Paris Day 3

Our last full day in Paris. It was such a strange feeling. We were so ready to go home and see the kids and be back in America again, but we were also enjoying our time in Paris and trying to enjoy every last moment in Paris that we could, but we were getting tired after such a long vacation. And we were ready to get away from the crowds, and drive a car again!

We started off the day by seeing St. Chapelle, which is a church that was built around the same time as Notre Dame, and has huge stain glass windows. It was beautiful to see, but didn't take us very long. We spent about an hour here looking at everything and then moved on. It was definitely worth seeing though.

Then, we went to the Orsay Museum, which has art from the impressionists, realists, and other french art. The entrance to the Orsay had the worst line that we had to wait in the entire trip (not counting customs). We waited in line for a good hour to get into the museum, and it was a really fun one to explore.

There were some exhibits that were closed for remodeling, so that was a bummer, but we got to see some beautiful artwork. We also got to see some more original Monets. It was really cool, and we tried to appreciate all the artwork. We followed another Rick Steve's audioguide and that helped us navigate the museum and understand what we were looking at.

It was around 2pm by the time we were done exploring, and we were starving. So we headed to a Mexican Restaurant, and it was delicious.

We impulsively decided to go on a boat tour next, and we were glad we did. It was a little chilly, but it was fun to see all the sights from the water and get a little history along the way as well.

We had supper at a grille, and then we packed up called it a night. We had a flight to catch the next day. What a trip!!

We left our apartment at 6:00 am, and walked to the tube station. We rode the tube to the train station, and then rode the train to the airport. We got through security with no problem, and before too long we were waiting at our gate. It was a 9.5 hour flight, so it was a little painful. I couldn't sleep, so I watched like 4 movies. Ugh. I also was seated by a crabby french guy, that I accidentally squirted with balsamic vinegar, so that was fun.

We survived the flight, and landed at around 12:30pm Minnesota time (it was weird because our flight left Paris at 10:15 am and we landed at 12:30pm, we gained some hours there). The next part was the most painful. We stood in line for customs for over an hour before we could get on our way. It was so painful. Then, we got a Lyft ride to our car, and got to drive 4 hours back to Sioux Falls. Yuck.

On the way back, we stopped at Minnesota's Largest Candy Store and bought a bunch of random candy. And we also stopped in Windom for supper at Duffy's. We finally made it home at 8:00pm, which was like 3:00am Paris time, so we were beyond tired and headed straight to bed.

Thursday was our catch up day and then we got to pick up the kids after school, and they were so happy to see us. And we were so happy to see them. It was great.

Now, we have the weekend to catch up on sleep, spend time with the kids, and then back to work on Monday. Oof-da. That might be a reality check.

We had such a good trip, and we were so lucky to be able to go to London and Paris. I can't wait for our next adventure!!

St. Chapelle 

The Orsay Museum 

Our Boat Tour 

Back at home with the kids