Tag: Paris

  • Keep up on your French

    Keep up on your French

    Back in the 90s I spoke French fluently (with an Idaho accent). French is still my preferred language for profanity during heated basketball games, but it’s tough to hold on to vocabulary and fluid speech without many francophones around and with visits to France few and far between. Here are a few things that have…

  • Paris Itinerary

    Paris Itinerary

    Every once in a while someone asks me for tourist ideas for Paris. Here’s a summary of what we did last week. We like a fast pace, so cut this in half if you prefer to relax on vacation. A few recommendations before you arrive in Paris: Buy Rick Steves Paris and read as much as you can —…

  • Paris 2017 – Day 5

    Paris 2017 – Day 5

    We saved most of today for catching up on anything we missed earlier. Catacombs This is the second activity where long lines are difficult to avoid. They actually do have a skip the line option now, but it’s more than 2x the normal entrance fee. You could also try Fat Tire Tours again if you…

  • Paris 2017 – Day 4

    Paris 2017 – Day 4

    Notre Dame towers This is one of two events where the lines are unavoidable and fairly painful. We arrived at 9:30 – it opens at 10 – and waited more than an hour. But it’s one of my favorite things to do, so it’s worth it for me. I love gargoyles and this is the…

  • Paris 2017 – Day 3

    This was a Sunday and ended up being the nicest day of Spring 2017 so far. Everyone was outside. I have never seen so many people in the Tuileries gardens and Sacré Coeur. It was perfect for our itinerary, though, because there were virtually no lines for the Louvre or Orsay Museum, which are usually…