Tuesday, August 28, 1928
Walked to the Louvre and went through. It is full of fine paintings and sculpture. I liked Venus de Milo best of all. Walked through Jardin des Tuilleries past Cleopatra’s Needle and up the broad Ave. des Champs Elysees to the Arc de Triumph in the Place de l’Étoile where 10 streets converge. It is very large. The Unknown Soldier is buried beneath it under a simple slab of stone. At its head burns a fire of remembrance always.
Crossing the Seine in front of the beautiful Trocadero I went to the top of the Eiffel Tower in a series of three elevators. 984 feet high and a wonderful view of all Paris, all its parks, woods, boulevards, Notre Dame, the Seine, etc. Next I walked to the Hotel des Invalides. It is a large, imposing building built by Napoleon for a hospital but now used as a war museum. Here Napoleon lies buried in a large, beautiful and simple casket of red Finland granite given by Nicholas I. It is in a large circular crypt under the great dome.
My suitcase wasn’t at the American Express Company until 5:30 PM so I walked to hotel and back again. Wasn’t there then and when it did come the charges were 80F and someone had tried to steal it [i.e., open it]. One strap missing and a little smashed. Had breakfast for a change, but no lunch. Big dinner for 8F50. After writing to Dad, we mailed it and had a cup of chocolate on Boulevard des Italians, sitting on the sidewalk at the tables. If you look at a woman she will come right over. Two came out of a café after us and we had a deuce of a time getting rid of them.