Gargoyles are Scary

For serious- those gargoyles can be creepy looking! Day 3 in Paris took us to the oldest part of the city and one of the most famous cathedrals in the world- Notre Dame.

Notre Dame is located on Île de la Cité- one of the two remaining natural islands on the Seine River in Paris. We spent the morning walking about and listening to the audio guide. We did not walk up into the tower- but maybe the next time I visit...

point zero in Paris- right outside the Catherdral

silly boy eating bread with a fork..

After lunch we walked a bit further through the isle to Sainte Chapelle. Sainte Chapelle is small Gothic chapel that was built between 1239-1248 to house the Passion Relics. Blink and you miss the place (besides the fact it's in a courtyard for another building)- but inside it is spectacular. Definitely a must see while in the area.

Bottom Floor

Now this is what people come to see- the second floor which is completely covered in amazing stained glass mosaic windows.

The light is amazing, the colors spectacular and view you could sit and look at for hours. The audio guide goes through each panel of glass which depicts many biblical stories.

I finished Day 3 by listening and walking through Rick Steves Historical Walking Guide which by chance started right in front of Notre Dame. I walked around the rest of the island by the famous lock bridge, across the river to see one of the oldest trees in the city as well as Shakespeare and Company.

I loved that there were so many things to do in a such a small area. It truly was amazing to turn around run into the lock bridge, then walk a block to a store where Ernest Hemingway, James Joyce and F. Scott Fitzgerald frequented often.

I also stopped along my path to buy some tasty chocolate, basically one of the best decisions of the day. I even saved a few pieces for the plane ridge back!

Check out my recaps from Spain 1&2, Paris Day 1&2. And if you want any fun tips for NYC- go read my guest post over at The Grits Blog!

Hope you all had a great weekend!