The Eiffel Fallafel

Outside, the sun was reflecting off the top of the church across the street, and right below our balcony, a few early rising Parisians were scurrying to pick up a baguette for breakfast. Which was strange, because our alarm clock clearly read 5:30, and it should still be dark.

We set is so early because we wanted to beat the crowds up the Eiffel tower, following the advice of our guidebook to be in line a half-hour before opening. Unfortunately, our clock read 5:30 because we had forgotten to actually turn the alarm on and it was in alarm-setting mode. It was really about 7:00 and we had planned to leave by 8:00.

Fortunately, no harm was done. We did a little scurrying ourselves and were out the door a few minutes late by 8:15. It was strange walking through the Louvre courtyard almost entirely by ourselves.

This time, we walked down the far side of the Seine, past the statue of Thomas Jefferson,

and by the Alexander III bridge with it's golden statues. (If they are real gold, then why haven't they been stolen, or chipped away, or something like that?) The streets were mostly empty, which was kind of strange. I asked Kathy where everyone was, and if it was a holiday.

A few minutes later, the answer was obvious; everyone in Paris had picked up their copy of Rick Steves Paris guidebook and had taken his advice to heart; they were waiting in line a half-hour before the Eiffel Tower opened, to beat the crowds.

Actually, the wait wasn't that long (but the three-hours that the guidebook estimates for standing in line, making it to the top and then climbing down, are pretty accurate.)

We weren't really up to climbing the stairs (even if it would have saved three Euros), so we got tickets for the top. Both of us were kind of nervous going up; especially the last leg to the summit. It's kind of scary.

On the very top, I shuffled over to the edge and took some pictures.

Everyone else was walking around as if it were the most natural thing in the world. I was having a hard time taking pictures with my arms and legs wrapped around a pillar.

We could have walked down from the top, but took the elevator back to the second level instead. After being on the summit, this didn't seem so bad; I even let go of the railing to take a picture.

We walked down the stairs from the second level to the first, passing a long line of tourists huffing and puffing their way to the top. If only they knew how much further they had to go.

It was nearly lunch time after we got down, and both of us were starving. We found the #69 bus again, and got off at Saint Paul in the Marais. This is old, medieval Paris. We walked a few blocks north, then east and back west, getting turned around trying to find the Jewish Quarter and rue des Rosiers.

Our desination was the "Ace of Fallafel", a very, very popular eatery. We were there before noon, and there must have been 20 people lined up outside. We got a number and about fifteen minutes later we were seated. (When we left, there must have been a hundred people lined up outside).

Kathy had the Fallafel plate,

while I had Schnitzel (and fries of course).

It was delicious. After lunch, we walked back to Ile Saint Louis for ice cream. This time, though, we tried the gelato at Amorino Gelati.

The same policeman who clopped past our apartment patrolled this area as well.

Well rested, we walked past Notre Dame,

picked up some bread for dinner and breakfast, and headed upstairs to start packing.