The Italy Years

So I'm a little behind, but here are some pictures from Christmas in Paris. We left on Christmas Eve and stayed only for a few days, and boy was it a whirlwind! We had a well planned itinerary and stuck to it, which enabled us to see all the main sights in Paris and then some. On Christmas Eve, we headed over to Notre Dame at 10:00 for midnight mass. We arrived and didn't have to stand in line at all, and walked right into the church. Of course it was packed, with standing room only. We found a little corner to hang out in and stayed for the three hour mass. I have to say, it was one of the most phenomenal things we've ever seen. The choir was beautiful and the service was very emotional. We were lucky to have gone when we did, because when we came out there were a million people waiting in line to get in! On Christmas day, we walked all around the city. The Eiffel tower was our first stop, and we waited in a short line and went right up. Even though it's touristy, I loved every minute of it! It really is an awe-inspiring sight to see, and the view from the top is breath-taking. The next day we headed over to the Louvre and Musee d'Orsay. I'll tell you, if you ever want to see Paris and bypass all the tourist crowds, bundle up and head over during Christmas! We got up early and headed over to the Louvre, and there wasn't a soul in sight. While there were plenty of people inside, we had free reign to roam around at our own leisure. The Musee d'Orsay was filled with wonderful art, especially impressionist pieces, which was our favorite. All in all, we had an amazing trip to Paris. The food and wine was excellent and the people were extremely friendly. We were a little nervous because we don't speak a single word of french, but were pleasantly surprised by the hospitality of the locals. We had a wonderful time and can't wait to go back one day! We hope you enjoy the pictures!

Notre Dame at Night, Christmas Eve

Inside the church, looking at the altar

It's hard to see in this picture, but this is the mass of people in line outside of Notre Dame

The Eiffel Tower at night, lit up in blue!

My personal favorite part of Paris...I dreamt about seeing the Eiffel tower since I was a little girl, and once I finally got to see it, I couldn't get enough!!

View from the top

Overlooking the city

Paris at night

Sacre Coeur

The back of Sacre Coeur

Arc De Triomphe

Quiet Paris streets on Christmas day

Along the Seine

Along the Jardin Des Tuileries, walking towards the Louvre

Christmas markets!

The Louvre

Jason and the Pyramids!

Not a soul in sight, in front of I.M. Pei's Masterpiece

Mona. Yes, she is small and a little overestimated, but still an amazing work of art

The Catacombs. Due to the overcrowding of Paris's cemeteries in the late 18th century, the bones of the dead were relocated to the underground abandoned quarries in the outer city. The path we walked was about a mile long and only about 5 ft tall. Skulls, tibias and femurs lined the limestone walls, in no particular organization. By the time the bones were all relocated in 1860, an estimated 5 to 6 million bones were moved underground. Talk about creepy.

The famous clock at the Musee d'Orsay

Inside the Musee. This art museum was a former railway station.

A walk in the park

Here are our pictures from our recent trip to Dublin! We left on a Friday and stayed for 3 nights, and had the BEST time! Dublin is a huge, bustling city with tons to see and do. We spent all day and night touring around the sights, enjoying this lively city during the holiday season. Of course the weather was frigid and a little rainy, but that didn't stop us from roaming around. Being here reminded us of cold winters in Chicago, when we would bundle ourselves up with hot coffee in hand, and wander the city! The food here was great, the Guinness of course was the best, and the people were the friendliest I've ever met throughout Europe. We highly recommend making a trip here, and we definitely plan on coming back to Ireland to see the countryside!

This means "town of the hurdled ford." Not sure what that really means, but the sign is modern Irish for "Ireland"!!!

O'Connell street at night

The Liffey Bridge

Grafton Street

Dublin Castle...dates back to Medieval times

Christ Church

St. Ann's Parish. This is the church where Bram Stoker was baptized and married.

St. Patrick's cathedral

A part of Trinity College

The very famous statue of Molly Malone. "Molly Malone" is Dublin city's national anthem, and the song is about a girl who was a fishmonger by day and part-time prostitute by night. Although there is no proof of her existence, Molly has become the most photographed sight in Dublin.