Sadly, our time in Paris had to end. But, we were excited looking forward to our overnight trip to Barcelona.
But, first let me tell you about our last day in Paris before catching the train. The night before we had attempted to scale the Tower Eiffel (as non-Americans call the Eiffel Tower), but were rebuffed when the top level was "saturated" and then "ferme" before we even made much progress in the long queue. We decided to get up first thing on Sunday morning and get in line. Even at ~9 am, the line was already 100 meters long. It moved quickly though, and before long we were in line for the elevator. We were first taken to the second (of 3) levels, which itself had a terrific view, before going to the top. Once there, the view was as spectacular as you've probably heard. It was quite something to see all around Paris, including many of the sights we visited like the Louvre, Notre Dame, Arc de Triomphe, etc. Definitely worth doing at least once if you get the chance.
Since our train was not until 7:20 p.m. we still had the entire afternoon to see new sights. We decided to walk a mile or so over to the Jardin des Tuilenes near the Louvre. With the sun beating down on us, we were beat by the time we got there and were relieved to find some chairs to sit in next to a big fountain. The garden part was a bit disappointing so we decided to head over to the Latin Quarter for lunch and to check out an English book store called something like Village Voice (since both Lily and Annette had finished their reading material). We found a nice little restaurant that served decent food for very good Paris prices including free tap water! Sorry I can't remember the name, but it's a block or two after crossing the Pont Royal bridge. While trying to find the book store, we accidentally encountered another impressive church, Saint Sulpice (I think), nearly the size of the Notre Dame. And, then we finally found the book store, almost by accident. It was a very compact but densely packed store, that had books for Annette, Lily, and Sam.
We had one last stop for our last day and that was a final visit to our favorite ice cream shop. Then, it was time to pick up our suitcases that we had stowed at the hotel and head to the Gar Austerlitz (the train station). Once we got to the station, we were a little concerned that the departing train to Barcelona was not assigned a terminal even though it was scheduled to depart in about 20 minutes. The information lady said we just had to wait. We were about to head over to a deli to get some dinner for the train ride, when the assigned terminal was displayed and the boarding call went out. So, we instead joined the rush of people to get through the boarding lines.
It was quite a long train and we were assigned a car near the front which was quite a walk. Our cabin was very compact even with the beds folded up, but was comfy enough. The overnight trains are billed as a hotel on wheels, which is true, but it's a small version of a Hotel 6 at best. The beds were clean, though not especially comfortable. They also seemed designed for someone shorter than about 5' 6". The temperature control for the cabin was also pretty inconsistent, but was mostly on the too warm side, especially the top bunk. Everyone slept fairly well except me. For some reason, the constant movement of the train felt like I was constantly being jarred. Coupled with the short uncomfortable bed and being too warm, and I essentially pulled an all-nighter - maybe interrupted by an hour or so of sleep. So, getting into Barcelona, I felt like I was fighting jet lag again. Arriving early in the morning, we had to wait for our rental apartment to be ready. We lugged ourselves and luggage across town to the rental office where we dumped our stuff off. We did get to see La Sagrada Familia, Gaudi's unfinished masterpiece of a church. We found a nice pedestrian boulevard to enjoy lunch sitting outside at.
Just past noon, we picked up our key and headed to our Barcelona home. Our apartment felt like a mansion compared to the small hotel rooms we had previously stayed in. It has three bedrooms (!), a kitchen, living room, a washer, and bathroom. After some settling in, I tested out the bed for an afternoon siesta. Ahh! the wonders a nap can do! We found a grocery store a block away and bought food for multiple meals for less than we normally spend eating out for one meal. It was also nice not to have to go out for food. We're now excited to explore Barcelona!
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