The Paris Statue of Liberty, the second of two replicas, is much smaller than the one in New York Harbor, USA.  See the quote below for details.

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Unbeknownst to us, we discovered two replicas of the Statue of Liberty in New York’s harbor, the second of which is shown here, which we visited yesterday. The inscription is at the base of the Statue of Liberty. See link or quote below for details: “The first (original) statue stands in the Jardin du Luxembourg. An information panel on the pedestal claims that it is a bronze model used by Bartholdi as part of the preparatory work for the New York statue; the artist offered it to the Luxembourg museum in 1900, and it was placed in the park in 1906. The date written on this statue’s tablet (where the New York statue has “JULY IV MDCCLXXVI”) is “15 November 1889” (November 15, 1889), the date at which the larger Parisian replica was inaugurated. Pont de Grenelle This second Statue of Liberty in Paris is near the Grenelle Bridge on the Île aux Cygnes, a man-made island in the River Seine (48°51′0″N 2°16′47″E), 11.50 meters (37 feet 9 inches) high. Inaugurated on July 4, 1889, it looks southwest, downriver along the Seine. Its tablet bears two dates: “IV JUILLET 1776” (July 4, 1776: The United States Declaration of Independence) like the New York statue, and “XIV JUILLET 1789” (July 14, 1789: the storming of the Bastille). This statue is shown in the movie National Treasure: Book of Secrets as one of the historic locations.”

With the high cost of taxi fares in Paris and one great site following another, we were walking proved to be the best way to get around. We’d considered the Hop-On Hop-Off Bus, but “hopping off” would still result in tremendous amounts of walking.

We walked on a bridge over the train tracks with the Eiffel Tower at a distance.

By walking, we could take our time, see many interesting points along the way and take photos at our leisure. By the end of each day, we were exhausted. 

A River Seine cruise ship, perhaps docked for the day to allow passengers to tour Paris.

Our boutique hotel, conveniently located near the Eiffel Tower, was an excellent starting point. It was always the return walk at the end of the day that was most challenging. I never complained.

Statue on the bridge of the River Seine.

At that time, I had no idea I was suffering from cardiovascular disease, but I pushed myself each day to forge ahead, never knowing why my legs hurt so badly. Tom was always patient when I often asked we stopped to rest along the way. Once I rested for a minute or two, I would be ready to carry on.

A River Seine cruise ship, perhaps docked for the day to allow passengers to tour Paris.

Now, as I walk the corridors each day from 8,000 to 10,000 steps, I still find myself struggling but require less stopping. At this point, I can walk about ½ mile, .8 km, non-stop. I don’t get out of breath, but I have to stop due to pain and cramping in my legs.

One of the popular Viking cruise lines river cruise boats.

Doing all this walking reminds me of our time in Paris, where we walked more than anywhere in the world except for the port of call tours from a cruise to St. Petersburg, Russia, in August last year, only six months after I’d had open-heart surgery and had yet to strengthen in my legs after two leg surgeries four months earlier. 

When in crowded tourist areas, Tom carried this pen in plain view to him as a deterrent to pickpockets.

But, even now, with all my daily walking, I’d still struggle to keep up with the long, non-stop periods of walking such as experienced on the St. Petersburg tour. We’ll have to accept this limitation that may continue for the remainder of my life in the future.

As we walked toward the more modern areas of Paris, we stumbled across this shopping mall.

Thus, my memories of those long walks in Paris were a mix of painful walking along with the thrills of the many sites we saw along the way. The only time we used a taxi was from the airport to our hotel; the round-trip visit to The Louvre; and to the train station to travel on the Eurostar (the “chunnel” when we left for London a few weeks later). On a stormy day, we took the train across the street from our hotel to travel to Versaille, our favorite sightseeing outing in Paris. 

The interior of the shopping mall could have been in any city in the USA or another country. We looked at cameras in an electronic store, but the prices were outrageous with the 40% taxes, including VAT.

A portion of our photos consists of scenes we encountered along the way on our daily walks, many of which may not necessarily appeal to most tourists. Yes, we saw the highlights, but we also treasured the sites we discovered by surprise every day.

The City of Light is mainly known for its historical architecture. However, many modern buildings occupy the skyline.

With the lack of interest in shopping and our restrictive way of eating, we still did a fair amount of window shopping. We never missed the full flavor of fantastic foods in Paris when we dined at a few upscale gourmet restaurants and many divine cafes.

