Paris - a romantic city.

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The hotel was close to a metro station, so transport to the city sights was nearby. A free shuttle bus is available but must be booked the day before. The hotel was used by one of the airlines and seemed to be rather full. A lot of uniformed hostesses and pilots coming and going.

The menu when we were there offered a choice of snails (escargots), egg-and-bacon pie (quiche lorraine), or pink and white terrine of fish. Mains offered a choice of leg of duck in orange sauce (cuisse de canard a l'orange), burgundy beef stew (beuf bourguignon), or codfish in butter cream sauce, all followed by the pastry of the day.

The atmosphere was as good as the food, with a wandering musician/singer to keep us entertained (he responded well to encouragement, returning frequently when tipped!). This restaurant seemed to attract a fair number of locals -- a good indication that the restaurant is a good one!

The entertainment was first-rate, from the dancing and singing through to a very entertaining acrobat (with a very funny laugh!). The costumes were impressive, or at times, the distinct lack of costumes (or at least costumes reduced to a bare minimum for decency!), as it were. One of our friends was called onto the stage and received a souvenir t-shirt for his efforts (how good is that -- he gets a closer look and a new t-shirt). I would not hesitate to recommend this to anyone looking for a typically Parisian revue that also offers fine food and all-around entertainment. The entertainment included the can-can, typically associated with Parisian revues.

For more details on what to expect, try http://www.lanouvelleeveparis.com/en/index.asp

Still, it is worth taking a look at Paris from the Seine. Great views of the buildings lining the river and, of course, a wonderful view of the Eiffel Tower from the river. The dock was just below the Eiffel Tower, so there was a chance to do both a cruise and a climb up the tower.

The lifts to the second level (there are three elevators in the north, west, and east pillars) go up at an angle (if you look at any photographs of the tower, you will understand why). It was a bit like riding the cog railway in Lucerne. Queues were quite long for both the ascent and descent. It is, after all, a very popular tourist attraction.

The views from the second level were quite stunning. The day was overcast, with a few showers, so although the conditions were not ideal, the weather did little to reduce the view. I was certainly relieved that I had a digital camera with a large storage card. I would have used far too much film!

It was impossible to get more than a taste of the Louvre in the short time we were there, but what we did see was unforgettable. The Venus de Milo statue was particularly impressive.