Our last full day in Paris. While Heather was slowly writing her diary this morning I packed. It looks like it will all fit as I brought an extra duffel bag for the return journey, however the problem is weight. Emirates charge 50 euros per kilo for excess baggage so we don't want to go there. I'm confident we will be okay, so much so I bought 2 more kids t-shirts today), with our new trusty luggage scales to guide us. After I finished packing (well nearly) and Heather had finished her diary we headed out for our last Metro ride to see the Sacre Coeur and Montmartre. When we got on the Metro Heather asked her usual question of, "how many stops?" This time we had to go across Paris so Heather's face dropped when Neil answered, "16". The stops flew past as they are so close that sometimes you can see the next station down the track when the line is straight. It was a grey and overcast day so Sacre Coeur wasn't glowing as it usually does in the sun but it was still very impressive.
To get to the top of the hill it is perched on you have two choices. You can either walk the few stairs or take the 100m funicular railway. We took the funicular as the kids love this sort of thing. The kids wanted to go inside the church so we wandered around (another French tourist attraction one way system). They enjoyed the stained glass windows (Callum saw Mike the Knight in one) and dancing candles (Heather's words). It is a beautiful church but I found the gift shop in the actual church down a side aisle a little tacky. After the Sacre Coeur we went and did the ultimate tourist thing and got the kids portraits done at the Place du Tetre. It was very hard choosing between artists as they were all so desperate for your business and jumping out at you. We chose a nice lady that had a good sample on show and was good with the kids. Heather sat very still and her portrait was very glamorous looking making her look like a barbie doll.
Then it was Callum's turn. He did very well at sitting still for the first five minutes then started to wriggle around a lot.
This comes out in the portrait as she had to keep correcting the lines (and Callum's head) and was making the lines darker.
The result was nothing special however it makes an unusual souvenir for the kids. While I was standing watching Heather being sketched I noticed a couple of cartoon artists so I persuaded Neil to get a picture done with him on a bike finishing the tour. It's really cool.
After our quick but enjoyable trip to one of my favourite landmarks in Paris we headed back down the hill, past the scammers and tacky tourist shops at the foot of the hill we went in search for the number 85 bus. I love taking the bus around Paris as they wind their way through the streets and you get to see much more. I've been wanting to jump on a bus since we arrived so when I was looking at the maps this morning I noticed there was one from Montmartre to Luxembourg which was perfect for us. It was a great trip through the streets of Paris and even past several landmarks and was just a quick as the metro. Walking back home from the bus we couldn't resist stopping into our local patisserie for something delicious for afternoon tea.
We are all sad to be leaving France tomorrow after having had an amazing journey. We will certainly return again some time as there is so much we haven't seen, and so much we'd all like to see again. On a positive note, I know Heather is looking forward to seeing her friends and going back to school, while Callum is very excited about seeing his room and toys again. I am looking forward to seeing all my friends again and being able to read signs fully instead of just key words and guessing the rest.
Tonight we are off to our regular cafe on the corner of Place du Vavin that serves meals all day and has been great for us. After our long days of sightseeing, and not having to wait to the usual French opening time of 7pm, it has been a life saver.
Our taxi is booked for 11.30am tomorrow so we will probably let the kids loose in the Jardin du Luxembourg one more time before sitting them on a plane for 24 hours.
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