Paris, Here We Come!

So, our adventure began when we caught the 4:25am(!) train out of Cambridge.  In London, we boarded the "Chunnel" (shown above), which is the affectionate name of the train that travels BENEATH the English Channel.  I'm not exactly sure what I expected to see (water?) or hear (bands playing?), but it really was just a long dark tunnel, which the kids found fascinating, but it put me right to sleep...literally...:)

First things first.  Upon arrival to the "City of Lights", there was a great chorus of young voices joined together into a rousing rendition of, "We're hungry.  THERE'S MCDONALDS!!"  Desperate times call for desperate measures.  Yes, we ate at McDonalds in Paris. (Don't tell anyone.) But all new cultural experiences were not lost, as we noted that french fries are not served with ketchup in France, but with a special sauce similar to Ranch dressing.  You can see here that it is called, "Pommes-Frites Sauce".  I think that means, "We'll package this like ketchup and the Americans will think it is."

Such detail...carved into STONE...

Caleb took this picture.  As it's not our tradition, the lit candles in so many of these chapels/churches/cathedrals made a real impression...

Headin' down the Champs-Elysees, Paris' most famous thoroughfare...

Our good buddy, Winston Churchill.

We were struck by how ornate much of Paris was...

Our first glimpse of the famed Eiffel Tower...(the kids are reminding me as I type this that it took us FOREVER to walk to the Eiffel Tower from here.)  By the way, we are standing on a bridge over the River Seine, which winds thruout the city.

Speaking of Eiffel Towers, did everyone make it to the top?  We'll find out in the next exciting edition...