Wee, Wee, Paree

Thursday, August 19th

Well, just to start off...Mike and I are dorks! We went to bed in our amazing hotel room and during the night felt like we were getting bit by something. I asked Mike if the window was open and he said he closed it. Basically, we had a horrible night itching and scratching and hearing the street noise. Around three in the morning, I had my whole speech ready to go to get a discount because they obviously had bed bugs. I was disgusted and angry. This morning, we groggily rolled out of bed and asked Matt if he had gotten bit. He said, "No, I had a great night's sleep." We returned to our room only to see that we had left the window WIDE open all night! Mike saw a mosquito in the bathroom and he said it looked engorged with blood...gross, I know. So, through our own negligence, we had a horrible night in a great hotel.

Matt had insisted on buying himself a beret yesterday. I told him I didn't care as long as he wore it for the rest of our time in Paris. So, as you will see in all of our photos today, Matt is now Beret Boy.

Breakfast in Paris was quite an event for us. It seemed as if the food never stopped coming. They do love their bread! There were croissants, baguettes with butter spread on them, and a basket of baguette slices. In addition, we had hot chocolate (Mike had coffee), fresh squeezed orange juice (probably the best oj I've ever had), and enormous ham and cheese omelets. We were set til dinner...which was good, because it cost over 50 Euros...about $65.

Then we were off to Les Invalides to see Napoleon's Tomb...the one thing Matt really wanted to do in Paris. Les Invalides is a hospital for wounded soldiers that also house a few museums and Napoleon's Tomb. It was interesting to see the opulence surrounding a dead person.

Next, we headed over to the Eiffel Tower. The line to go up was astronomical! I have never in my entire life seen crowds that bad. This is where having had Disneyland passes for years is a detriment. My family has no tolerance for lines. When we go to Disneyland, if the lines are too long...we leave. This was no different. Mike and Matt had no desire to stand in line to go up the Eiffel Tower, and since I had already done it with the girls...we took some photos and left.

We walked to the Seine River and got some ice cream and then headed back to the hotel, shopping along the way. This time, Matt insisted on buying another beret for his 'Beret Buddy' and you will find out who you are when we return home.

We had an airport shuttle van pick us up at the hotel to take us to CDG Airport for a 6 pm flight...which didn't arrive until 7 pm...at which time we all boarded and sat on the tarmac for 45 minutes before finally taking off. The captain was really great though, he went through and spoke with everyone and invited people to come into the cockpit for photographs. I think everyone on the plane took advantage of that invitation...except us...we were too cool. We did have some great conversations with two of the flight attendants, however, as we were sitting in the very front row and they had to sit facing us during take-off and landing.

We arrived at our Madrid apartment pretty late. The neighborhood looked a little sketchy, but the owner assured us it was safe. I guess we'll find out!