Installment three: I agree about skipping the shuttle if there is not a group of you. The rest of the story about the shuttle really occurs the last morning. As directed when I arose that morning I called the shuttle and found they did not open until 0700. I called back then and was told there was no way I could get a shuttle for the late morning trip to DeGaule. There was a bit of a panic for a while until our hotel receptionest pull some strings and got us a taxi. The return trip to DeGaule was swift, direct a gentle, however, those who are concerned about cost it did cost about $15 more than the shuttle.<BR>I realized last night that I was tending to wander a little with my writting so rather than a day by day blow from now on I will try to list in maybe bullet form what and where and why. And maybe, even why not again for us.<BR>Let me skip the tours and cover something I consider important and that is the Metro. I consider the Paris Metro the best I have experienced but tickets are a consideration. I looked over the options carefully and unless you are going to be flitting around Paris like a butterfly ther best bet is a stack of 10 tickets for a little less than 10 Euros. I bought our 20 at a time (2 of us) until the last day and then I bought 1 pack (carte) of 10. We left town with 2 unused tickets and I gave them to the receptionest to give to whomever on the staff used the metro.(last of the bigtime spenders) The Metro is efficient and clean and for the most part confortable. Of course during rush hour it is crowded but not that bad. Plan your personal day packing so you can protect your purse or wallet when on the Metro and in the station because there are pickpockets and believe me they are probably wiser than you when it comes to their craft. One more thing, look at the street map when you plan your day. You might find you are taking the metro and walking more in stations to get to your destination than if you just struck out and walked the entire trip. Some train changes in stations require considerable walking (oh yes, did I mention all those stairs &lt;G&gt;)More soon <BR>Mike

hi mikex,<BR><BR>love your trip report so far, however, I really want to point out to others...metro...big mistake. if you are going to be in paris 3 days or more you should really consider the vistors metro card.<BR><BR>you can purchase it at any major metro station and it is called the PARIS VISTE. you can get 1-3 zones or the 1-8 zones. 1-3 zone covers most of central paris and the rides are unlimited. I am not sure what the cost is now in euros, but the us equivilant 2 years ago was about $20 for 5 days zones 1-3. <BR><BR>it was invaluable. you got a carnet that was usuable over and over again. you had a little cover that you put it back into each time. we never had to worry about getting metro tickets or running out of them. we purchased it our 1st day and used it until our last one there.<BR><BR>just a thought....

Lorie, my husband watched the last day of the Tour a couple of years ago, he was staying at the Intercontinental on the Champs so he just walked outside the hotel. He spent the entire day on the sidewalk standing with the crowd waiting for the cyclists. He had a great time. Do you have any questions he might be able to answer? Deborah

More on the metro: I do not want to start (or carry on) this theme much longer, but: The reason I said buy the Carnet of tickets (10 per pack) was that ---in our case--- it was cheaper than the $20 -- 5 day unlimited pass. We planned our trip pretty carefully and consolidated each day in certain areas. Therefore for us it was much better to use the Carnet of 10 vice the 5 day pass as we hardly ever used more than three tickets each in one day. We did however spend hours and months planning where we would go each day and when we would walk and when we would ride. Enough about that on to the trip report.

The cemetary for me is worth seeing, so many famous people all in one place.But seriously, some of the statuary is so unique, bizarre, beautiful, you name it. It's like a little village the way it's laid out. people sit on benches reading and eating. Unfortunately now it is patrolled because the fans of Jim Morrissey not only made a mess of his tomb, the graffiti is awful but they have marked up other tombs. They have decided to evict him. No date or new location announced so they'll be no demonstrations.

