Gonegardening - Those are great photos! I was happy to see how Lotus Position, Ruckus and Trifecta really looked. The greenhouse was every daylily lover's dream come true, wasn't it? I could have stayed in the greenhouse for days. LOL I'm glad you got a photo of the outside of the greenhouse. I like the way you get the panoramic shots and the little interesting touches on your tours. I tend to focus more on the blooms. It's interesting to know that Annette is working with spiders. By the way, the first photo you have is labeled ASIAN FAIRY BLUEBIRD, but it isn't that cultivar. I have that one, and it looks like this. I know some other tags in the greenhouse were mixed up. And, you bought three great cultivars at Thoroughbred. CHINESE SCRIBE and JUST PLAIN BILL have been on my wishlist for awhile, and ANNETTE'S MAGIC is a real beauty. Thanks for sharing your photos! Debra

DH and I just returned from a trip that included Paris and Amsterdam! I had great suggestions from GW. You can read those by searching Amsterdam. You can get a Paris Museum pass for 2, 4 or 6 days. It allows you to skip the regular lines at the Louvre and D'Orsay. It includes many sites you could just pop in for a look see if you're organized.The Louvre and D'Orsay have days when they stay open late. They both have beautiful views at night. I videoed the Eiffel Tower doing it's night light dance from the Louvre. the window glass reflected the room full of paintings with the Eiffel Tower glittering in the middle. From the D'Orsay you can see Sacre Coeur lit up. Wear good walking shoes, break them in and build up your endurance. If I had one day, I would start in the centre of Paris with Notre Dame. You don't need to go inside to enjoy it's beauty, the lines are too long to spend the time. San Chapelle is nearby. When people climb the stairs(brief climb) they gasp when they see they are surrounded by high walls of stunning stained glass. Does your bus include tours through Paris? If not look up reviews of Hop on and off. Bus #67 runs from the Eiffel Tower all the way through Paris to Notre Dame at the other end. You can't hop on and off though, with the same ticket. If you transfer to a different line within a certain amount of time you may use the same ticket. I would also take the trip down the Seine like others said. Have a wonderful trip!

You are in a great location and won't waste time getting to the attractions on your list. The metro is very safe and easy to navigate. 3 days in Paris has some excellent suggestions. You will see a few highlights and can plan another trip to see more in the future. Here's what I would want to see with my children: Eiffel Tower-yes, climb to the top. The view is spectacular Museum D'Orsay (used to be a train station) Notre Dame (stand on the star, which is the city center) Louxembourg Gardens (spectacular place for a picnic lunch). We stayed in that district once (I think it's the 5th.) We enjoyed Sacre Coeur. Loved the Montmartre area. Full of street artists and lovely cafe's. Many people have written about how to hit the highlights of Paris. Do you watch the travel channel? Rick Steve's has an excellent show and also has books. On our first trip I took his Paris book out of the library to help plan our 5 days. https://www.ricksteves.com/watch-read-listen/read/articles/paris-itinerary One bit of advice: when entering a store or restaurant greet the staff with "Bon Jour" and smile. Almost everyone there speaks English, so if you struggle with your French they will most likely speak English. The French get a bad rap as being unfriendly. I did not find that to be true. As long as you show them respect, acknowledge them and ask for help, you will get along just fine. I love to plan vacations and then sit back and enjoy as it plays out. Plan on doing LOTS of walking and eating! Enjoy!

I also really enjoy food tours so I'm taking notes! I enjoy spending time with the guides and learn a lot plus they know some great places. My favorite food tour so far was an evening food tour of Chinatown in Bangkok. We ate among other things: Durian ice cream (two thumbs down from DH) Crispy pork noodle soup with stomach, tongue, heart and liver. Spicy water morning glory (SO SPICY!) and grilled prawns Duck cheeks Crazy bitter warm herbal tea (why anyone in hot climates drinks hot drinks is beyond this Canadian, it was 100f+ at night!) BBQ pork buns and other dim sum Grilling our prawns outdoors with a cigarette hanging out of the side of his mouth -- we climbed up to the third floor to eat at a tiny plastic table. Dimsum