Day 27 - Paris France

So many people we know are travelling. A few to the US, some to Europe and even around Australia. Some are madly saving and some are still in the planning stage of their trip of a lifetime. As we live ours we are getting tired. Just yesterday Finn asked if we could have one day of doing nothing - which is fair enough. We're not in bed before midnight and up early hitting the road either by car or foot. Getting the kids out of bed in the morning is getting increasingly difficult. If fact getting ourselves out of bed is getting increasingly difficult. So we will take a day off - soon. Not sure when but soon. 

So today we're up early, walked to Notre Dame for a free walking tour of Paris. We missed the first one but caught the second tour. This lasted about three hours and the idea is that if you enjoyed the tour you give them a tip. Most people give €10 to €15 which is cheap as chips for the four of us for four hours. We learnt a lot about Paris and its history and Finn seemed to get much from it. 

We visited Princess Diana's memorial built just above the tunnel in which she died. People have placed several photos of her and flowers in remembrance. 

We then visited the Musee d'Orsay - a museum which houses some of the world's most treasured and original paintings by artists such as Monet, Renoir and Vincent van Gogh. It was quite humbling to stand inches from more than a dozen of Van Gogh's paintings including Starry Night and his famous self portrait. 

The gypsies beg on each corner or try and get you to sign for a non-existent charity and then ask for money, the West Africans constantly pester to buy their trinkets and other gypsies try to rob you with the gold ring scam. It was like this last time but I think it's getting worse. People are sleeping rough throughout the city and many beg with their dog or cat by their side. I guess people are more likely to give to feed an animal than a person. The Chinese want to paint your child's name with figures of animals and the Indians want to sell you padlocks to clamp on the Pont de Arts. The traffic is mental with everyone honking and there are people everywhere. It's a bit of a madhouse but it is a beautiful madhouse that we will miss when we leave.

Tomorrow will be our last day in Paris.