Mary and I made it back from Paris safe and (somewhat) sound. Paris was lovely, even in late winter. It is also a REALLY long way from Spokane -- very long travel days coming and going. We bought a new digital camera just before the trip. The "old" camera (about 4 !/2 years) is a real dinosaur by now. The new camera is light and compact. I did find myself wishing that I had read the instructions a bit more carefully before leaving. A lot of museums allow photography, but NO flash photography. I found myself wistfully wondering how to turn off the flash function. Oh well. We did get some decent pictures though.
We arrived in Paris (Charles DeGaulle Airport) at about 6:30 am (having left Spokane at about 6:45 am the previous day). The cab driver spoke little or no English and Mary and I have limited French. Fortunately, I had printed out a map showing the location of our hotel from Google Maps and brought that along. Since we were staying in a small, old hotel on a very short, narrow street, this was a huge help. Otherwise, the driver probably wouldn't have had the slightest idea where we wanted to go. Contrary to some stereotypes, the cab driver was very friendly and helpful.
After checking into our hotel (Hotel Colbert), which is close to the center of Paris, on the Left Bank, just across from Notre Dame, we recuperated a bit, then went walking around the Latin Quarter. We strolled through Mary's old neighborhood from when she lived in Paris briefly 40 years ago. We had lunch at one of her favorite restaurants from that time -- Les Deux Magots. That evening, we had dinner at a pleasant cafe near our hotel. All in all, we had a delightful time in Paris. Vive la France.