Our last day in Paris and the last day of our holiday but what a beautiful summer's day. We set out on foot after breakfast for the St Augustin chapel that we had seen on our first evening in Paris. From there we continued on along Blvd Haussmann and Ave de Fiedland until we came to the Arc de Triomphe de l'Etoile - the monument to those who fought and died for France in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Located in the centre of Place Charles de Gaulle, it effectively is the centre of a 12 road roundabout. The traffic goes around about 5 or 6 cars wide with no line markings - it is truly magic to watch. Keeping moving seems to be the trick, anyone that stops seems to get stranded with everyone else going around them. Fortunately for the tourists that want to climb to the of the monument, there is an underpass so you don't have to brave the traffic. We didn't bother with the climb as we had an appointment elsewhere.
We left by strolling down the Champs Elysees as far as Franklin D Roosevelt Metro station where we jumped on a number 9 line train for Trocadero. Our destination was, of course, the Eiffel Tower and our plan was to walk down the grand staircase at the Trocadero and across the River Seine. Our plans were thwarted by the preparations for Bastille Day on the 14th July. The Trocadero will be the site of a fireworks display and the staircase was closed to allow for preparations. So instead we had to contend with walking around the outside before crossing the river.
It was a beautiful sunny day and the crowds were out in force and the lift queues at the Eiffel Tower were huge. Not that that was a problem for us - we had our pre-purchased tickets. About 15 minutes before Noon we joined a small queue at the special gate for the smart people like us. While we were waiting it became obvious why the pre-bookings were sold out - tour group operators that want to get their people to the top use the pre-booking and accounted for most of the ticket holders. They let us in about 10 minutes early and we joined the end of the queue of previous pre-purchased ticket holders. The lifts going up the first two levels of the Eiffel Tower are double story. Our queue was using the lower level of the lift and the ordinary queue, the upper level. It took about half an hour for us to queue and get up to the second level which was really, really good. The ordinary people were going to be every bit of three hours in their queue, if not more.
To get to the top of the Eiffel Tower, you change lifts at the second level. Before we went up there were signs advising of crowding and a delay of 45 minutes at the second level. So when we got there, it was straight off to the queue for the top. Again there were two queues and it seemed like one we were in was for the pre-purchased ticket holders only. Although I couldn't be sure, the thing that was certain was that we were at the top within 15 minutes. The obvious message here is: pre-purchase your Eiffel Tower tickets! But don't tell everyone else they will all do it and then there will be no advantage...
The view from the top is fantastic and well worth the effort of getting there. You can see for miles with the whole of Paris laid out before you. After doing several circuits around the top and using the toilets provided for your convenience, we took a lift down to the second level. Not being in any hurry now, we took in the views from there and enjoyed an ice cream. With shops beckoning, we took the lift down to the ground and said farewell to the tower.
We crossed back over the Seine and took a bus towards the centre of Paris. We got off the bus opposite the Musee d'Orsay and retraced yesterday's walk through Jardin des Tuileries and past all those jewellery shops. This time they were open and so the shutters were up and the trinkets were on display. Oh how the other half a per cent live... We made our way past the Paris Opera and on to Galeries Lafayette which has the most amazing stained glass dome. Their stock was pretty amazing too for a department store - they seemed to start where we end in terms of quality. After Galeries Lafayette, we went to Printemps which was just next door - it was no different...
A couple of days early, we had seen some nice things in a little street near Notre Dame. After walking through the big department stores, we decided to go back there to do some shopping. So it was on to the Metro at Havre Caumartin for one stop to Opera and change to the number 7 line for a train to Pont Marie. We stepped off here, walked over part of the Seine onto Ile Saint Louis and found the shops we were looking for. After making the desired purchased, it was time to head back to our hotel. Rather than simply retracing our steps, we crossed the rest of the Seine and made our way to Jussieu Metro station, also on the number 7 line. We took the train back to Opera, changed to the number 3 line up to Villiers where we got off and walked back to our hotel. After a rest we went out for dinner, this time returning to the Village Cafe where we ate last night.
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