As of today, Joe and I have been married for one year, and it’s been wonderful! As well as challenging. I married someone who is like me in so many ways, but also so different. He´s a neat freak, I´m a slob. He´s rational, I´m emotional. My weakenesses are his strengths and vice versa. We are still learning about each other, and not everything goes smoothly, but I am so glad we challenge each other. My perspective on life is changing because of him, and marriage has forced me to look at things through another person´s eyes. Since I am so stubborn and always want to get my way, sometimes it´s very difficult. However, it looks like I married someone who is so perfect for me. Joe constantly surprises me, especially on this vacation. This trip is bringing out a side of him I´ve never seen before. It´s hard to explain, but he is more openminded and willing to try new things than before (which says alot since he has always been like that).In short, he is the most flexible person I have ever known. He also has a thirst for knowledge about art and history which I think is wonderful.
Anyway, today we started out by walking the Tuileries Garden, a gorgeous garden near the Louvre with many flowers and sculptures. We walked up to the Place de Concorde where so many people lost their heads during the French Revolution (including Queen Marie Antoinette) and along the Champs-Elysees to Arch de Triumph. It was commissioned in 1806 after the battle of Austerlitz by Emporer Napoleon. It now houses the tomb of the Unknown Soldier from WW1.
We then hung a left and walked up to the Trocadero. The view of the Eiffel Tower here was amazing! There is a big lawn with families sprawled on it and children splashing in the fountains. We walked on up to the Eiffel Tower and got in line for the tickets.
Another word of warning: since this is another tourist trap, if you didn´t get tickets ahead of time, the wait could be very long. We waited well over an hour to get the tickets and had to get into another line to wait for the elevator. The timing for us was perfect! We got to the second floor of the Eiffel Tower just as the sun was setting. Absolutely breathtaking!! After soaking in the view for about half an hour we got into another long line to the elevator to the top. By this time, it was dark and Paris was starting to light up. It was, once again, beautiful! Another long line and we were at the bottom at about 11:30 pm.
From the time we got in line to get tickets, to when we got back down, the process took over 4 hours. Depending on the time of year and time of day, seeing Paris from the top of the Eiffel Tower can be a very long process. It can only hold so many people. However, we got to see Paris from a bird´s eye view during the day, and at night. The key, I think, is having patience and flexibility. If one could accept that travel is not always convenient and comfortable, but well worth it, the experience becomes much more enjoyable.
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