel. When the weather began to warm up the plaza began to fill up with people in the evenings. From what I understand, there is no air conditioning in most of the apartments in Paris.  In order to get a little relief Parisiennes flock to the parks and plaza.  This is where I found him....  PS Hop on over to my other collaborative blog, Focusing on Life to see more pics of the people of Paris.

On my walk and stop trip I strolled by the Paris Sorbonne University.

Lamp posts were always catching my eye.  So unlike what we have on our street corner.

And then ofcourse there were the bistros. At least 2 on every block....

And yes, they have French Poodles in France.....

This is just the beginning of many, many images from Paris. See ya soon.  Au revoir!!

Until next time.....

Celebrating the 4th....

Finally after 3 months of not seeing my great grand we spent the 4th with her and her Mom & Dad, aka my grandson and his wife.  Matilda Mae was the star of the show all day.  She had taken an early nap and had eaten lunch by the time I arrived so she was ready to keep us entertained.  Her Grandmother aka my daughter and Grandfather aka my son-in-law and her 2 aunts aka my granddaughters were all there to celebrate with her.  There were definitely a few pictures taken, me with my big girl camera and I-Phone and everyone else with their I-Phones.  I think we flooded instagram with pics of Matilda Mae on the 4th.

Here she is all decked out for the 4th of July.

With her Aunt Brie

Her Grandma

Her Great Grandma

Her Mom

And the family....

And Matilda Mae telling us that she has 2 teeth, but boy those others are taking such a long time to come in....meanwhile I will continue my drooling and putting everything I can into my mouth.

After my bath with my ballerina PJ's on, I must always brush my golden locks....(while I continue to drool)

We didn't see any fireworks this year....between terrified dogs and baby Matilda, we decided that there was enough excitement for this crowd.

Hope your 4th was as great as mine!!  Happy Week and 4 days until Paris!!!

Until next time....