Thanks for the positive comments on the report: Our next day was filled with tours and here is our opinion of what we saw. I mentioned earlier that we did the tower climbs at Notre Dame but I failed to mention the beauty of the Cathedral itself. It is an architectural wonder both inside and out. Be sure to see the Cathedral from across the river and from behind as well as from the courtyard in front. Inside there is a little museum that contains various personal items and some church historical. It is not part of the museum pass but well worth the small fee and the time to visit.<BR>There is a public toilet (indoor and monitored) to the river side (on your right, facing the cathedral) that is convenient if you are anywhere nearby. It does not always smell all that good in the corridor but it is bearable and it is clean. The cost is nominal .35 euros I think and cheaper than buying a drink to use the toilet in a restaurant.<BR>Elsewhere on the island is an underground exhibition of early Paris (The Crypt) that they have excavated. This is mildly interesting but is covered by your museum pass if you buy one.<BR>The island also contains one long block from Notre Dame the Sainte Chappell. This small chapel is absolutely stunning and should be a must if you like stained glass. (covered by the museum pass) It is a small investment of your time to sit peacefully and wait for the sun to hit the windows just right. <BR>Just down the street is la Conciergerie. This is the location of Marie Antoinette’s last cell before she was taken to the plaza for execution. There is not a lot to see, it does not take long and if you have a museum pass it is covered. <BR>On this day we were finished sightseeing fairly early so we went to see another department store ceiling. Believe me when I say that I do not go to department stores if I can avoid it but after Samartein’s ceiling I could not resist so we went to Galleries Lafeytte (misspelled) to see theirs. This was another stunning find. So we also went to nearby Prin Temps and again it was a winner.<BR>This is so hard to find as titled. Can someone tell me how I can get this to some up when searching france, Paris I will start a new post with a title that will not move down 160 messages in 24 hours!<BR><BR>More soon <BR>Mike<BR>

Pere Lachaise should be on your list of things to see. Most cemetaries here in the states are full of headstones and markers, but very few cripts. We visited on a Saturday, the funerals were almost nonstop. We went to the crematory, they move the body inside, then have a service, then move the people back outside, fire up the burners, then bring the people back in. Not something we see everyday. The photo ops are incredible. Rows and rows of old cripts with beautiful stained glass. The whole place has a earthy cement color about it.(Somewhat old grey and moldy looking) I did find Jim Morrison's grave over rated though. There is a lot more history found by just reading the headstones.

Mike, Thanks for sharing. Keep it coming please!

What was the weather like when you were there? I am planning a trip either at the beginning or end of September of 2003 (I have to coordinate w/ a co-worker who will be gone mid-September.) I have only been to Paris in the spring and summer. THANKS! Keep your stories coming!

The weather was very moderate. A lightweight jacket or a sport coat was all I needed most days and evenings. I carried a backpack when we were touring so most mornings we would leave wearing light weight jackets with those little raincoats in a bag (for each of us) in the backpack, along with an umbrella. As the day progressed I usually went down to shirt sleeves while my wife changed to a lightweight zip up sweater. When we returned to the hotel in the evening we would usually don sport coat for me and a jacket (sport coat like) for her. We had one day it was very cool all day and another that it drizzled rain all day. We live in NW FL and are warm blooded creatures. Our trip dates were from Sept 14 to Oct 2.<BR>Mike<BR>

Thanks, Mike! That helps a lot. I have a good idea what I will bring and have my mom bring now for that time of year. Best wishes. :-)

Mike:<BR><BR>Thanks for the great trip report! I'm really enjoying it.<BR><BR>Americaine:<BR>I'm also going to Paris with my Mom in September. We'll be there the last full week. I can't wait!<BR><BR>Jennie

Sorry guys I will be a few morw days. Very important (to the Boss) project and we literally have been at the office day and night. I haven't had a day off in two weeks and most days are 12-15 hours. I left home at 0600 today and returned as 2330. More soon. Does anyone know how to get a message to the Paris &amp; France folder vrs this Paris and Europe folder?

