Thanksgiving Vacation 2012 - Paris, Last Day

Our first stop of the day was the Vincennes Castle, located further out of town than we had been. It was easy to get to, just get on the Metro line near our hotel and take it to the last stop. As we left our hotel we were surprised to see the entire street closed to traffic. There were barricades along the sidewalks and police everywhere. Apparently something big was going on this day and hopefully it wouldn't interfere with our plans. So to the Metro we went and sat, at each stop more and more people got off. By the time we reached the end of the line there were only a few  people left. When we got to the surface we were right at the entrance to the castle.

A short walk to the entrance where we took some photos and then crossed the drawbridge across the moat. We used our Paris Museum Pass to get our tickets and then were free to wander the sites that were open in the castle. There weren't many people here yet, but there two groups of guided tours, one with mostly older people and one with children. We planned our first stop by going in the building that the children didn't - the bell tower and dungeon. It was fun exploring the different rooms and levels of this building. Some of the rooms were small, once used at the latrine. We climbed more spiral staircases to get to the upper levels, but sadly the path to the very top of the tower was closed and looked like it was only accessible as part of a guided tour.

The second building was the chapel. It was one big room with paintings on the walls and more stained glass windows. There was a second level that gave a good view of the chapel from above. We left this building and walked back to the gift shop to warm up and decide where to go next. We opted to try the Conciergerie again, the place that was closed the day before.

Back on the Metro we headed back to our familiar stops, and along the way we heard announcements that the Metro line would be closed between certain stations, most likely related to the police activity we saw in the morning. Luckily we didn't have to go to any of those stops to get to the Conciergerie, and since we found the entrance the day before, we were able to walk straight there from the closest Metro stop. There was a small line to enter, and once again we used our Paris Museum Pass to get in.

It turns out that it was closed because they were setting up a special exhibition that seemed to be dedicated to castles. They had lots of miniature castles made of various material including Legos! The room was dark, but they had cool lighting for each castle giving the room a fantasy like atmosphere. Now the rest of the place was a palace and prison. You walked through various rooms where they had mannequins set up like prisoners waiting to be executed. The highlight, if you could call it that, was a room depicting the cell that held Marie-Antoinette with her sitting with her back to the door dressed in all black. Once we finished the self-guided tour we left to go find lunch.

It took three tries to find a place to eat that we all agreed on, and once again we were given seats near the window. I ordered a plate of meats, and I'm not really sure what they all were. One could have been liver, and if it was that's the first time I've had liver. It was all good. Next we wanted to see something that wasn't too far away and would take too long to visit. We somehow decided on what we just called the sewer museum, "a history of water and mains drainage, and a visit to the hear of the sewerage network.". Well, we found the entrance, a small building along the banks of the Seine. However, it was closed. We weren't the only tourists showing up to find it closed. And actually, I forgot that earlier we tried to see some Roman ruins near Notre Dame and they were also closed, as well as some catacombs that were also not open on this trip and the previous trip to Paris.


At this point my sister was ready to go back to her room to warm up and do some blog posting. So my brother, sister-in-law and I attempted to take the train to another site, but our tickets got rejected. We had three day Metro tickets so they should have been good. So instead we walked across the river towards the Metro stop and along the way stopped to take a look at a full sized replica of the Statue of Liberty's Flame. While walking around it I noticed writing on the bridge we were standing on and it was all messages to Princess Diana. Turns out that we were standing above the tunnel where she crashed and died. There were also small memorials to her placed next to the flame. Very sad.

So back down to the Metro where we had more trouble with our tickets, at least my brother did. His wife and I got through okay but his ticket kept getting rejected. All we could think of is that the system knew that the ticket was used and rejected a few times within ten minutes, so it may have been rendered invalid. So we gave up and decided to walk. Along the way we stopped to take photos of the many statues, mostly men who we didn't know on horses. We also decided not to go to the site we were originally taking the train to because it was getting late and most museums close by five. So we walked passed some interesting looking buildings before ended up back at the Christmas Market. It was now in full swing, with people shopping at the little shops and ice skating in a cool looking ice rink and path that  passed by displays of animatronic animals like bears and pandas.

We walked all the way to the end where the Obelisk stands in the center of the Place de la Concorde. There was also a large Ferris Wheel that I had been seeing since I got to Paris and finally got to take a photo of. We then crossed the street and continued walking through the Christmas Market as we headed to our hotel. Along the way my sister-in-law stopped a woman from steeling from a man's backpack as he was taking photos. I had no idea she did that until later. And no, the two women, working together, were not wearing red like in the warning posters.

We finally made it to our hotel and by now all the police activity was gone and the street was opened up to traffic. We later learned that a Russian delegation was in town and there was a wreath laying ceremony, and we luckily missed any Metro stoppages by just a few minutes at one time during the day. So a short break before dinner where we were joined by my sister. This time we ate at the other Italian restaurant across the street. After dinner we made our final stop - the Arc de Triomphe. It was a short walk up to the tunnel which led under the street to the arc. We used our passes to enter and proceeded up a very long stairwell where people seemed to be in a rush to get to the top. Another 284 steps to add to my total for the trip. It was now dark and from the top there was a great view of the Champs Elyesse lined with lights and the Eiffel Tower all lit up. I took many photos, many turned out blurry because I wasn't using a tripod to stabilize the camera for long exposures, but enough turned out semi-decent. Then, I think on the hour, the Eiffel Tower changed to its "sparkle" setting, with lights all up and down the tower flashing brightly. This caused everyone on the arc to walk to one side for viewing.

Well, it was really cold and windy, so we walked by down after a visit to the gift shop, where I bought another souvenir. Back at the hotel it was bed time. My flight with my sister home in the morning left early, so we had to leave the hotel by 5:45 in the morning. My brother and his wife had one more day in Paris. The next morning we checked out and took a taxi to the airport which was much quicker with no traffic. Then the long trip home. Paris to Frankfurt to Washington DC to San Diego, which one to three hour layovers at each airport. By the time I got home I had basically been awake for 25 hours as I got very little sleeps on the flights.

So what did I think of Paris? Well, everyone said what a great city it was and it was a must see, and I agree. But I didn't get a "Paris" vibe.  Maybe all major European cities are staring to feel the same, like Madrid, Barcelona, Rome and Vienna. Would I go back? Yes, there is still plenty to see. Some people say you could spend three weeks there and never get bored.