Christian #2: End of Paris Photo Blog

Hi All. Sorry about the late nature of this blog, but better late than never (although not necessarily if you ask Cedric). We've had a busy few nights. Enough with the small talk: here are the pictures.

Five Rings of Gold in front of the palace at Versailles. Built by Louis XIV, its gigantic (Parker estimates you could fit 100 Wal-mart superstores in the palace comfortably) and full of gold. We were right at home and Parker was already drawing up plans in his head to build a bigger one in the U.S.


This is one of the ceiling murals of in the palace at Versailles. I think I remember that it's Mars in one of his victories. It helped to emphasize the extremely ornate decorations and buildings of Versailles. Quite a piece to look up at while your eating dinner. I think I could get used to it.

The famed Hall of Mirrors that Dr. Chase taught us all about in AP Euro. For the 17th century, it's pretty flippin' ridiculous. One thing that was cool is that on one end of the hall is the War room and on the other side is the Peace room. Neat way to connect the two opposites. And not a bad view of the gardens either.

The famed Gardens at Versailles. Walking from one end to the other took us a good 30 min walk at a good pace, which means a fast trot/jog for those of us under 6 foot. They are beautiful and meticulously kept; impressive to say the least.

From the Gardens looking towards the palace. It helps to illustrate just how ridiculously big this place was. We weren't even halfway to the other side yet.

Parker being the smug, little munchkin that he is. Parker wants me to add that he's sorry if you think this picture is too sexy. You make up your own mind.

Five Rings of Gold outside the ostentatious gold gates of Versailles. Excellent.

Three of Five Rings of Gold being goof-balls in front of the Invalides.

The Invalides houses the tomb of Napoleon, as seen above in this massive stone/wood structure. Once again, very ornate and grand.

Appropriate for Parker's Napoleon complex to kick in at his tomb. He was naturally drawn to the tank as a sign that he is a big man and not someone to mess with.

Here we have an exhibition of Sams. They are rare, contemplative, hyper, chill creatures that are not opposed to having their picture taken. They also have a innate ability to lead people onto the correct metro train anytime of the day or night. But beware if you try to slow it down; it will leave you in the dust!

We finally found a suit of armor to fit Parker. It took several hours to find and years for Polish elfs to make. Cedric, the Gaul, makes fun of the puny suit of armor for the German.

A shot of Notre Dame from the back on the river.

Five Rings of Gold on the river boat on the Seine touring Paris.

On the Champs-Elysees of the Arc de Triomphe. Another attempt at an artistic photo.

Escargo! Man is that stuff good. Sounds potentially gross, but these little cephalopods are quite tasty and the olive oil and pesto sauce that covered it was exquisite. Cheers!

Another artistic picture. We were meeting Cedric at Notre Dame and the lighting and night provided for a beautiful view.

Dessert (noun)- 1. An after dinner course at which usually sweet foods are eaten. 2. A time when French waiters are astounded at how fast American teenagers can eat three plates of creme puffs, apple tart, and chocolate mousse respectively. Pretty wicked awesome.

After running to be able to see the Eiffel Tower light up at 12:00 am, we brought Henry into style on his birthday with a rousing version of Happy Birthday in both French and English.

A beautiful night over the Seine river watching the moon and the Eiffel Tower. Doesn't get much better than this.

Five Rings of Gold in the Luxembourg Gardens. There were tons of little sailboats sailing across the pond. Made me remember my fascination with ships when I was younger.

This is for the ladies reading the blog. Galeries Lafayettes, so called shopping capital of the world, is so large it doesn't just fit in the 9-story, dome-capped building seen here, but extends to to other near by buildings that would qualify as large stores in the U.S. Truly a sight to behold, not just for its grand building, but also for that fact that within a stone's throw are at least 15 of the most high-end designers I've ever heard of and plenty that I haven't.

Sacre-Coeur, one of our last stops in Paris located in the district named Montmartre. Like all the other cathedrals: big, ornate, and beautiful.

So after many days and hundreds of pictures later, we had a great time in Paris. Thanks again for looking at pictures and following us on the blog. Hope you enjoyed them. More to come from Berlin.

~Christian