High There!

Back blipped as I was too tired yesterday.

As neither of us had slept well, what with the late departure of the partygoers with their mopeds and the early collection of what sounded like the entire city's recycled glass, we took a stroll to the shop for supplies and had a leisurely breakfast before deciding what to do with the day.

We last visited the Eiffel Tower in 1976, before our first baby was born, but were only allowed up to the first stage, so this time we were determined to get right to the top. Here is the proof, it's the highest point the public can see.

The views are, of course, stunning; similar to Google but better. Google's images are static but we were able to wait out any cloud shadows until any landmarks werein sunlight, which is why we spent rather a long time at the top and, having spent over an hour queuing for the privilege, felt justified in doing so despite restricted space.

We came home the pretty way, wandering along the river as far as the extravagantly ornate Pont Alexandre III to our Metro station.

Dinner was at another local restaurant, this specialises in Raclette and Fondue and has grills set into the tables. Having experienced raclette with our Swiss friends and subsequently bought a set, we opted for that.

Came back the quite unpretty way, past the Moulin Rouge with its bus parties just arriving and down a street where Mr Flum's eyes were on stalks, to the other end of our street where every other shop sells guitars (so Mr Flum's eyes relaxed just a little).

Truly, this area is full of contrasts.