Meet us in Paris!

Today was our last full day in Paris, so we thought what better way to spend it than by doing our laundry! We went to the local launder mat and were thankful for some people that new what they were doing who could show us the way. In no time at all our clothes were washed and dried and packed away as if we were starting a new vacation. The timing of our laundry completion could not have worked out anymore perfect when Tom’s sister, Laurie, called to tell us that her and her boss, Tom (yes another Tom . . . I just can’t seem to get away from them :), had just got into Paris for work and were ready to meet us at The Eiffel Tower. Tom and I opted for the subway and made our way there. Wouldn’t you know, I had just got done telling Tom how it would have been cool to run a race in Paris when we found ourselves getting off the Eiffel Tower metro stop and walking into a crowd of thousands at the finish line of The Paris 20K. For a few minutes I was kind of jealous as I saw a runner with the race shirt and finisher’s medal, but than I remembered if I was actually going to run in that race, I still would have to be in training for a half-marathon. It seemed like a neat race, so for all my running buddies, maybe someday we’ll end up in Paris! So after making our way through runners and tourists, Tom saw an ice cream stand and decided he could go for a cone while we waited for Laurie and her boss. I sat to wait for him and the next thing I new Laurie was walking right up to me! The four of us (Laurie, Tom, Tom, and I) decided we did not want to wait in the long line for the elevator ride to the top of the tower, so we chose to climb steps once again. Sure wish I could be keeping track of how many steps we’ve climbed on this trip. We went to the first and second platforms, but did not go to the very top of the tower, because A. After Platform 2 there are no more stairs to take you all the way to the top, and B. Because Platform 2 was really quite high enough. Again we had a great weather day so the visibility was near perfect. I’m glad we had the opportunity to do it. After we left the tower we rode with Tom and Laurie in their rental car, to check out the smaller version of The Statue of Liberty and then experienced the wonderful Paris traffic and the hunt for a parking space. Once parking was secured, we walked from then on! We had a nice lunch/dinner at an Italian Cafe and continued on giving Tom and Laurie a bit of a walking tour. My Tom did a great job as navigator and guide. It was great to see Laurie in Paris and so glad that the timing worked out for us to be there at the same time! My Tom and I finished our tour of Paris with going back to the Eiffel Tower to see it all lit up. I think it is much prettier at night than during the day. When we got back to our hotel tonight I wanted to write this blog entry right away, but we no longer have free wi-fi, and decided 10€ was a little bit too much for about 1 hour of Internet, so I have instead written it while everything is still fresh in my mind and will post it to the blog once we have wi-fi again. Next stop . . . Amsterdam!