Wow what a buss Paris is. Cars, motorbikes, buses and trucks weaving in and out of each other and squeezing between the narrowest spaces. When I arrived at the railway station and was waiting for a taxi,I was approached by a young man offering me a ride on a taxi-bike so I ended up on the back of a big motor bike with my suitcase, back pack and bags roaring through the streets of Paris! I can't believe I did that. After our arrival we met at a local restaurant for dinner, then we were taken to the river for a cruise. All of Paris was out walking the streets or sitting in parks and along the river. I didn't count the bridges but we must have past under about 10, and were told about many of the famous buildings and their history. After the cruise we re-joined the coach and drove around among all the crazy traffic to see Paris all lit up. All very beautiful. The Eiffel Tower has a twinkling light show for 5 minutes every hour from 10 to 12 pm. Next morning we were taken on a tour of the city to see the most notable places, tha Arc de Triomph, Concorde Place, Notre Dame, the Louvre (including driving through an arch about 6" wider than the bus!). When our time came we were taken to the Louvre for a tour and given a lot of the stories behind the paintings and statues, including the Mona Lisa. Not as big as I expected. There are so many you get a bit mesmerised before long and people everywhere. Next stop was the Eiffel Tower where we had tickets to the 2nd level. There was a bit of a wait because the computer wouldn't work but not too long. The view stretched for miles, but because so much of Paris is built with sandstone all the buildings tended to blur into a sea of white. We walked back to the hotel from the Arc de Triomphe as we weren't far from there. That evening we went to the Moulin Rouge for dinner and the show, and boy what a show. So many beautiful dancers, male and female. The costumes were amazing and the stage sets were so bright and colourful, and varied so much. Between the dances 2 roller skaters performed with, a man holding a girl and spinning around and around. There was also a great juggler / clown who involved a couple of people from the audience. There was an Australian girl who swam in a large clear sided pool with pythons wrapping around her. There must have been 5 or 6 in the pool with her. Can you imagine dancing with pythons - not for me. This morning we left Paris and drove to Bordeaux, stopping at the chateau of Chenonceau. A beautiful palace built by Henry 2 for his mistress, Diane of Poitiers. It is built on a bridge over the river and is full of tapestries on the walls, paintings and exquisite renaissance furniture. There are formal gardens outside all laid out in sections with flowers along the edges and grass patterns within the lawns. The weather was good while we were there but the rain started as we were travelling south. Wish I could find some sun and warmth - maybe in Spain. Will I keep saying that all the way around Europe, maybe the next place? I am sorry I have not kept up with this blog more often but the wifi in Paris was not free and I didn't have time to find a Starbucks. I think it will be better from here on, hope so.