Mari: The morning started with a drizzle, so we decided to visit the Military Museum and Tomb of Napoleon. As we got to less protected areas the wind picked up and it became cooler. In addition it began to pour. We reached the museum in the nick of time.
We weren't quite sure what to expect with this museum. I thought it sounded interesting, but Bruce wanted to give it a pass. It was a happy circumstance for me that the day was rainy and we wished to do something indoors. When we entered the museum we made a turn into the part where they displayed ancient armor.
I found this section amazing. Such a varied way to both protect the combatant and to kill others. The museum laid it out in a manner that we saw the evolution of armor, weapons and how we became more and more organized and efficient in mass killing. Still, the armor and the swords were beautiful. They started nobles and royalty in the art of war at the tender age of six. We saw many suits of armor made to fit children.
The second place we visited was the Tomb of Napoleon, encased in a huge red marble tomb. It turns out there are coffins within coffins within coffins until his coffin can be reached. His large tomb is in the middle of an enormous cathedral and we viewed his tomb from the second floor, which is opened in a circle so you can view the tomb and the twelve victories (statues) that guard him. At the end of the nave of the church elevated above the tomb is an altar with a lot of white and gold. The whole place is extremely ornate with ceiling murals everywhere and everything to honor Napoleon. It felt like he was like our George Washington with the honor they give him.
We headed to the World War I and World War II memorials. Bruce was extremely emotional about WWII because his father, Edward Peterson, had fought in the Pacific Theater in the Solomon Islands.
He also had an great uncle who died in WWI and his grandfather served in the same war and eventually reached Paris.
These memorials are very sentimental to the French people because the wars were fought on French soil. Particularly moving were the displays devoted to the resistance in WWI, their courage significantly contributed to the ultimate defeat of the Germans. Many of the French did not want to surrender to the Germans, but their leader, Petain, did. DeGaulle urged the French to not surrender and left for Britain to
continue the fight. One can see why DeGaulle is so revered in France. He was an amazing and brave man.
Seeing the film footage of him leading the victory parade in Paris in 1944 is inspirational. Many thoughts of my Dad during this visit, and of the courage of the French resistance. 50 million soldiers in WWII and 30 million civilians.
DeGaulle also set up plans for the new French government while he was abroad so no one would take over for the French.
The rain stopped, we left the museum and exited through some beautiful gardens. We headed south to explore a new area. We found a wonderful cafe in this area and ordered dinner. The cafe was in a busy intersection with traffic from three sides. There was a lot of foot traffic. Our outside end table was great for people watching. It was the best meal yet, topped by a fabulous shared chocolate cake that had melted chocolate in the middle.
We headed further south and decided on the spur of the moment to go to the Eiffel Tower. We walked through the Champs du Mars (a large park) to the Tower and got in an enormous line to buy our tickets. Our museum passes do not work here. Waiting in line we started a conversation with a lovely young couple. The man, Craig, is from Scotland and the woman, Jeneen is from New York. They met while working on a cruise ship and began dating. Bruce and Craig share the same wicked sense of humor, so the line went fast and soon we were at the ticket booth. Jeneen enjoyed some of my Paris pictures, especially those from the Louvre with the male statues.
We took the elevator up to the second floor and had to wait in line for tickets to the top. Bruce had a nice chat with a gentleman from Sweden. The top was very crowded, but we still had time for romantic views and walked around the perimeter identifying sights we had seen before and noting new ones. While we were up there the Tower lit for the first time that night. The crowd below cheered. It was a special evening.
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