Bonjour! - Paris 2010

I was so excited to FINALLY make my way to Paris! Earlier this Fall, I did a lot of thinking about my 40th Birthday in December. It's only natural, right? When we all hit our decade milestones, we look back on our lives and what we have done so far. What did I hope to accomplish by the time I was 40? Where did I think I would be in life? Of course, there are some things I figured would have happened already. I always thought I would be married with a couple of kids by now. Well, for whatever reason, that hasn't happened. To a certain point, I don't think I have a lot of control over that part. It's not as if I can make "Mr. Right" appear before my eyes!

That said, I do have control over many other things in my life. I decided it was time to take a trip. I was no longer going to wait for a someone to go to Paris with me, I was going to hit the road and explore it on my own! I had built up frequent-flyer miles and hotel points over the years, so it was time to use them. My company closes their headquarters offices between Christmas and New Years (no they didn't give us extra vacation, it counted against our PTO balance), so why not go somewhere this year? Wahoo! I couldn't wait!

Yes, I did consider the fact I was choosing to travel to Paris during a cold time of the year. My sister had taken a solo trip to Paris over the Christmas holidays before she met her husband and she really enjoyed herself. Besides, seeing the festive holiday decorations in Paris would be fun! I left on December 26 and arrived late morning on December 27. By the time I got to my hotel and checked in, it was mid-afternoon. Let my photos give you a description of the first day of my trip.

My hotel - Le Meridien Etoile (A Starwood Hotel, of course!) in Arrondissement 17.

Due to my Platinum Status, I was booked in an Executive Suite!

This is the reflection of the room in the fancy TV display on the wall.

A very modern bathroom and shower. The shower was the type without a full glass door,

water ends up on the floor. Why do hotels think this is a good idea?

The mall across the street from my hotel. If you look closely, the sign out front says Gap. I can't get away from it!

My walk to the Eiffel Tower. So pretty!

A classic Metro entrance. I'm really here!

I made it! The Eiffel Tower! I had a ticket to take the lift at 4:30 PM.

Me! I took this with the reverse lens on my iPhone 4.

The Seine

A view from the 2nd level of the Eiffel Tower.

From the 3rd level, the "Sommet." I had this notion to leisurely drink a glass of champagne at the top,

but it was so freaking windy and cold up there, I decided 10 minutes was plenty!

Such a pretty view!

Back down to the first level (one up from the ground). I decided to walk down the stairs from the 2nd to

the 1st level, since the lift lines were so long. On my way down, the clock turned to 6PM. The lights on the tower suddenly lit up and began to twinkle!

The ice rink on the 1st level.

Looking down from the 1st level.

A view from across the river.

Meeting Bonnie (a friend of a friend in Paris at the same time) for dinner at Les Deux Magots in the Saint Germain neighborhood. Can you believe Hemingway, Oscar Wilde and Picasso all hung out here?

I highly recommend hot chocolate in Paris. It's like a creamy, melted chocolate bar!

In Saint Germain, I stumbled upon the namesake of Old Navy! It's a rather run-down cafe.

This was literally the place that inspired Gap executives for the name of their new retail brand which opened in 1994.