Yesterday we hopped on the bus and went across town to the Eiffel Tower. It was the last bus stop on the line, so we figured that's a good place to start our exploration. The French Open is currently being played, so a huge screen was set up on the Champs de Mars (the lawn) in front of the Eiffel tower and people lounged watching the tennis match. We wandered under the tower and decided not to ride up to the top. It's really just a big, four-legged metal spire with three landing areas, all of which you must pay to ascend. Not worth the time or trip up, we decided.

We wandered down the river Seine and came to Les Envalides, a former veteran's hospital built a few hundred years ago and now a military museum that also contains the tomb of Napoleon . It's quite an impressive old stone building with massive old cannons in front and in the courtyard. At the back is a chapel, very ornate, topped by a gold dome under which lies Napoleon's body. The French have created quite the elaborate hero's tomb, golden and very fancy, for a military hero that they once exiled to Elba during his lifetime. Rather ironic, I think.

We then wandered back towards the river and crossed over to make the promenade down the Champs Elysee to the Arch de Triomphe. This looked a lot like Fifth Avenue in NYC with lots of very fancy and expensive stores. We went into the Renault store where two racecars were featured in the front showcase. I peered into the ultimate Louis Vuitton store--so impressive--and Cartier's, of course. More about the stores there here: http://www.champselysees-paris.com/shopping. Tres chic! We ended our promenade at the Arch de Triomphe which is currently undergoing some renovation with scaffolding all over it. We moved on to complete our tour back at the Eiffel tower and catch the bus back to our apartment. All in all, we clocked 6.5 miles today and my feet ache. We staying closer to home tomorrow and just chilling. We're both a bit tired but mostly feeling a little overwhelmed with seeing so much so quickly. Time to drink wine and relax. Au revoir for now.