Due to the train strikes and Sorbonne students striking, we changed our car tour to tomorrow morning.    Mom and I walked to Arc de Triomphe and went to the top.   Beautiful view of the city!   We took our time then walked down the Champs Elysees.   I did not make a purchase at Louis Vuitton like I had planned.   Mais ca n'est pas grave.    Ce weekend!  We walked to la Tour Eiffel and took photos, stopped for a glass of wine then über 'do back home.     We had a nice dinner at un cafe on our street.    I made an impromptu decision to get us an uber around 930 pm and he drove us back to the Eiffel Tower to see it twinkle at night.   C'est parfait!!  He waited for us and drove us back to our apartment.    Tomorrow morning we meet our driver for the car tour I booked us on Airbnb.    We will likely hit up Willi's Wine Bar tomorrow too!   Pics to come.   Xoxo

Uber in Paris

Mom and I just took an uber home and shared the car with a cute African French guy who asked for my #.      It was an entertaining car ride through the city.   We had a sunny day at l'Arc de Triomphe and Champs Elysees then the Eiffel Tower.  Great day walking a few miles.  More to come after dinner!
Mom wanted me to add: he had a Bose speaker and insisted on playing us some Neo and R. Kelly with African musicians.   He also invited us to his graduation party tonight.  Side note - I imagine he was late twenties early thirties.   He was in "events management" and dressed well.  Haha.

Paris apartment

Will get outdoor shots of the building tomorrow!  It’s raining now ....

Bruges

Photos

Bruges 

Bruges was a total success! After a stop at la pharmacie for allergy meds, mom and I walked to the market.   The Wednesday market was lit - full of huge trucks and stands filled with the most extravagant cakes, chocolate, cheeses, meats and flowers.  We made our way to the museum right there in the square, ending with the Duvel tasting room.  Bruges is full of shops and history, food and drinks. Mom shopped in a lace store and we had Belgian waffles on a stick! Mmmmm.  We wandered back to our hotel and bought a few more items.   I was so tired after a bad night w allergies so we went to bed early.   Our hotel had a little bar perfect for a night cap - duh.
Bruges was so beautiful and our hotel was perfect - 4 minute walk to the square and right along the canal!

The French train strike luckily skipped over our travel plans so we made it back to Paris fine this afternoon and checked into our apartment near l'Arc de Triomphe.   The building is gorgeous and such a quaint Parisienne spot.  We walked to a restaurant nearby, fancier than we had planned and even though we waited awhile for dinner the staff was friendly.  We stopped at a market for some essentials and are winding down now.  I've pulled out some maps so we know our plan tomorrow.   I've booked us a car ride through the city with a local guy and his vintage car.

My blogs are not as detailed as I'd like but I'm typing on an iPad mini so it's just tough.  I will try to post pics soon and will blog more each day!!

Hello from Bruges!   So - mom and I slept like rocks our first night in Paris.  We both woke up at 3 am, turned on a light and read our books for about 15 minutes.  We then slept again solid until 8 am Paris time.  I feel so much better this time with jet lag than I did 10 years ago.  We got ready and headed to Gare du Nord.  Soon we were boarding onto our first class seats on Thalys heading to Belgium.  The ride was smooth, fast and beautiful.  And we had a nice guy help us with our luggage. When we arrived in Bruges it was about 68 degrees and sunny.  Getting a taxi was easy and 7 euro later we were winding through the town square and checking into our hotel.  Hotel Ter Brughe is quaint, historic and modern.  Along the canal our room is so pretty. It's spacious and very European.  Mom and I changed clothes quickly and walked the 4 minute walk back to the square.  The Markt is busy with shoppers and tourists.  We window shopped and had beer at The Monk - fab selection of Belgian Beers.  Everyone was very friendly and the bartender told us that Bruges is population 62,000.   There is beer and chocolate everywhere and beautiful architecture.  Toward the end of the evening we sat on a patio listening to Italian and Flemish; tourists visiting over an aperitif. I noticed dark clouds approaching so we paid our tab and headed back to hotel.  Within minutes large drops fell from the sky but it was fun running along the cobblestone back to our hotel (where they had wine waiting for us).   Tomorrow we will go to the Belfort (tower) and Bruges museums and check out the Markt (market).    I hope to climb the 366 steps of the Belfort for a panoramic photo op!  Photos to follow.   Xoxo