Bonjour from Paris
Posted: August 17th, 2012 by Courtney
After a delayed flight from Austin we arrived in Paris in the early afternoon and checked into our cute little apartment on Rue Montorgueil in the 2nd arrondissement.  The location was perfect, located close to lots of restaurants, cafes, fromagerie, vegetable stands, and a couple of boulangeries.  It was also close to all of the tourist attractions.
The first thing we did after settling in was to take a walk to the Seine River and visit Notre-Dame before getting cleaned up for a great 3-course dinner at a nearby restaurant.
Notre-Dame Cathedral
After a good nights sleep we hit the shops on the Avenue des Champs-Élysées and I happened to wander in to the Laduree shop to have a taste of our first French macaron.  YUM!
Macarons from Laduree
Arc de Triomphe
Later in the afternoon we did a guided walking tour with a Paris Greeter.  These are Paris locals who volunteer to show you their favorite parts of the city.  We had a great time wandering around the Marais neighborhood and along the river.
Day three we dedicated to the Left Bank (south of the River Seine).  We did a self-guided walking tour of the Latin Quarter and Luxembourg Gardens.  Then made our way to the Eiffel Tower.
Cool church and fountain on the Left Bank.
Eiffel Tower
Wow, this thing is big up close!
The view from the 2nd level.
On our fourth and last day in Paris we spent the morning enjoying breakfast on Rue Montorgueil.  Then prepared some things for a picnic in Montmartre and Sacré-Coeur.
Picnic lunch at Sacré-Coeur, I think I could get used to this
In front of the church
Four days was definitely not enough time to see Paris, but we enjoyed ourselves even if our feet are really tired from all the walking around.