Here are the last pictures from Paris. These are from Narayan's camera and I uploaded them all at once, so this set's kind of a mixed bag. Here's the rundown (not the one with the Rock, sorry :(

Sunday morning we accidentally ended up at the Eiffel Tower, but it was way too crowded for me so we didn't stay long. Actually it felt very similar to being at a state fair: long lines, too many people, too much fried food, and a couple of carousels. Not at all like any other place we went to in France.

Next we went to the Centre Georges Pompidou to see the Modern Art Museum (after a brief detour to the Hospital de Georges Pompidou, which unfortunately looks remarkably similar to the Centre Georges Pompidou on the map, but is in fact in a completely different part of Paris). But the museum was amazing and completely worth getting lost. I've included descriptions for some of the images below, click the thumbnails to view. Not to mention the building itself is a piece of art, well maybe it more closely resembles a giant habitrail, but either way it's really cool. And we got some great pictures from the top. Also fantastic to see was the Elles@centrepompidou exhibit, or the "Women Artists in the Centre du Pompidou Collection." It was essentially like reading a 20th century art history book if all the artists were women, showcased in themes such as "Women and Violence" and "The Activist Body."

Sunday night we had dinner with Jeremy (Narayan's business partner), his financee (congratulations! they got engaged on the trip), and their Italian friend Marco (who incidentally dropped off the face of the drupal planet a few years ago). Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves thoroughly (except for maybe the waiter, who admirably put up with our collective lack of French language skills and general rowdiness :)

Monday, our last "official" day there, we went to the Champs-Elysees and climbed to the top of the Arc de Triomphe. The Champs-Elysees itself was a little disappointing, just a big street with overpriced boutiques, overpriced cafes, and street vendors selling knock-off Gucci purses. The arch itself, though, has a quite a presence and grandeur about it, and the view from the top was incredible. Despite both being very touristy attractions, the Arc had a very different atmosphere than the Eiffel Tower. Much less crowded, more art, more history, and way fewer churros.

Finally, the last few pictures are from the second hotel on Tuesday, our last "real" day there, which also had a beautiful view. Then Wednesday was a blur of Orly Airport -> Dusseldorf, Germany -> Vancouver, BC -> and finally PDX. (Four countries in one day, woot!)