Thanks for the report and I personally appreciate hearing about aspects in Paris beyond the yummy foods.

I would also be interested in your take on that lightning rod of all Paris lightnig rods: the Moulin Rouge show.

You realize, of course, that you are now marked as a traitor since you've advised people not to wear capri pants!!

We were in Paris from May 22 through May 27 and it was very cold and windy and gray. I believe the sun peeked out for about half an hour on one day.

We had two Parisian guides on two different days and both said that they had had no spring this year--only winter and that it was unusually cold for May.

Also, the city was much more crowded than we expected for that time of year. We stood in line for 3 hours to get to the top of the Eiffel tower. On the ground, we were in a relatively short line and reached the first set of elevators in about an hour. Then there was an even longer wait on the second level.

Everywhere we went the crowds were more of what I would have expected for mid summer. This was our 9th trip abroad and our second trip to Paris but definitely one of our trips with the most crowds and the least amount of sun.

Lines at the Orsay were very long everytime we passed by on a river cruise, open topped tour bus, taxi, etc. We had purchased timed tickets to the Cezanne/Pissarro exhibit (9:30 a.m.--the opening time in the morning) and had museum passes but still stood in line for half an hour.

Also, everything there was quite expensive. We stayed in a Hilton using points but the exercise room and pool cost extra per usage. Wireless internet was available but only by a per minute charge--not a flat rate per 24 hour period as we pay here when traveling.

Public bathrooms cost to use unless you were in a place where you had paid to get in--a museum, a restaurant, etc.

The metro was relatively easy to understand but somewhat cumbersome if you are from a small town and not accustomed to the stairs, and the very quick off and on times allowed for boarding and exiting the trains.

The alternative--taxis were expensive and slow due to the massive amount of traffic.

Paris is an exciting city with beautiful architecture and museums but not a restful vacation or an environment of overly friendly folks.

Cindy

Part of our adjustment was

They charged extra to use the pool?

Yes, they charged 25 Euro per person/per use.

It seemed to us that everytime we turned around there was an extra charge for something.

I also was looking forward to Hilton for the beds but even there was surprised to find the beds in the Hilton there were not like our Hilton beds--they were hard like a rock with no cushion or bounce.

I broke my hip exercising several years ago and have a bone graft so I am a bit more sensitive to hard beds and flights of steps (metro) but even the healthier members of my family were hurting by the end of our stay.

I might add, that we spent three days in London before going to Paris and went back to London for the flight home (we like British Airways) and London was no where near as crowded as Paris. It did rain the entire time we were in London and it was colder than we expected but not as crowded.

I suspected Paris was more crowded than normal.

Possibly it was the fact that fares were fairly low and all the DaVinci Code stuff.

Here's the picture caption on the Moulin Rouge from my photo album


"What looks like a cheesy topless Vegas-style dance review is actually a well preserved entertainment tradition that stays pretty true to its hundred-year-old (-ish) roots.

A lot of people poo-poo the Moulin Rouge show as the Cheese Whiz of sightseeing in Paris, but I love folk dancing and wanted to see the can-can danced by the company that invented it. Plus, I like Toulouse-Latrec's art and he was a prominent figure on the Moulin Rouge scene. He drew/painted quite a few of the dancers. So there is a high class, cultural aspect to the Moulin Rouge beyond the chorus line of jiggling boobies.

If you go to the show, be sure to buy one of the books that explains the history of the Moulin Rouge, it's quite interesting. You can also see some of Toulouse-Latrec's work at the Musee D'Orsay to tie everything together."

D