View from the top of Arc de Triomphe
Beaune
Our first stop in France was Beaune, in the heart of Burgundy. We had a short orientation tour and visited Hôtel Dieu medieval hospital. Our group had a fabulous wine tasting in the old cellar beneath the hotel. We wandered around for dinner on our own. There were several Michelin star restaurants but unfortunately they were all booked up - my choice to not plan. We wandered and found a place in a cave. It was delicious.
Paris
I had never wanted to visit France. The Louvre and Disneyland were interesting but all the stories about the French not liking Americans turned me off. That was not our experience and I fell in love with the country. I know I'll return to Paris someday. Although we only hit the highlights during our trip, I felt like there was so much more to explore.
Our first day in Paris was a whirlwind. We began with a walking tour and then made our way to the Louvre. I was disappointed that we didn't have a guided tour, and I had tried to set one up myself the week before. Unfortunately, it didn't work out. Jody did her best to help me as well. Conventional wisdom and advice from Jody and Paul were to skip the Mona Lisa due to the crowds, but I couldn't resist. I pushed my way to the front with the crowd - and it was absolutely worth it. After the Louvre, we headed to the d'Orsay to see even more art. I'm sure most of the group was ready to move on, but I couldn't get enough art. By the end of the day, my feet were killing me from all the walking and art gazing. Fortunately, we had museum passes that gave us priority access, so we didn't have to stand in line. This was actually a really big deal. When you see a very long line and you have very sore feet and then realize you don't have to stand in the line - it's the best!
The second day in Paris was just as packed. We went on a city walking tour that included a visit to Notre Dame, which was still under construction due to the fire, so we couldn't go inside. But we did get to visit the exquisite Sainte-Chapelle, Rodin Museum, Champs-Elysées, and even hunted for unicorn tapestries. There was so much to see, and I wished we had more time.
On our last evening, we spent time with our group watching the Eiffel Tower sparkle while drinking sparkling wine after our final group dinner. Many of us gathered at the Champs du Mars for some farewell drinks. We all bonded so well, and I genuinely enjoyed everyone in our group. Saying goodbye at breakfast the next day was drawn out and I was sad to say goodbye.
Disneyland Paris
After breakfast, Chuck and I hopped on the metro and headed to Disneyland! We stayed a hotel close by that had a shuttle bus. I had purchased tickets to the Halloween Party that evening so we spent the day just wandering around Disney Village and checking out The Disney New York Hotel with it's Marvel theme. I should have conserved my walking for the party. With party tickets you can enter the park early. Chuck pooped out on me around 10pm and I lasted until midnight but my feet were not happy with me. Walking is one thing, standing is something else and there were some lines to stand in. I will definitely be back to spend more time in the Disneyland Paris parks. A few hours in the dark was not enough.
If you've made it this far, thanks for reading and looking at all of the pictures! Check out my travel tips and recipes on the other pages.
Most of the pictures were taken by Melissa with her iPhone, a handful were taken by Chuck with his iPhone.
