So much more to see in Paris

I have the travel bug again. It seems to happen a lot. I get to thinking about going to London and Paris. The place in London was serviceable, but the hotel in Paris was pretty nice. We didn't spend a whole lot of time there - we were there to see the sights! We only scratched the surface in Paris.. the Louvre was amazing. I could have spent days wandering and exploring. Even my rusty, junior high school French started to come back and I found I was reading some of the French signs. What they say is true... if you are polite, greet people with a "bonjour" and make an attempt to speak French, most times Parisians will switch to English (probably since we butcher their beautiful language!)

We also toured the Loire Valley. Again, another place I'd love to visit again and really explore. I'm sure there are lots of great hotels in France that are affordable. The castles are amazing. The history is amazing. It really makes you realize how young the USA is when you walk over marble floors that show 1000 years of wear. Chenonceau, for example, is built right over the river Cher, and was allowed to remain during WWII because each town was allowed one bridge. Apparently, the French Resistance used it too! Chenonceau has two gardens - one created by Henri's wife, and the other by his mistress. Try getting away with that now...

But back to Paris. Sigh. Dinner in the Eiffel tower was wonderful. I realize we did very "touristy" things, but my dear Grandmother had wanted to go there for over 40 years. She'd saved National Geographic magazines with articles about France from as far back as the 1940s. She's gone now, but I have two little girls that would love to explore. All we have to do is find a reasonable Paris hotel to use as a base. When they're older, that is. Not so sure dh wants to go. He's more interested in war history. I think he would like it. Some of the small towns, with their close to the cobblestone street houses made me think about the movies I'd seen. We were in a small town, walking to the restaurant for lunch on such a street, and we could hear a car approaching. We couldn't see it, but we could hear it, and I could only imagine how those tanks sounded. Ick.

Oh well. Maybe someday I'll go back. I'll learn more French first, though, if I ever do!