On Monday, we got our first look at the tour group. Although we went with the Purdue Alumni Association, there were only 3 other people from Purdue. The group, however, included folks from many Midwest universities. We took the tour bus through Paris, visiting Notre Dame, the Eiffel Tower, and Montmartre.

Day 4—Paris City & Montmartre tour

Various looks at the outside of Notre Dame

Some views from the inside

Notre Dame de Paris, known simply as Notre Dame is a gothic cathedral on the eastern half of the Île de la Cité in Paris, with its main entrance to the west. It is still used as a Roman Catholic cathedral and is the seat of the Archbishop of Paris. With construction starting in 1163 and completing in roughly 1345, Notre Dame is widely considered one of the finest examples of French Gothic architecture.

The lone Boilermakers on our trip... Dale and Dixie join us at the Eiffel Tower

Some of the scenic places along our bus trip through the city, such as the Obélisque de Luxor in the Place de la Concorde, Madeleine, and the Moulin Rouge

Not too far from Moulin Rouge, we visited Montmartre and the white-domed Sacré-Coeur Basilica or Sacred Heart Basilica. Montmartre is a hill which is 400 feet high, and also the name of the surrounding district, in the north of Paris. The basilica began construction in 1875.

We walked the hundreds of steps to the top of Montmartre, took in the view seen below, then had a little lunch with seven young adults who went on the trip with their grandparents, Bev and Reg. Dana hung out with the kids, ranging in age from 15 to 23, throughout a good portion of the week. They were all very nice, and were from Detroit and Houston

After Montmartre, we hopped back on the bus and saw the Opera House (above left), the Louvre (above & right), and other notable sites