We stayed at The Sanctuary Hotel on Tothill Street just a couple blocks from Parliament. Nice rooms and a pub below

First day we rode the tube (naturally) over to The Tower Bridge and Tower of London.

Even though it was drizzling a bit the Tower of London was a good start to the day's events.

Lots of history, amazing buildings, ramparts, gates, Warders.

Tower Bridge - hard to believe but it has been a working structure since 1894.

Traffic and pedestrians cross it daily.

Above is an enclosed walkway with glass panels in some parts of the floor so you can get great views of the Thames flowing below as well as the skyline.

One of our favorite parts was the old machinery. They sure don't make them that lovely any longer

We have wanted to do this part for a few years but it was not open.

The Engine Room is a great display of the equipment that originally manipulated the bridge as well as a great tribute to the ingenuity, sweat and dedication of the people who worked here.

St. Paul's is just incredible to see. The architecture is renown, but for me the ceilings are the main draw.

It is also the home of many monuments to great battle leaders - usually only the Admirals or Generals and not the men who did the most fighting and dying.

Besides the main area there is a crypt paying homage to Wellington, Florence Nightingale, Nelson and more. Very interesting.

Then climb the 500+ steps to the top. Great views

It's our Gothic style church day.

Next we stopped at the Catholic Church of the Immaculate Conception.

Yes some Catholic churches survived through the religious turmoil although this one was built in the latter 1840s.

it is quite impressive inside with lovely vaulted ceilings, beautiful colors and an impressive altar.

On our last trip to London we strolled through this more or less by accident but we liked it so much we made sure Casey got to see it.

It was at its height as a wharf in the 1800s and continued to be used until it was bombed during WWII.

Times changed, ships docked elsewhere and it fell into disrepair until the resurgence of the Docklands in the 1980s.

Today it is a mix of shoppes and restaurants with a really incredible piece of artwork in the middle known as The Navigator

We finally were able to do the tour of Parliament. Only took 3 tries.

The tour itself was great. Our guide was informative with a dry sense of humor, and we were shown both chambers, the walk between, and several other venues.

Unfortunately no pictures are allowed inside once you leave the great hall - the original part.

Sorry. You'll just have to go see for yourself

After Parliament, a pub for lunch, and lots of wandering around to see The Golden Hinde, Anchor Pub, have tea, and enjoy several other sites you just can't miss we decided to stop at St Dunstan in the East.

I just love this little park. So quiet and pleasant. People just come sit and read.

True it may not be huge and historic but it is one of those places I wanted to share.

We arrived in Paris in late afternoon so after checking into our hotel and doing some unpacking we strolled over to The Luxembourg Gardens.

Probably everyone has seen paintings of Parisians lunching on the grass and children playing in the pool. They still do it today.

As with most current public places here it was once a home for royalty, not the people.

Today it is owned by the French Senate which still meets in the palace.

Le Pere Cemetery was one of Casey's top sites to see in Paris. It is the resting place for thousands - actually estimated in a million plus now.

It was named for Father Lachaise - confessor to King Louis XIV.

Since it opened in 1804 it has seen many funerals. Most ordinary people, but also some very famous.

Chopin, Moliere, Edith Piaf, Max Ernst, Balzac and many more.

The cemetery is very large and probably one of the most peaceful, lovely places you can visit.

Naturally we went to The Eiffel Tower. What self-respecting guide would not include this on someone's first trip to Paris?

This time we booked a slot for 3:30 to take the elevator up to the top.

What this means is you start standing in line at 3:30 and you actually gain access to the elevator at 4:30.

Ah, but the views are still wonderful, the structure is amazing, and I still love it.

Probably everyone knows of Rodin the sculptor. His most famous piece is The Thinker.

He had two workshops; his home Villa des Brillants at Meudon just outside Paris and the Hotel Biron in Paris.

Upon his death he willed his work and collection to the state providing they turn these buildings into museums to display them.

We first strolled the man pieces in the garden - many of these change regularly so there is something new to see on subsequent visits.

I think the gardens were our favorite, even though it was drizzling.

After wandering the gardens for quite some time we went into the museum.

Rodin was not only a great artist in his own right but also a great collector.

He had many paintings of Van Gogh, Tanguy, Claudel and others.

The pieces were varied and the museum itself is a beautiful building. Well worth the time.

Paris has quite a few churches - no surprise there - and most of them are just stunning.

Casey was very interested in the architecture of the churches in London and Paris so St. Sulpice was a good stop.

Dating from the mid 1600s it has gone through many "up-grades" as well as restoration after the Revolution.

Today it is a masterpiece of stain glass, stone and light. Well worth the stop

We were wandering along the Seine and decided to see how Notre Dame looked after the fire.

Oh, what a horror. The area is fenced off and a tarp is surrounding the work area so taking pics was hard.

As you can see a lot of work has been done to brace the structure - that was done only recently because they spent months cleaning up the toxins and lead first.

Beside the lead in the stained glass windows the roof had 430 tons of lead tile

Heaven only knows when the actual reconstruction will begin, but they have enough scaffolding in place to support the walls as they continue to clean up and brace the support features so it's safe.

Very long story. These were limestone quarries dating back to open pit mines in the first century AD and tunnels in the 13th century until they were closed in the mid 1800s.

Stones from the quarry were used to build Notre Dame, the Louvre, and other structures around Paris.

Eventually streets collapsed from all the mining and they were shut down around 1774.

Meanwhile Paris cemeteriess were bursting so they decided to slowly move all the remains to the old mines.

Then about 1810-1814 Inspector Héricart de Thury started the artful display of the bones as the tourist trade flourished

Iconic Parisian monument commissioned by Napoleon in 1806 but not completed until about 1836 by King Louis-Philippe.

It honours those who fought and died for France in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, with the names of all French victories and generals inscribed on its inner and outer surfaces.

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from World War I lies under the arch vault.

This time we went to the top for some amazing views of the city.

So, last day in Paris and we just wandered around after we left The Arch

We strolled around the Place de la Concorde and saw the Luxor Oblisk and colorful Fountain of River Commerce and Navigation.

Then through the Tuileries Garden, peeked at the glass pyramid in front of the Louve, and just enjoyed being in Paris.

We headed back to London because we fly home tomorrow.

This time we stayed at Marriott County Hall. A huge sprawling old building that once was the seat of government for London until the later part of 1980.

The draw for us was it's proximity to The London Eye. Since we were arriving in the late afternoon we decided it would be a nice, relaxing final tourist event.

We were surprised how much we enjoyed it.