Eurostar to Paris

The train at St. Pancreas, London

The first drama occurred as we were driving into London when we got stuck in traffic for ages.  Thankfully the staff at the overnight carpark were very efficient and drove us to St. Pancreas station (running a couple of red lights in the process) just in time to catch the train.  The Eurostar left bang on time and we arrived at Gare du Nord in Paris a couple of hours later.

After checking into the hotel we took the Metro to the Eiffel Tour but decided against going up it because of the long queue.  Instead we took a boat along the Sain to Notre Dame.  Even though it had finished being built in the mid 1300's it is in very good condition and there seems to be very little weathering of the architecture as the fine details on the sculptures remains.

Grand Palais

After checking out of the hotel I had a walk up to the Arc de Triomphe then walked all the way down the Champs Élysées.  We had then planned to go up the Eiffel Tour but when we got there the staff were on strike so instead we went back to the Arc de Triomphe and walked all 284 steps to the top.  The views of Paris were fantastic!  Below the Arc de Triomphe is the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from the First World War.  A flame has been burning there since 1920 in memory of the dead who were never identified.  Apparantly it was the first eternal flame lit in Europe since the year 394!

After this we went to Sacré-Coeur for a quick look then had a Pizza in an Italian restaurant before getting the Eurostar back to London, which again, was bang on time.  If only all trains in England were like this...