PARIS!!!!!!!!!!!

Since we had a layover in Paris on our way back home to the US, we decided to arrange our flight plans so we could stay for a couple of days.  


I've wanted to go to France for my whole life.  I studied French for a few years in junior high, and then for a couple more in college.  I always wondered if I ever got a chance to go over there if I'd be able to speak for real.  I did! (Well, kind of.) :)   

We were only there for 3 short days, but we managed to pack just about everything in!

We stayed in a great little hotel that was right across the street from the Louvre.  Perfect location!  Thanks, Mom and Dad, for the recommendation.

I had to stop making fun of Brian, who bawled like a baby every day we were in the Ukraine, because here I am crying a little bit because I was so excited to finally get to go to Paris.  It was just as wonderful as it had been in my dreams my whole life!

The beautiful gardens of the Tuileries.

Place de la Concorde and Obelisk, places I remember studying every year in French class!  This was much better than studying it in the book!

Couldn't wait to dig in to those famous crepes!  We definitely made ourselves sick during the trip stuffing our faces with crepes and gelato all the time.  Totally worth it!

Eating our crepes while walking down the Champs Elysees.  And I couldn't help myself--I had to sing the Champs Elysees song to Brian.  I was basically humming it in my head for the remainder of our Paris  trip.  I couldn't help it.  I was so dang happy.  If you haven't heard it, click here.

"Oh, Champs Elysees, Oh Champs Elysees........."  lalalalala

L'Arc de Triomph.  Awesome!

We totally did the double decker tourist bus every day.  You can hop on and hop off as you please, and it takes you to all the major sites in Paris.  It was so fun.  We giggled our heads off, and had a great time.

My cheeks hurt from smiling so big during this trip.  I was so giddy at being in Paris with my sweetheart.    I felt like the luckiest girl in the whole world.

Brian decided to try and be artistic.

We watched the sun set from the top of the Eiffel Tower.  I'm not going to lie to you--it was incredibly romantic.

After wandering around until almost midnight, we stopped at a little cafe and I had a delicious croque madame.  It was perfect.

Then, as we were sitting there eating, we heard a thunderous roar on the street as hundreds of roller-bladers went whizzing past us.  It was crazy!  Crazy awesome!  Apparently every Friday night they shut the streets at midnight and (with a police escort) can roller blade all over Paris for 2 hours.  What timing. It was pretty cool to see.  That blur in the picture below is the last of the roller-bladers.

What an amazing first day.  We didn't even get in until late that afternoon, and we were so happy at all of the things we had already seen by the time we tucked our tired, throbbing feet into bed.  What a perfect day.