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Stairs, more stairs, even more stairs & some of the most iconic places in Paris. That sums up our day. Well that and the climbing of more stairs. We wanted an early start to get to the tower before the crowds. However us being us we woke at 8am then grabbed some croissants and made our way there. Unfortunately so did most of the tourists & we debated whether to come back but chances are it would get no better. So queue we did for 2 hours before getting our tickets to the top. Onto our first lift we went to get to the second level and then another lift direct to the top. Jac loved it but I was pretty much s***ting myself on the ride up but we made it safely. Out we stepped onto the viewing platform and the sights of the city were amazing. We picked out a lot of the major landmarks and took an albums worth of photos. Being a beautiful 28 degrees we could see for miles in all directions. The thing that we really noticed was how white the city was. Compared to the dark brick of London it gives Paris a really clean look. After about 40 nerve racking minutes we made the hair raising descent to the second level for a few more snaps before returning to the comfort of earth level. Despite being on our feet for about 4 hours & climbing a few steps we left the Eiffel Tower with fond memories for the rest of our lives. It was then time to rest our weary legs and feed ourselves so we made the short walk down to pick up our hop on hop off bus tour. We stayed on for a while as we toured the city getting our bearings and going Asian happy with our camera. We made it to Notre Dame Cathedral where we couldn't put off food any longer so we demolished a panini on a bridge over the seine. Then we figured we may as well see the cathedral. At least this time it was only about a 20 minutes wait which we filled in with a crepe, and then it began. In total we had about 490 steps to cover as we went throughout the structure. We got to the belfry where we saw the bell and Quasimodo's home, we wandered along the top, we entered the lower levels and were blown away with what we had seen. Knowing how many cathedrals we have seen so far we thought we would be pretty blasé about this one too, but it was one of the most amazing to visit. From there we checked out the crypt, with more stairs, before heading back to the bus to recover again. After a little driving we turned into Champs-Élysées and disappeared in the traffic. We were both pretty exhausted so disembarked at the top of the road & had a feed, with a spot of people watching, beside the Arc De Triomphe. After preparing ourselves we headed to the monument. We acscended more bloody steps to experience more amazing views and plenty more photos. We'd only taken about 200 photos of the Eiffel Tower so figured we probably should get some more. After an hour or so we made our way back to the bus and onto the stop back near the tower, where we boarded a boat for an evening cruise of the seine. The cruise was probably the favorite we have taken in all our travels. Beautiful weather, great company & amazing views. There were people lining the banks having picnics & drinking wine, everyone in a great mood. Jac proceeded to wave to as many people as possible with many waving back. Actually it's kind of weird how it's ok to wave at everyone on a boat but if you did it on any other mode of transport you would be considered an idiot. As we returned to the dock the Eiffel Tower started to sparkle. Absolutely perfect way to end the cruise. It was pretty late by this stage so we made our way back home absolutely knackered. We got back to our place about midnight and realized we are staying on the 6th floor. Great... more freakin' stairs!!!
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