Our Adventures in Europe 2008

Our European adventure began on September 26, 2008. For 2 weeks, we experienced a whirlwind journey with a Rick Steves' tour called The Best of Europe Through the Back Door. This is the tale of two honeys on a mission to explore new worlds, experience old civilizations and to boldly go where we have not gone before. We anticipated beautiful landscapes...ancient architecture... quaint villages... famous artworks... enchanting people... gastronomical delights... embracing the languages and quirks of foreign cultures. It was all that and so much more!

I am your tour guide for this adventure. Please extinguish all smoking materials. Away we GO!!!!! ~ Rachel

Paris, France

Pre-Tour Sightseeing

We arrived in Paris in the morning, leaving us 2 days to take in some sites not listed on the group itinerary. The train delivered us into the Latin Quarter section of Paris, named for the language you would have heard if you walked these streets in the Middle Ages. In 1215, the University of Paris, the Sorbonne, was built and is right around the corner.

09.26.08 - 09.27.08

Heading to the medieval museum, we came upon Notre Dame. We knew we'd be returning with the tour group, so on we went. The Musee du Cluny (National Museum of the Middle Ages) is built over the ruins that has one of the world's largest collections of medieval artifacts. A little castle, it was built as an abbey in 1482 overtop the ruins of a Roman bath house from 200 A.D. Inside are statues, armor, illuminated manuscripts, weapons and objects used in daily life of the Middle Ages. Famous works housed here are The Lady and the Unicorn tapestry and stained glass and decorations from several of Paris' medieval churches. In the lowest level, you can walk in the bath ruins and see some of the mosaics and carved stone walls.

In the evening, we headed to the Eiffel Tower, temporarily lit in blue for Paris being HQ of the EU President. But, for 5 minutes every hour, the gold lights twinkle. It's thrilling to see this HUGE structure of steel girders transformed into a fantasy Christmas tree. Fresh crepe stands are everywhere, so we tried a hot Nutella and whipped cream. :)