Travelling

The St. Denis Basilica was breathtaking!! I'd never been there before. The tombs and memorials to the different kings and queens of France were incredible. Perhaps more incredible was that these all survived the Revolution and that they made a tomb / memorial (not sure which) to Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette after the Revolution!!!

Got up early to try and beat the hords at the Eiffel Tower - but not early enough. It took over two hours from the moment I joined the line to the moment I stepped off the elevator at the highest floor. However, the view was worth it.

Spent some more time sitting by the Seine yesterday, this time across from Notre-Dame. Paris in August, at least this August, is beautiful. The weather has been perfect - warm but not overly hot and beautiful sunshine every day.

The bridge closest to Notre-Dame was closed as they were filming a musical - fun to watch it all.

Climbed the towers of Notre-Dame again, trying to get some good shots of the gargoyles for my grade eleven students who read Notre-Dame de Paris (The Hunchback of Notre Dame). The stairs are absolutely killer!! By the time you set foot on terra firma, your legs are shaking and continue shaking for quite a while.

The view of the Cathedral from the tops of the belltowers is incredible - it's hard to believe the effort the masons put into the gargoyles and all the detail on areas of the cathedral that can't be seen anywhere but from the belltowers. Amazing! And, again, great views of Paris.

Got some of my favourite treats from the grocery store and called it a fairly early evening as I needed to get up early to get to the train station. Three metro / RER changes later, with my heavy suitcase and backpack, I finally got the the Gare de Lyon. I sat next to a lady from Paris who is also a language teacher and had the opportunity to converse with her on many topics: since speaking French was the main reason (ok, one of the main reasons!) for this trip, it worked out great.

I'm sitting in an internet café at the Geneva train station, waiting for my train to take me on the next stage of this journey. A week in the Swiss Alps should be relaxing after the craziness of the last few days!

Happy trails!