Looking towards Place de la Concorde, Tuileries, and the Louvre.
l'Arc de Triomphe! It is much larger in person and I tried to capture that here. It was almost the perfect place to read a book in the sunlight.
Looking at l'Etoile, the roundabout that goes around the Arc, which is 12 lanes, only they are not marked. You hear about how crazy it is, and it looks so, but there is a strategy.
One of the pictures from our photoshoot. The shoot lasted about 22 seconds. I think I got some great ones. I have beautiful friends, I know!
We met up with Adeline at George V and headed down the Champs Elysees to Place de la Concorde. From this view, you can see Le Grande Palais, Le Petit Palais, Pont Alexandre III (the bridge), and Invalides. This leads up to my street.
This is from Rue Royale looking toward Assemblee Nationale and Pont de la Concorde. You can also see the Dome of Invalides as well. The two steeples on the left are the church that is across from my flat. There is a lot of history in this one photo.
Madeleine. This was originally designed to be a building for Parliament but was changed to a church dedicated to Mary Magdelene. We took a visit inside. It was so sad because there were so many chairs that were empty, except for a couple looking through their guidebook for their next expedition. It was a Sunday and the place was empty. 
We hopped on the metro to Abbessess, one of the most famous metro stops in all of Paris, mainly known for its Art Nouveau style. We exited and walk up some steep and winding hills to the best of Montmartre. We stopped at a boulangerie for Jennifer to grab a baguette. I waited outside and took it all in until she and Adeline returned. We walked across the street to see the famous store from the movie Amelie Poulin. If you haven't seen it, you must! There is even an actress in it that I see almost every day. Her kids are at the same school as Zac.
Typical Parisian street in Montmartre.
My favorite part of Paris, well among others. This is true bohemia right here!
I love watching this man. 
Just a few steps away and you will find Sacre Coeur. This is on the side of the church
Again, it was busy. It was hard to move around comfortably. We went inside Sacre Coeur and photos were prohibited. That didn't stop me. I was very discrete with my camera. I had it around my neck and kept my arms crossed, with one finger on the snap button and voila! Know that my life was risked for these photos. It is always why they aren't very straight :) There was a service in progress. I love sitting through services of different churches. They are all so different and it's amazing to see the different ways that people worship God. Sometimes it's sad to see the lack of enthusiasm and over-emphasis on ritual, but it reminds me how fortunate I am to have the relationship with Him that I do. 
Down the hill we went toward the Moulin Rouge. It was our next stop. Once we got down to the main road, we noticed a street show. It was two men showing off their talents. One was obviously the goofy dancer, and the other was the coordinated and exhibited gravity-defying talent. Both were equally entertaining.
Adeline had to get going. We had a great time hanging out, but we had to bid her farewell. We walked a little way to get a glimpse of the famous Moulin Rouge. On the way, I noticed "Jack Johnson" spray painted on the sidewalks. He is coming to town in July, so I am not sure if it's advertisement or just an avid fan gone crazy. Whatever the case, I like it.
And before we knew it, there it was. I am not sure if I love it so much because of my love for Ewan McGregor and the film or if it really does interest me. It is pretty incredible to think about the history also.
By this time our stomachs were demanding some attention. We caught the metro to Odeon so that we could eat some food that is close to good ole Tex-Mex food. We saw Indiana Cafe in Montmartre, but figured it would be better to be on the Left Bank at nighttime. It felt so good to sit down. Jennifer decided on a hotdog and I wanted the nachos. I ordered in French and asked a couple other things in French also. Quite exciting. I am not as good as I should be after being here for eight months and practically living with a French family, but baby steps. It's my mantra.After leaving, we walked around awhile. Being outside at night is absolutely intoxicating in Paris. There is so much to see that you feel it would be a waste not to be out. We found ourselves near Montparnasse, the tallest building in Paris and most natives happen to think is the city's biggest eyesore. My plan for the night was to walk around the Louvre. We had about two miles till we were there, but trekked along like good sports. We went down Rue de Bac to get there. Once we crossed the Seine, it was kind of dark in the courtyard. We saw a few men slinking around through the landscaping so we spoke loudly and linked arms and walked fast. We made it to the pyramids and hardly spoke. It was actually my first time to come here since I arrived and my first time to come at night ever.
The temperature continued to drop and we found ourselves shivering. We walked toward the river so that we could get on the 69 bus. We found it and waited and waited and then figured out the bus doesn't run on Sundays. Completely exhausted we continued on our walk down the Seine passing the Musee d'Orsay on the way. A few more blocks and we were back in the comfort of my flat. Exhaustion. We were feeling it. However, looking back on the weekend, we had a great time and saw Paris on one of the most beautiful weekends. Jennifer had to pack her bags for her hike across the Atlantic for Capitol Hill while I continue to enjoy the weather that's yearning for Spring.
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