Daily Details: July 13

After arriving from overnight train, a bus was at the Gare de Bercy to take us to our hotel. The ride was absolutely fantastic—we passed the Louvre, Musee de Quai Branly, and many other famous things. But the thing I will never forget is when I saw the head of the Eiffel Tower beginning to peep up from the surrounding buildings. It was completely magical! Soon, we were at our hotel and once again, lady luck was going my way. Most of our rooms weren’t ready because it wasn’t even 10 in the morning, but mine was so I didn’t have to leave my luggage in the lobby. Hoorah!

For lunch, we stopped at this completely charming café near our hotel where I ate one of the best sandwiches I’ve ever had in my life. It was on this perfectly crusty baguette, with a French chicken salad (amazing, light sauce), tomato, and lettuce. Then we took off to go get a closer view of the Eiffel Tower and ended up being seated directly in front of it on a grassy lawn. After sketching for a while, we returned home, freshened up (yay! No more bird poop in my hair!), and sought out the catacombs. After a VERY long walk there, we were dismayed to find out it was closed for the day already. Starved, we decided to go to the Hard Rock Café because it was close by. This was my first experience at a Hard Rock Café, and it was FABULOUS!!! The memorabilia in there was absolutely fantastic, and I saw a guitar that was from one of my favorite bands, Queensryche. It made me miss my Chi (brother Ryan) a whole ton. I shared a pulled pork sandwich with Hickory BBQ, seasoned fries, and coleslaw with my friend Mallory. A part of me felt like a traitor for eating American food on my first day in France, but after that divine food, I made peace with the fact that I love BBQ, even in France.

It was time to meet up to go on a boat tour after dinner, and we passed by Notre Dame. It was definitely a spectacular sight. The boat tour was even MORE spectacular though. Our tour guide pointed out the many famous things that are along the Seine River. But nothing…NOTHING was more spectacular than seeing the Eiffel Tower lit up at night. It shines like a magical beacon, and is truly the centerpiece of Paris.