bike about. (or, Paris, day 2)

Our second day in Paris started fairly early, as we were trying to get to Notre Dame before the crowds.

Ha.
Ha.

The place was a MADHOUSE. We skipped climbing the tower, even though it was something I had really wanted to do. I do not believe in waiting for hours in line for stuff like that. I mean, I have a set amount of hours on the ground in Paris. I'm going to stand in line with a bunch of sweaty, irritable tourists for two hours? Non, merci. So we toured the inside of the church, which was also a madhouse, but lovely. I was struck more by the timeworn stones, soot-covered paint, and grooved stone floors than by the stained glass. Those things reminded me how many feet and hands have passed through that building in the last 900 years - lifting their eyes and hearts to worship...it was beautiful, in it's own unique way.


When we had seen enough, we wandered down the main streets of Ile de la Cite (the island in the Seine upon which Notre Dame sits) and the Ile Saint Louis, both of which are filled with old cobblestone streets, tiny shops, and just general all around charm. We bought lunch at a teeny boulangerie (I wish I could remember the name, but I was distracted by the plethora of pastries, breads, and general oozing, cheesey, tomato-ey goodness in the window) and walked down to sit by the river.


We also had to stop at the classic Berthillion for ice cream - I know there are other locations about the city, but I believe this is the original. And dear, sweet baby Jesus, it was worth it. Shawn had poire (pear) and ananas (pineapple) and I had chocolat and cappucino. And, um, if you're waiting for a photo of those little scoops of heaven, well....you'll have to go get your own. It somehow...uhhhh...disappeared before it could be photographed. Whoops. We followed up our glace with a stroll down to the Pont Neuf bridge, which was a beautiful place to sit and people watch.

The big activity for the day, however, was still to come. We signed up for a (cringe) bike tour. I know it's a totally nerdy, touristy thing to do, but it actually ended up being one of our favorites. It was a small tour with about 8 other people (a british couple who had to stop to smoke a ciggie every so often, a father/daughter from DC, a Norweigan guy....stop me if you've heard this one) and let me tell you, the French have bike-riding all right. Americans, we go out for a bike ride and we squeeze into our spandex pants, strap on our helmets, put on our mirrored shades and huff and puff up and down hills until we are either A) dead or B) wish we were dead. The French do it all differently. The bikes have no gears, because the city is mostly flat. There are no helmets, so your hair stays nice. You ride in traffic, and ding your bell if it seems you might collide with someone. They either move, or they curse you in French and you move. And two hours into your four hour tour, well, you pull over at a cafe and have yourself a little sit down, which includes coffee and pastry. THIS kind of bike riding, I could learn to love.


Finally, a late dinner at a bistro down the street from our hotel. And by late, I mean we went to dinner at 10:30. P.M. You can imagine what time we got home.
To see the entire set from day 2, click here!