We slept in again Friday morning due to the previous late night arrival and the fact I seemed to be coming down with a cold.

Originally we had planned on going out to Versailles but we got too late a start and decided to do the Louvre today and delay Versailles for an early Saturday start.

By the time we got to the Louvre, had lunch, got our audioguides and fought the crowds to get in it was almost 1PM.  But it didn’t matter since it was open late on Friday night.  So we began our tour of the one of the largest museums in the world and believe me it is large!  Overwhelming might be a better description.  Their collections are simply incredible and after a while you just kind of glaze over.  You know you are passing by all these wonderful treasures but you can only take in so much.  And it everywhere you turn you see another corridor and huge stairway leading to yet another wing of the museum.

The Louvre is huge. It seems everywhere you go is a corridor like this …

That leads to yet another staircase like this …

That leads to another corridor… well you get the idea!

Of course there are the must sees like Winged Victory of Samothrace

and Venus De Milo

I didn’t catch the name of this one but a lot of people were stopping and it was behind bullet proof glass so it must have been important!

and there are innumerable lesser known works like this Michelangelo that was left over parts from Pope Julius’s tomb.

Yep, there are treasures everywhere  – certainly on the walls.

even sometimes on the floors

and ceilings

It is a pretty incredible place!

We did manage to see all the major hits plus a lot more.  We left there early evening and headed over to dinner on Ile St. Louis, the island in the Seine where Paris started.  It is a very tony section of the city.  Afterwards we walked over to Notre Dame Cathedral and got the best gelato I have ever tasted then walked back to the hotel along the left bank of the Seine at sunset.

Notre Dame in the fading afternoon sun.

Oh my – at the moment this photo was taken I didn’t realize I was about to have one of those tasty treats you remember a lifetime.

The Seine at sunset. Notre Dame in the distance.

Got back to the hotel and asked for a glass of ice only to be rewarded with an entire bucket! You would have thought someone gave us a thousand dollars.  We gorged ourselves on cold water!

Facetimed with Kathy and Jackson and then off to bed since Versailles awaits at an early hour.