"Paris, Strasbourg, Lyon, Bonjour!" France Travelogue by rwlittle

This was my first vacation in Europe. We arrived in Paris on the 28th of April, went to Strasbourg on the 3rd of May, went to Lyon on the 4th of May, and returned to Paris very late on the 5th of May, finally returning to Boston on the 6th of May. There's no way to convey the sheer terror involved with climbing the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, or Sacre-Coeur, or the impressive auditory characteristics of the Cathedral de Strasbourg, or the impressive beauty of everything we saw. We fell in love with Paris; we'll be back.

Place de la Concorde

There's so many things to see and do in Paris alone: The Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe, the Louvre, Notre Dame, Sacre Couer, Jardin de Luxembourg, the Seine... One good way to spend a day (as we did) is to start at the Arc de Triomphe, and then walk down the Champs Elysees, passing through Place de la Concorde, and then go on into the Louvre.

Sacre Couer, Paris

There are a number of religious sites to see in Paris: St. Chapelle, Notre Dame, and Sacre Couer come to mind. The latter two offer you the opportunity to climb up the interior to the roof, to get a view of Paris from on high. It's a cool thing to do, but be forewarned: the way up is narrow, and worn, and long, and may also be the way down. You may not want to take the worn stone staircases if it has just rained, as water will track up and down the staircases, which will make for a nervous trek. The view is spectacular, and well worth the effort.

Alsacien houses in Strasbourg

Strasbourg is right up against the German border. We took the train out there from Paris and stayed the night. It's a small town compared to Paris, and has great food...for not a lot of money, I swear I got half a pig on my plate from the local restaurant we went to that evening. The little boat tour we took was a great way to see a lot of the local sights, and to rest your feet at the same time.

Place des Terreaux

We next took the train to Lyon. When we got to Lyon, we got caught in a massive rainstorm, so we ended up eating at the French fast food restaurant Quickburger, which was the best fast food I've ever had. When the rain died off in the evening, we went out and took some photographs. The next morning, we went out and toured some ancient Roman theatres, which were excavated ruins, before returning to Paris.

at CDG airport

We had one last night in Paris, before heading to the airport to catch our flight back to Boston. It was a great trip, I wouldn't mind returning to Paris again!