Paris - Day 2 August 9

Day two was a good day but before I get to day two I should cover night one...

Last night was great other than the serious lack of sleep.  I went to bed a bit after 9.  That was all I could last with the missed night sleep encountered the night before.  But a little after 10:30 I was awaken by what sounded like a full orchestra breaking into play outside my window.  I waited till the passing of several songs before I decided... what the heck I might as well go and experience it.  To my surprise the music was coming from across the Seine.  From the Left Bank was a raucous amount of sound.  I walked over the bridge and was in wonder at what I saw.  It was not an orchestra or organized music group but a collection of "musicians" gathered to perform.  An impromptu collection of over 30 brass instrument players.  There were trombone players, trumpet, tuba, saxophone and  French horn players.  They were all mostly playing the same tune.   But they were all having so much fun.  They were dancing with their instruments and jumping all about.  The average age of was mid twenties.  A crowd had gathered as well and most were dancing about with the players.  It was a site to see.  So much music and revelry from only brass instruments.  Have not seen anything like that before...  :)

I followed that with a walk along the Seine till well after midnight.  The city of lights is the place to be if you are sleepless.

    Notre Dame lit up at night as viewed from the Left Bank.

    Barges moving along the Seine at night.

Day two was an exploratory day.  It was a high of 68 (20 C for my metric friends) and mostly sunny, quite a beautiful day. The place where I am staying is as you can see in the center of Paris:

 It is on an island in the middle of the Seine:

And it is in walking distance of many of the sites.  Notre Dame being within stones throw and the Bastille and Louvre not even a kilometer away.  An easy walk to just about anything.

And that was how I started the day... with an easy walking tour of the central city.  It seems that Paris was started some 800 years BC by Celtic tribe of fishermen called the Parisii.  They started and established a fishing village around 300 BC on the island in the middle of the Seine where Notre Dame now sits.  They prospered for 450 years until the Romans came.  The Romans decided it would make a good home base for them so they annihilated the Parisii in a battle on the grounds where the Eiffel Tower now stands.  After the decline of the Roman Empire a group called the Franks took control of the city and area.  Hence the origins of the name Paris and of the name France.  I know, enough of the history already...

I followed the walking tour with a hop on hop off bus tour of the entire city.  It is a good way to orient yourself with a place. It was a good tour which encompassed all the major sites.

    The Eiffel Tower...

    Palais d'institute de France...

    Hotel des Invalides...

    The Louvre...

One more interesting thing along the Seine...

This is a fence along the bank on the island side of the Ille de la Cite.  It is just off the bridge of Pont Neuf.  These are all locks that have been attached to and left on the bridge.  It is a practice of love.  A couple comes and professes their love by placing a lock on the fence and then tossing the key into the Seine River.  Thus their love is locked in place forever...

Tonight I have a night bike ride around the city of lights planned.  It could be a bit chilly but it will be great!