Began our last full day together in France with a beautiful sight. Two hot air balloons floating over the Loire Valley as the sun rise. Lovely.
On to our last day in Paris through the beautiful Loire Valley, with its marvelous castles, lovely flowing river, and many farms and fields. Made a stop at King Francis’ “hunting lodge”, Chambord. It is probably the biggest and most ornate of all the castles we saw! Took a group picture, and a few minutes to roam around, before getting on the bus for our return trip to Paris.
Edo held a contest for each person to guess how many kilometers we traveled on the trip. We later learned we traveled 3,243 kilometers!
Made it back to Paris, and stopped at the Louvre. This is the one tour we decided not to take. Got to walk around the large outdoor area of this enormous building, which was one the castle for the kings of France. Saw the glass pyramid outside, and took off on are own.
Crossed one of the many Parisian bridges to the Left Bank, and walked along the Seine, taking in the Bouquinistes, or book sellers lining the river. Made our way into some quaint side streets near the Latin quarter, where we found a wonderful cafe that we think the locals must go to, as we were the only ones speaking English. The food and wine were delicious!
Continued on trying to find the Luxembourg Gardens. Stumbled upon the Church of Saint-Sulpice (featured in the movie “The DaVinci Code”)with it’s magnificent fountain. What a beautiful sight!
Finally found the gardens. These beautiful gardens and magnificent home were built by Marie de Medici when she was queen of France. Such a great park, that is open to all for free!
Needed to make our way back to the Louvre, so began the walk back through some different streets, passing another beautiful church, and found the Pont Saint-Michael fountain, another great treasure! Found the Seine, purchased two small original paintings, before crossing the bridge, and back to the Louvre.
Back to our hotel for a quick shower, then off to our final group dinner. Enjoyed a lovely evening in a restaurant cellar near the Pantheon,Paris . Amazing! Great food and wine, fun entertainment with two instrumentalists and singers, and best of all, wonderful new friends.
Enjoy one last drink with friends at the hotel, then off to bed, as it is a travel day for most.