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We decided to head up the Bell Tower (238 steps) of Notre Dame just to check to see if the Hunchback was around (I've been informed though, by Ron Logan, that he now is at the college in the US of the same name, working under better conditions).
These cool gargoyles were all over the place (none that sang and danced though) and if you look over Mackenzie, that is the Eiffel Tower way in the distance.
This is the view from the top of Notre Dame down the Seine.
We headed through these doors to get into where the bells are (no wonder he was a hunchback).
And here's one of the bells. There were other's a little higher, but closed off to the public.
We climbed back down and decided to head for the Eiffel Tower. Remember how far it was in the picture from the top? Mackenzie wanted to walk. She didn't like the Metro, seemed afraid that I would get us lost. She always asked, "How many stops" and when I would tell her she would say "Are you sure?" I finally told her that since we never went too far, or the wrong way she had to quit saying "Are you sure?", and I talked her into taking the Metro to the Eiffel Tower.
They are counting down the days to 2000 and we were there on J-36 (Jour is day). This is the view of the tower from where we were standing in line.
Mackenzie started to get a little worried on the lift up, it's really really really high (1500 feet). When you first get out of the lift the room is enclosed in plexi-glass and you have to go up a small flight of stairs to get to the more open part. That made it easier for Mackenzie, and then it was fine.
We took the lift back to the second landing and looked around there, then the stairs to the first landing to check that out, and the stairs all the way down again (Mackenzie's idea).
Across the street from the Eiffel Tower is a carousel, so we headed over there and rode it a bunch of times, then bought crepes from the cart next too it, rode it one more time and finally headed home (Mackenzie wanted to take the Metro at this point).
Saturday
We started off walking and headed to the Place Vendôme where this column stands in honor of Napolean I. This is the square where the Ritz hotel is, and the house where Chopin died.
From there we headed to the Madeleine Church. It's huge. We went inside and walked around for awhile and then when the service was about to start Mackenzie wanted to sit down and stay. So we sat for awhile and since she couldn't understand French we eventually left. She has decided though that she's like to start going to church when we get back to San Diego. Boy, is she going to be disappointed in our church buildings.
These are the steps outside the Madeleine and Mackenzie resting her butt on one of the columns.
One more page of Paris