Paris - Day 1

Wednesday started EARLY!  We left the Centre at 6:15 am in order to get to the Eurostar!  The Eurostar was great!  We traveled through the English countryside, we went into the tunnel, and then we were in France!  It only took us two and a half hours.

When we got to Paris, we walked to our hotel and checked in, then took the Metro to the Louvre!  We didn't go in, but we saw the outside!

After that, we walked down the Champs-Elysees to the Arc de Triomphe!  It was so surreal being there in person!  We hiked to the top of the arch and we saw the whole city from up there!  I loved looking down on the cars driving around the arch.  It was crazy - there were no lanes and the cars just weaved in and out of each other.

Next we headed over to the Eiffel Tower!!  It was AMAZING up close!  I was surprised at how intricate the structure was.  We took the stairs to the second floor (as far as we could) and then we took an elevator the rest of the way.  I thought the views from the Arc de Triomphe were good, but these were even more amazing!!

At the top!

In the elevator on the way down

For dinner, we ended up finding some really good pizza for dinner and then we were meeting up with the group after that.  I grabbed my first crepe on my way there!  Mine had nutella, strawberries, and whipped cream.  It was so good, even if it was incredibly overpriced.

First crepes under the Eiffel Tower

Our only group activity for the trip was a river cruise on the Seine.  It was gorgeous!  We left right at sunset and we were able to see so much of the city from our boat.  The most magical moment was when we were returning to the dock, it was 10:00 and the Eiffel Tower started SPARKLING.  I actually felt like it was Disneyland and the fireworks were about to start :)

From our river cruise, while it was sparkling