But first, we had to say goodbye to Amsterdam, which made us all sad. In the 51 hours we were there, we absolute fell in love with this charming city. It actually didn’t even take 51 hours – I believe we had only taken a few steps into the city before we all felt completely swept into its embrace. We loved London, too (and Oxford and Salisbury and Stonehenge and Gloucester and Thornbury), but some of our snafus and misadventures there left us scrambling and stressed. Amsterdam helped us set an entirely different pace. It was so hard to say good-bye!
Sigh. Isn’t she lovely?
Vaarwel voor nu, Amsterdam!
On Tuesday, afternoon, we got on the high speed train for Paris, ready for new adventures.
It was a delightful, relaxing four-hour ride, giving me plenty of time to work on plans for our time in Paris.
We arrived early evening yesterday and took the Metro to the Montmartre district, where we found our apartment, which is as adorable as it appeared in the Airbnb pictures.
The neighborhood is an absolute delight. It’s even closer to the Sacre-Coeur Basilica than I realized, yet in a surprisingly non-touristy neighborhood. We spent last night and today just hanging out, getting acclimated to the neighborhood, and nailing down our plans for the rest of our time here. Rob’s getting ample opportunity to practice his French, and the rest of us are trying to manage some French as well.
Tonight we climbed the many, many, many steps to the basilica, which sits atop Montmartre, the highest natural point in Paris (430 feet).
You can see just about the whole city from there, and it’s just beautiful. After a fantastic dinner, we got to see it all again after dark. The basilica was beautiful all lit up against the night sky.
And the view of the city was gorgeous as well. The Eiffel Tower was all lit up, and we happened to walk by the best viewing point right at 11:00p, when the tower lights went all twinkly (they twinkle on the hour for five minutes). It was absolutely magical.
We’re so happy to be here! Bonne nuit de Paris!
Seeing the Sacred 
Glad you liked A’dam! Make sure you see the painting “Jerusalem” [also called “Golgotha”] at the d’Orsay museum. It will certainly inspire your seeing the sacred!
Don
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Thank you for the tip! We found it and loved it!
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Oh, the painting is by Jean Leon Gerome…
Don
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Paris est tres beau, n’est pas? If you love Impressionist works, the d’Orsay is a great museum to visit. I regret Notre Dame Cathedral is likely off limits due to the tragic fire damage. Bon voyage!
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We made it to the d’Orsay this afternoon and loved it!
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We too loved Amsterdam in January when there but Paris does indeed weave it’s own tapestry of magic as we too found. It was our final city after London, Amsterdam and Venice.
Love your posts and you!
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