Europe Trip: 3rd day in Paris

Jet-lag= getting better...for Joshua anyway!

We decided to start out our 3rd day in Paris at the "Arc De Triomphe". I honestly didn't know anything about this place until we decided to go. There are no Metro exits next to the Arch so we got off 1 mile before and walked down to it. The moment we came up the stairs the Arch looked like it was right there. We started walking and walking and walking and the Arch stayed exactly the same size. It was so trippy because it was so big and seemed right there in front of us but no matter how far we kept walking it was never within reach. I can't really explain it but it was a weird feeling. This thing is HUGE. If you notice in the background of our family picture you can see how small the people look while they're standing right next to it. They have an underground walkway to get to the arch that was a little hard to go through with a stroller but we ended up making it no problem. We spent a little time walking around it and looking at the incredible art work on the walls then headed down the Champs Elysees.

The street was crowded but really fun to walk down. Their are so many different shops and theaters and cafe's that it was fun to just stroll. We even found a Disney store with a French Mater (Mater with a beret on!) in the window. Daniel took him inside for a little while to look at all of the cars stuff while I stayed outside with a sleeping Joshua. We ate lunch on our stroll down the Champs Elysees then headed towards the Musee De Louvre.

We let John play in the park/gardens just down from the Louvre and there was this really cool fountain that people were sailing small sailboats in. It was pretty neat to walk around and see so many statues and fountains and people everywhere enjoying a stroll. We walked down to the entrance of the Louvre (which took us a while because the Louvre itself is extremely big) and right as we got up to the front they told us it was closed for the day and to come back another day. That was the only thing I wanted to do that day and we didn't even get to do it! Oh well, it was much better going on another day anyway because we were able to spend more time. Plus the kids were getting tired and hungry so we decided to go back to the apartment and watch a movie.

I decided to try and brave going to the Carrefour Grocery store (by myself) to buy some sandwich stuff for dinner. Scariest experience EVER! I felt like I was on my mission again not knowing ANYTHING anyone was saying to me but this time I didn't have a companion there to bail me out if I needed help. Thank goodness the cashier was nice to me (although she was probably thinking 'Stupid American' the whole time without me even knowing it!) and I went home with a few breakfast lunch and dinner items for us to eat. I have to admit that was one of the scariest/out of my comfort zone experiences I had the whole time I was in Europe.

When I got back this is what I found...

Poor John was getting mauled in his sleep by Joshua who was bored out of his mind trying to find someone to play with!