This charming bag shop so well depicts Paris with its awning, quaint architecture, and highly-priced items.

Looking back, we’re grateful for the experience and the beautiful memories and are delighted to share some of our photos of Paris over the next several days.

A narrow one-way street with minimal parking for residents of these buildings. Driving in Paris and parking in Paris is difficult. We felt it would be pure frustration for a visitor to rent a car to see the city.

Stay safe, healthy, and hopeful.

Please click here for more photos from this date in 2014.

Photo from one year ago today, August 4, 2019:

In Connemara, Ireland, with fresh fish caught and sold by the friendly fishmonger John, who showed up at our door every Tuesday morning, I made myself a dinner of sauteed garlic butter calamari and hake. My vegetables were on a separate plate. For more food photos taken in Ireland, please click here.

We were enthralled by the lights of the Eiffel Tower.  We made the video of the light show below.

Note: To all of our readers visiting our site via a smartphone, please click the “View web version” tab under the word “Home” at the bottom of the page to access the web version enabling you to access all of our archives on the right side of the page. We’ll be updating our site shortly, making these extra steps unnecessary. Thank you. 

With neither of us particularly interested in big cities, I surprised myself when at the onset of our travels in 2012, I mentioned to Tom it would be nice to visit Paris and London if, after all, we were on a mission to “see the world.” 

This view is from the corner near our hotel, a short distance from the Eiffel Tower.

How could one strive to travel the world without visiting these two historic cities rife with culture and art? The conversation never came up again until a year later when Tom suggested we go to Normandy, France, on a small group private tour while on a cruise docked in Le Havre. 

Statue on the bridge of the River Seine.

Although, at the time, not much of a history and war facts buff, I suggested a trade-off (with tongue in cheek). My compromise? Let’s do Normandy and then stay for 15 days each in Paris and London. Tom agreed. 

We assume this longboat on the Seine maybe a river cruise ship.

It didn’t take him long to realize he wasn’t the best negotiator in the world. My end of the “bargain” was considerably more expensive, time-consuming, and comprehensive. As it turned out, I, too, felt the power and emotion of visiting Normandy and have since changed my interests to lean toward Tom’s vast knowledge and interest in world history.

Driving into the city of Paris was an experience in itself.

No, he didn’t love the hustle and bustle of Paris, although he thoroughly enjoyed the sites we visited. But, overall, he felt more at ease in South Kensington when we stayed in the fantastic history and artsy area, away from some of the commotion in the center of London.

We were crossing the bridge over the Seine. Each day we walked no less than 5 miles, 8 km.

Over the next few weeks, we’ll share some of our favorite photos from our 15 nights in Paris and later the photos from our 15 nights in South Kensington, within walking distance of some of the finest museums in the world.

The streets were lined with one café, bistro, and restaurant after another.  We’ll never have trouble finding great dining establishments.

At that time, I wasn’t drinking wine, nor did I consume any foods restricted to my ongoing low-carb diet. In 2016, I decided to try drinking wine again, and from there, I’ve loved it. 

The lobby of our boutique hotel in Paris, across the road from the train station.

As mentioned, I haven’t had a glass of wine since February. Alcoholic beverages continue to be banned in India during the lockdown. Even if it becomes available in India while we are here, we’ll both continue to abstain until we leave here.

We were looking out the window of our hotel to the train station. We couldn’t have been in a perfect location.

Taxes on wine and other alcoholic beverages in India is 34% plus, prices are high. It’s just not worth it to either of us. We’ll wait until we get to Africa or another country to have an official “happy hour.”

Tom, standing in what may be the smallest elevator on the planet. It took a few trips to get out bags up to our room.

Of course, while in Paris, the first site we were determined to see was the Eiffel Tower, judged by the number of photos we’re posting today. It was more magnificent than we’d expected, especially at night, as shown in our video above.

As for now, the continuing dreadful news of the spread of COVID-19 throughout the world gives us little hope of getting out of here anytime soon. Each day, we resign ourselves further as to the magnitude of the imposed lockdown we continue to bear, along with others throughout the world.

This dinner salad was perfect for our late-night supper at a local outdoor cafe.

We pray for the safety of our loved ones, friends, readers/friends, and those suffering in every corner of the world, including those who’ve lost loved ones and have been stricken with this dreadful virus.

Stay safe.

Photo from one year ago today, August 3, 2019:

An island in a small lake in Connemara, Ireland. For more photos, please click here.