Au revoir Europe

This post is coming to you live from a couch in Bensalem, PA. Our final day in Paris was full of tourist activities, starting with Murph and Mike ordering a bacon cheeseburger for breakfast from McDonald's (the actual name of the burger was the Royal Bacon Burger). While tempting, I opted to continue my streak of consuming fine French pastries.

After breakfast, we boarded the Metro and headed towards the Arc de Triomphe, the famous monument that also marks the beginning of the Avenue des Champs-Elysees. We took an underground walkway to the base of the arc and spent a few minutes taking in the sculptures and engravings. Next, we attempted to bypass the walkway and run across the street that bends around the arc, but quickly realized that this decision was ill-advised. Upon exiting the walkway, we headed down the Avenue des Champs-Elysees. In the distance, we could make out Cleopatra's Needle, and in the opposite direction, the Eiffel Tower. We walked the length of the avenue, stopping to grab a crepe before starting our exploration of the Louvre.

We entered the museum through the giant glass pyramid located in the courtyard. I was shocked (and pleasantly surprised) to see that the entrance fee was only 10€. After paying the admission fee and obtaining a map, we proceeded to stand still and look very confused. Luckily, Murph was wearing his Phillies, which apparently doubles as a sort of bat signal for Philadelphians when traveling abroad. A fellow Philadelphia native gave us the lay of the land and we headed towards to the section containing Ancient Greek and Roman sculptures. Among these works of art was the Venus de Milo, just one of many sculptures that were minus a limb. Next up were Roman and Spanish paintings from the 14th through 18th centuries. The paintings were breathtaking, especially the works that seemed to take up an entire wall. In contrast, the Mona Lisa appeared quite mundane (and very small). From here, we made our way to the Ancient Egyptian collection and lastly paintings created by French artists. 


All of our walking through the museum left us in need of a break and pick me up, so we headed to a cafe along the Seine and grabbed drinks. Mike ordered a large Coke, a seemingly innocuous order. He received a liter of soda, for which he would end up being charged an astounding 11.40€ (to break this down further, a large Coca Cola in Paris will cost you $14.25)! Taking advantage of the lovely weather, we walked along the Seine and browsed the various stands selling goods such as popular novels and comic books in French, old concert posters, and jazz cassette tapes. I purchased some books as souvenirs/gifts and we started making our way back to the hotel. We grabbed dinner, and on the way home purchased a bottle of red to celebrate the end of our stay in Paris and romp through Europe. 
 
We woke up at 5 this morning and made our way to the airport. Taking advantage of the duty free shops, we finished our souvenir shopping and even bought ourselves some gifts (Absinthe). I want to thank both Matt and Mike for this incredible experience and awesome adventure. It would not have been the same without either of them. Check back either tomorrow or Thursday for a "best of" about each of the four cities we visited. 
  
Thanks for following our European journey.