Thank you, Cyndi! Today the kids and i had an incredible treasure hunt. Our friend Cyndi gave us 5 cards of art (4 paintings and 1 sculpture) in the Louvre and challenged the kids to find each piece. Luckily, Cyndi knows the Louvre well, so 4 of the 5 pieces were on the same floor (& general vicinity) as our beloved Mona Lisa. Yes, one was the Mona Lisa. We were at the Louvre for almost 4 hours and the kids were determined to stay until all 5 pieces were found. Seriously, the satisfaction of finding each piece was incredible. On a separate note, I had no idea the Louvre would be as magnificent as it was. I could go every day for a year and not get bored.
Although we were exhausted, we motivated to visit the Arc de Triomphe next. Haughton really wanted to see it and the metro goes straight there from the Louvre.... The Arc de Triomphe honors those who died in the French Revolution and Neopoleonic wars. It is also home to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from WWI. It's history is interesting - It was ordered by Napoleon in 1806 to celebrate his victories. Ironically, Napoleon was kicked out of office and the royals were back in power before the Arc was completed. Luckily, King Louis-Philippe allowed its completion.
Finally, the Arc de Triomphe has no elevator. Only 270 (Haughton counted!) stairs to get up. Wow, we're tired!
Yay!!
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