Celebrating Three Years

Today, three years ago, Katie and I said "I do" to each other at the alter. In those three years we have had some incredible adventures. Last year, we hiked to the top of Observation Point at Zion National Park. Today was yet another memory we will never forget; seeing the Eiffel Tower.

Since we didn't have anywhere to be early in the morning, we slept in a little. After having breakfast, we hopped on a train to go see the Eiffel Tower. It's a little hard to believe, but even after being in Paris for a day and ahalf, this was the first time seeing the Eiffel Tower. There is just so much to see in Paris. It was a bit of a hike from our hostel, but we made it there by 11:00am.

The Eiffel Tower itself was pretty spectacular. We got quite a few pictures of the tower at practically every angle. We also made sure to take some time away from the camera to sit and enjoy its beauty.

The Eiffel Tower is obviously a popular tourist spot. Because of that, expect to be bothered by quite a few people trying to profit off tourists. We had dozens approach us trying to get us to buy or "sign" something. However once you can tune that out, sitting by the tower is pretty surreal. You see pictures of it all the time, but you can't believe you are seeing it in person. Walking away is also made difficult by the fact that you aren't sure if you will ever see it again in your lifetime.

Finally, our stomachs ended up peeling us away, but not for long. We hit up a nearby grocery store to pick up some supplies for a picnic including: baguettes, cheese, salami, and a bottle of wine. We found a perfect secluded spot right on the Seine, looking back at the tower. This was by far our favorite part of the day getting to soak up more of the views while sipping some wine.

From there we went to see the famous Arc de Triomphe. This massive monument sits right in the middle of a giant roundabout. We headed into the underground tunnel to find ourselves at the foot of structure. We also made sure to stroll down the famous Champs-Élysées avenue.

This eventually led us back to the Seine where we found ourselves enjoying an Aperol Spritz at a cafe on the water. There we got a great dinner recommendation from our waitress, and put in our reservation quickly.

The place was called Cafe Constant. This little two story cafe is about a 5 minute walk from the Eiffel Tower. Katie and I split an order of oysters and each got tall glass of Stella. We picked out a couple of plates from the chef's recommendations for the day, and they were absolutely delicious.

We also ended up sitting next to a couple that was also from Michigan. We quickly bonded over how poorly the U of M football team faired against Wisconsin this past weekend. After dinner we made sure to hit up a nearby macaroon shop.

Last on our bucket list for the day was to check out the tower one last time under the lights. Every hour, on the hour, the tower sparkles for a few minutes, and it is pretty cool.

After yet another long day of walking, we dragged ourselves back to our bed. We could not have asked for a better way to celebrate three years of marriage!