Well, I am through with hell week at work. I had 86 hours last week, so here is my appology for not going on before. <BR>Our next day will bore most of you. First we overslept (no big deal museums do not open until 1000). So we are up late, caught breakfast on the fly and in a cool drizzle caught the metro to the D’Orsay. For background the D’Orsay was built in the 19th century as a train station and it must have been magnificent. But alas by the mid 20 century trains were too large for this station;it closed and fell into neglect. However, before the wrecking ball could get it, some enterprising French persons decided to make it into a museum and I thank them. This was in some ways my number one favorite of all the art museums. I love architecture and impressionist art and this museum has much to offer along these lines. To shorten today’s feature we spent the entire day in here. I do mean all day. We first went to the third floor and did the impressionist galleries. There are about 10-12 of them and they have them all (the impressionist artists that is) Really this is art you see from a distance and learn to appreciate. <BR>Then we had lunch in a very nice restaurant (on the mezzanine, I think)(there was also a snack bar in the same area) Then we tried to do the remainder of the museum until about 1730 when we went back to the restaurant and had dinner. (food was better than average in quality and reasonable in price) We did the museum store and more wandering through the galleries on the main concourse. The main concourse is about 5 or 6 stories tall, barrel shaped and very nice. It is filled with statuary and small galleries. At one end of the concourse is a 4 or 5 story museum of furniture with much interesting furniture from (what US'ers know as prairie style and mission style) through Danish modern and modern. My wife was exhausted by now so I did this on my own and was traveling at near warp speed through the exhibits. <BR>Metro back home, exhausted but oh so fulfilled. As most of you have guessed we love museums, art and architecture. If you want night life adventures in Paris better read another travelogue.<BR>Till next time<BR>Mike<BR>

No comments or response to my last evening post. Maybe this one has run its course. Here is another installment if not one is interested I will shut this down. Another day! Weather was not too great in the morning. Wife needed to rest for a while so I took off to do the sewers with the promise to be back from my day by 3 pm so we could go out together.<BR>The sewers were very interesting, if somewhat smelly. I am an engineer by trade and after spending my life around wastewater treatment plants and designing upgrades for sewers I was not bothered but – you will have to decide for your self. Personally, I would do it again in a heartbeat. From the Sewer tour I walked the 10 blocks or so in Invalides. Here I toured a couple of the galleries first the one that holds personal armor for about 10 centuries or so and then a WWII gallery. Of course all of the cases were titled in French so I felt somewhat hampered. Napoleon’s Tomb is at this same place so I did this next. It is very interesting, very lavish and very beautiful. <BR>I still had some minutes to spare and was not far from the hotel so I went back for another gallery. This on was dedicated to the French Resistance Forces in WWII. This was pretty graphic and very disturbing as it should be. As I mentioned, I do not read French but I can make out paragraphs and sentences sometimes. I could make out enough to feel a deep sense of appreciation for the danger, risk, and horrible end for some that accompanied the every day life of these men and women for 5 or 6 years in the middle of the last century. I left with a sense of awe and admiration. I went back to the hotel and wife and I out to dinner and then home for the night. <BR>

Highly enjoying your report Mike, no need to stop!<BR>Regards,<BR>Jade

Mike, I am enjoying your trip report also. If you have more, please do continue. I especially enjoyed your description of d'Orsay. I expect it to my favorite museum when we visit Paris this summer.

Mike<BR>What a perfect trip report! Full of insights and information. What a lovely way to spend a day-in my favorite museum, all day at the D'Orsay sounds just perfect!<BR>We did the same thing at St Chappell,once you get over the claustrophobia of the stairwell, to sit and just watch the light in the windows is a lovely experience.<BR>Do keep writing more! Thank you,Scarlett

Great report.<BR><BR>Do a search for Cemeteries of Paris (I used MSN.com) and you will find a list of the cemeteries in Paris as well as where you can find who's grave, pictures, and a description of the most popular and the map number of where you can find a particular grave. The cemeteries are platted with a street name and assigned a number. My son and I visited Montmarte Cemetery and found it incredible. Great way to spending a relaxing afternoon.<BR><BR>Rita

Mikex -<BR>keep them coming - a great trip report. Although I know Paris so well, and am there on average 4 or 5 times a year for a few days at a time, your report brings it all back - with wonderful insight and flavour ! It helps very much illsutrate why Paris is almost everyone's favourite city ...<BR>Keep your report coming<BR>Thank You<BR>Tony<BR><BR><BR>