We were in Paris this weekend! Cees-Jan had a work-thing all week, so it was a good occasion for Iwona to come along for a few days and see Paris for the first time (!). And it didn't disappoint. There is so much to see and do that two days is nothing, but it made us want to come back for more. Of course, when in Paris it is difficult to get past the obligatory Eiffel Tower shots and to picture something interesting, so we're not even going to try :)
We didn't just look at it (the Eiffel Tower), we also climbed it. And we are proud to say that we took all 760 steps up to the second level! You'd think it helps living on the fourth floor in a tenament flat, but really, that helps only the first 60 steps and then there are 700 more. But at least we could catch our breath on the first level and enjoy the amazing views over Paris. The other thing to beat was that nagging feeling of vertigo when through the tower's metal framework, you see the comforting solid ground below you moving ever further and further away. But we managed nonetheless! 
If the climb wasn't breathtaking enough, there's always the views! It wasn't the warmest day (we were greeted by snow flakes when we arrived on Friday night) but the sun was out and Paris looked beautiful from 115m above ground. The view here is towards Montmartre and the Sacre Coeur, which we would visit the next day. 
Paris is a great place to make artistic photos of pretty subjects. But of course Iwona needed to stick her cheeky head in there...
The next day we climbed up Montmartre to visit the Sacre Coeur, the Montmartre Cemetery and have a sneaky peak at the Moulin Rouge. But first it was time for a typical French breakfast. We went to a small bakery called Coquelicot which had been recommended to us by Philippe, Cees-Jan's colleague in Paris. It was so popular that there were three queues: one out on the street for the bakery itself, a short one for people with reservations for breakfast, and a longer one for poor hungry souls like us. But we were lucky and got a table within ten minutes. In case you are wondering: that's a bowl of caffee-au-lait Parisien style! As you can see, it made someone very happy!This is only a snapshot of our time in Paris, more photos can be found at Cees-Jan's Picasa site
