Contiki touring

Us in front of the ole tower
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Got on our bus at an unGodly hour this morning, along with a heap of Aussies, a couple of Seth Africans, Canadians etc and set off towards Dover and the White Cliffs. Still cold and gray, but we went across on the ferry to Calais, in the north end of France. The trip was ok, big waves but boat was very steady. Once in Calais we slowly made our way south to the fantastic city of love.

Our first sights of Paris were of a slightly dodgy area, and a bit dirty. Where our hotel was situated, of course! Showered and changed, and we all headed into the city for a bit of a twilight tour. Conversation had been flowing pretty freely and people starting to make friends and lots of laughs were had. Louie our Tour Manager gave us a great rundown of the city. and showed us the sights. Saw the Arc d'Triomphe (complete with the crazy roundabout), Eiffel Tower and the Louvre all lit up and looking wonderful. Also saw Notre-Dame which was beautiful, on the banks of the Seine.

...the expensive boutiques such as Louis Vuitton, Chanel and Renault...

The Louvre
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We went back to the hotel and crashed out, tired after a big day of...well, sitting down.

The next morning we were let loose on the streets of Paris, and left to navigate and fend for ourselves. We climbed the 1000 steps of the Eiffel tower and got some great views of the city. Walked down the Champs d'Elysee to the Arc d'Triomphe and managed to survive the roundabout, and the climb to the top of the arc. Saw the expensive boutiques such as Louis Vuitton, Chanel and Renault. Hannah had her first French crepe from a real creperie on the side of the road, and gave it a verdict of 'ok'.

The view from the top of the Eiffel
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Went and did a whirlwind tour of the Louvre, saw the Monna Lisa and lots of people, before a bit of shopping then going to see the real Moulin Rouge show!

Amazing show, great costumes and beautiful women! Unfortunately we weren't allowed to get photos inside...

We were very sad to leave Paris the following morning, definitely a place you could spend a lot more time exploring! As Ernest Hemmingway said, "there is no end to Paris"! The next day we were headed down to Lyon...