Bonjour! Vacation 2007

I know, I know... I've been terrible about keeping this blog up to date. I will try to do better. Anyway, guess where this is?!? Give up? NO! It's not Las Vegas... Its ACTUALLY Paris! I was there over this past Christmas. It was part of my last vacation which included Christmas in Paris, some time in Amsterdam, New Year's in Prague, and then about a week in Munich. Sort of a whirlwind tour of western Europe. I decided to take my vacation over there because I was already in the UK all of last year and thought... "might as well take advantage of being on this side of the world on the company's dime..." It worked out beautifully. My last hotel over there was in Dublin, Ireland, so I flew back to London on my last night, took the Eurostar train from London to Paris through the Chunnel, and met Robert at the Hilton... YES, the PARIS Hilton (hehe...)

Paris was a blast. Although we didn't go up to the top of the Eiffel Tower, we saw pretty much as much as we could in the few days we were there. We walked down the Champs-Elysées to the Arc de Triomphe and saw the CRAZY driving around the arch (which is really just a big traffic circle with a HUGE arch in the center). Of course, you can't leave Paris without seeing Moulin Rouge. it was a bit expensive, but a trip to Paris isn't complete without it. Another important thing to do in Paris, aside from all of the amazing food, is to see the Mona Lisa. Actually, with all of the hype, it really wasn't all that exciting. She is in a big room in the Louvre, surrounded by TONS of people. From Paris, we took a train to Amsterdam. It was kind of a crazy morning. I had already purchased tickets, but when we got to the train station, the guy behind the counter couldn't print them for some reason. Bottom line, we didn't get on the train using the tickets I had originally bought. We ended up having to buy a new set of tickets and take a later train... OUCH! Unexpected expenses on a vacation are NOT fun... Anyway, Amsterdam here we come...

We arrived in Amsterdam still early enough to see some of the sights that night after checking in to the hotel... yes, again the Hilton... Gotta love working for a worldwide hotel company... Well, there's not much to say about Amsterdam... Of course everyone's first thought of the city is the famous (infamous?) Red Light District and the "coffee" shops. I'm sure it goes without saying, but 2 single guys in Amsterdam? Enough said...

Next time... More from Amsterdam and the rest of the trip...