Last Day in France

So, our visit is almost over and we are going into Paris again, this time with Nicko.  Today I am again a sheep.  I need make no decisions, I can just follow along, drinking in the sights and letting Paris wash over me.  
We make our way through the most prestigious parts of the City, past the Elysee Palace, past Embassies and Police Academies, some so well guarded that there isn't even pedestrian access to them.  Everything is scrubbed clean, the stone is soft and warm coloured.  I find myself reminded what a lovely city this is.
We mingle with the great and good along the Rue St Honore, where the large fashion houses display impossible to wear and priceless items in their vast windows.  Wafts of perfume come from the shops and the passers-by.  A little girl of about four clad in a smart gold dress is grizzling as she is dragged along, poor mite.  It's too hot for me, and I like window shopping.
Unexpectedly, we come across a Church - the Eglise Notre Dame de l'Assomption.  All the information about it, and the notices outside, are in Polish, as is everything inside.  It's a little oasis of calm and cool - with a wonderful painted dome.  A real gem.

We make our way to the river, past the Bouquinistes, where Andy buys an elderly copy of La Maladie Imaginaire by Moliere - how strange to find it here, as we had just been talking about the play.
And so down to the Seine itself.  There's a wide pedestrian walkway alongside the river - I say pedestrianised, but actually pedestrians share the route with cyclists, roller-bladers and skateboarders, all whizzing along at breakneck speed.  It pays to keep your wits about you.  But its lovely - there are areas marked out for children to play, cafes with board games, floating restaurants - its full of life.  Here we are joined by Nini, and we stroll along together until its time for a beer and some food.
And so to the Tour Eiffel, which I've not been to for several years.  It looks cleaner than I remember it, but it is as popular as ever.  None of us having much of a head for heights, we wander under it, and eventually make our way back to the metro and home.

And that's it for now - but America beckons in late August - so watch this space...