The first main task of the day was to turn in the car. When I called earlier in the week to arrange the drop-off the person I talked to indicated they were open 24/7. Indeed they are open - just not manned 24/7. Dropped the keys in the box but had no place to put the paperwork. Finally found the main desk (of course no one was there) so left the paperwork there with a note. Sure hope they figure it out.
Flew on easyJet (one of the "cheap" airlines in Europe) to Paris - nice quick flight and landed in Paris around 10:30. Checked into the Ibis hotel at the airport then grabbed a quick bite to eat before heading into the city. Bought an all-day transit ticket so we could travel as necessary on the RER and Metro.
Our first stop was St. Chapelle which we had visited in 2007. The church has the 1,113 scenes depicted in 15 stained glass windows that tell the story of mankind from Genesis to Christ's resurrection. It is truly an amazing place to visit.
Our next stop was Notre Dame - an amazing church and pictures do not do it justice.
We then took a river cruise which allows you to see many of the landmarks on a one hour cruise.
We then headed up to Sacre Coeur and Montmartre to walk around and watch the sunset and the city lights come on. We were a bit surprised as to how crowded it was - there were people everywhere. And as the evening approached the crowds grew larger.
Had a great dinner at a small neighborhood restaurant that was just off the main path (recommended by a person who lives in Paris). We got a table that had a view of a portion of the city. The menu was all in French and we did not recognize a lot of the dishes. Fortunately our server spoke very good english and helped us make our choice. Charlotte had a mushroom tart for a starter and a white fish for the main course. Steve had foie gras followed by lamb. And of course wine and dessert were in order. Overall a very nice dinner.
When we headed back towards the metro station we were totally surprised that the crowds had gotten even larger. It was quite obvious that there was something going on in the city that evening. We later learned that it was Nuit Blanche - White Night - an annual celebration of all things art and culture. It attracts hundreds of thousands of people - no kidding. It is so big they run the metro until 3AM.
Worked our way back to the main metro terminal and were lucky enough to get an express train back to the airport and our hotel. even though it was a bit rushed we really enjoyed our afternoon and evening in Paris.
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