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Thanks so much for stopping by! I believe that everyone can have a beautiful home without spending a fortune! One of my favorite things to do is find creative ways to re-purpose things I already have on hand, or have picked up at yard sales and thrift stores. Join me as I share with you some of my favorite ideas for crafting and decorating, as well as travel adventures, and fun things that I pick up on my treasure hunts! Much of my work is influenced by my love all things French, nature, and of course shabby chic! I have gotten so many creative ideas from you very talented bloggers out there, and I hope that I can be an inspiration to you as well!

Thursday, May 28, 2015

Bonjour, Paris!

Bonjour Mes Amis!
Hubby and I just returned last night from 6 days in Paris, and I have so many photos to share with you!
First off, we had such a great time, and celebrated my birthday (which was yesterday) while we were there.
Thankfully, the weather was beautiful and we were so glad it didn't rain the entire trip.
 The flowers were glorious, including this arch of roses that I'm standing beneath, with Notre Dame in the background.  Notice all of the pretty fox glove too?  I just loved them!
And of course I had to snap lots of shots of fleurs at the street markets!
Here are just a few I took.

 It's a good thing we walked alot, as we ate very, very well!
I had a hard time saying no to all of the wonderful baquettes and butter (European butter is much richer than ours!), not to mention the wine, croissants, and Nutella filled crepes!

 The highlight of the entire trip was the day we climbed the towers of Notre Dame.
We've climbed just about everything else in Paris on previous trips, but never here at my very favorite church.  It was even more amazing than we expected!
(not to mention a whole lot easier than climbing the Eiffel Tower on our last visit!)
 Notice all of the people lined up in front of the church? They are actually waiting to get in!
Thank goodness, we weren't in that line for the towers!
That was just about a 45 minute wait, not so bad.
We did spent alot of time waiting in lines on our trip, though.  The craziest was Tuesday, when we went to Versailles and spent almost 2 hours just waiting to get in!  Ugh!  I'll share that for another post, though!
 Ok, back to the fun stuff!
The climb was well worth it, as look at what we got to see!
Gargoyles, and lots of them!  Up close and personal, too!
The panoramic views of the city were just gorgeous, including the Eiffel Tower, in this shot I snapped, below.

An aerial view of the line waiting to get into the church.
 Sacre Couer,  which means "Church of the Sacred Heart", perched on the highest point in the city.
 In the photo below, you will see the stunning and ornate opera house, near the horizon.
 Check out my new French friend, below!
 It was so neat to be up with the spire!
 A pretty view of the Seine.
 We were pleasantly surprised that we got to climb into the belfry!
There were two of these bells, and they were huge, each weighing over 19 tons!
Since the bells ring several times every hour, I was more than a bit concerned that they would start ringing when we were standing next to them!
So when we found out they only rang during special religious holidays, I was very relieved!
It is the bells in the north tower, not the south that we climbed, that ring each hour. 
 Another amazing view.
 This guy looks pretty hungry!
 And below is my favorite view of the church.
Unfortunately, several years ago people started putting locks on the bridge, which I personally hate the look of.  They are called "locks of love", and the new tradition is that the couple in love writes their initials and date on the lock, then tosses the key into the Seine river.  I was shocked how many more locks are there since we visited Paris two years ago!  In fact, there are even locks on top of locks now!  Ugh, what an eyesore!
I am hoping that one day, they will get removed!
Thanks for joining me on my little tour.  I have many more photos to share, including our visit to Versailles.  Stop back in a few days!
Au revoir!

14 comments:

Mary@mydogsmygardenandmary said...

First, I would like to say a Belated Happy Birthday and may all your wishes come true.

Your trip sounds wonderful and the pictures are great. You are so lucky to go to Paris again.
The views are magnificent and all those lovely flowers. To be able to eat all the croissants and butter, oh my. I know the food was really good.
So my friend, welcome home and I am so glad that you had a SPECIAL BIRTHDAY.
Hugs.
Mary

Celestina Marie said...

Hi Donna, WOW I love your Paris pics and so glad you had a great time. I can only imagine how wonderful the food was. Love the gorgeous flowers. Great pics of you two together and love seeing you under the rose arch.
You visited some amazing spots too. The weather looked fabulous!!
So glad you enjoyed a special birthday too. Welcome home again. Sure missed you.
Hugs, CM

Celestina Marie said...

Hi again Donna, I meant to say, not crazy about the locks either. You look great however!!
xo

Butterfly 8)(8 Bungalow said...

Gorgeous photos! I love the view that you were able to give us from the top of Notre Dame. I've never climbed it, but I climbed the Eiffel Tower. Thank you for the tour. In Salzburg they have bridge with locks all over it. It is actually not safe to put so much weight on a bridge. xoxo Su

Linda @ Itsy Bits And Pieces said...

This looks like such a wonderful trip...thanks for sharing your beautiful photos with us! Happy Birthday, Donna!

Linda @ A La Carte said...

Oh I am pink with envy that you got another trip to Paris! A belated Happy Birthday and I love your photos! Makes me wish I could go back...who knows, maybe someday.

Linda

Debbie said...

Happy Birthday Donna!
Your photos are wonderful! How did you like all those steps getting to the top of the towers? I never understood the gargoyles on a church??? They were so creepy. The rest of the structure was amazing!!! Inside and out!!
Love the images of the flower markets....just beautiful!
Have a great weekend.
Debbie
xo

Felecia Cofield said...

Hi Donna! Happy Birthday! And what a wonderful way to spend it! I am so glad ya'll got to go, and are sharing the trip with us! That's probably the only way I'll ever get to see Paris! Virtually! Not a bad way, I might add since I'm afraid of heights! The photos are great! You look fantastic! It would really be hard not to eat or drink those rich things! You did good resisting! I'm with you on the locks! They look disgusting! I do hope the officials will remove them soon. Enjoy the weekend as you settle back in! Blessings from Bama!

Rose L said...

DID YOU MAKE IT TO THE CHATEAUS IN LOIRE VALLEY? THAT WAS MY FAVORITE!

Musings from Kim K. said...

I'm so happy for you! You really do have some fabulous and romantic trips together. So many lovely photos. Happy belated birthday!!

Row homes and Cobblestones said...

Happy Birthday Donna!!! Always long lines in Paris ... I loved this post, thank you for sharing your amazing photos.
Loved seeing you under the Arch of Roses, how lovely it would be to have a smaller version to pass through each day entering our houses.

Oh Donna your photos up close are absolutely amazing - especially enjoyed the up close and personal Gargoyle pics. I have a thing for Gargoyles. Yes, too many locks, I'm with you hope they remove them.

Nutella filled Crepes??? You just convinced me that they are a deserved weekend dessert! Looking forward to more of your stunning photos.
xoxo,
Vera

Renee said...

Gorgeous! So jealous, but also happy for you. By the way, happy belated birthday! My friend and her now husband have a lock on that bridge!
And they make nutela crepes right here in Annapolis!

NanaDiana said...

Donna- What a wonderful, wonderful post. That really was worth the climb for the view and pictures you got. I would not have wanted to wait in those long lines though. That cathedral really is beautiful so I can see why people want to see it.

You are right- those locks really are kind of an eyesore. Isn't it weird how traditions get started like that?

Hope you have a great day tomorrow. Don't know how I missed posts this past couple of weeks-but I did! Sorry- xo Diana

Susie said...

Donna, I love all you wonderful pictures. One day I would love to see all that in person. You and your husband look so good in the picture at lunch. Blessings, xoxo,Susie