29 August 2022
I am packed and out the hotel door by 5.30am, not really a problem as I am awake already with jetlag. I anticipated would be awake early so had booked an early Eurostar train and besides you can always catch up sleep on trains or planes.
The Eurostar is genius really, just over 2 hours and you are whisked from the centre of London to the centre of Paris and without all the bureaucracy of airports. The train stops at Gare de Nord station and everyone just gets off the train and walks out into the bright, 25deg Paris morning.
I am staying a short distance across the city in St Michel, directly opposite the tragically damaged cathedral of Notre Dame. It’s such a great day and I am early to check-in to my digs at Albe Hotel, so amble the 2 kms across the city from the station. I am in no particular rush so take my time walking in the general direction but wandering through the maze of streets. You cannot really get lost these days as Google Maps is foolproof.
The great thing about Paris, well Europe anywhere really is the myriad of bars and cafes everywhere. So when I get close I park up under an umbrella at an outside table and assemble my tragic French and order a Coffee Americano with a side of Latte. I really gotta practice some basic French, this is getting silly now.
I have 2 days in Paris and keen to wander around looking at the sights. I still have the app on my phone for Velib Bikes which are the share bikes and the hire stations are everywhere. Paris has been taken over now by these share bike/scooter/motorised skateboards and they are a manic swarm everywhere. This is stark contrast to when the share Green Bikes were first introduced and Parisians showed French disdain and dispatched them into the canals.
After a quick check-in I rent a bike at the station on corner and a slow cycle around the city following the Seine River down to the Eiffel Tower and back. No cycle is complete till you take in the Arc de Triomphe, Champs Élysées where the Tour de France finishes and a quick trip through the Place de La Bastille. Then back to the hotel and find a restaurant with a shady umbrella and great view of passing crowds to settle in for an early dinner.
A great first day over. No dramas or disasters, so far so good.
30 August 2020
Today is a free day in Paris and I have booked a few activities. If you want to avoid queues and visit any major attractions in Paris you really need to join a tour so I have booked a trip to Louvre Museum at midday. Afterwards will do the sightseeing bus and meander around the city listening to the history lesson. Not a lot of things todo in one day I know, but I have a very short span of attention so is just about right amount for me.
That means a relaxing morning and breakfast at my favourite cafe, Le Depart, in front of the hotel, then a wander around the myriad of quaint shops in the neighbourhood. I am on the Left Bank of the Seine, which is The Latin Quarter and quite close to Sorbonne University. This is the stuff of legends.
The midday tour to the Louvre was brilliant, the tour guide was a young Nigerian Student, Obanni who is studying at Paris University completing an engineering degree and masters in business. Talk about overqualified. Well anyhow, what a fabulous guided tour and just about the right mix of walking, talking and sitting in air conditioned room studying magnificent artwork. Did I mention how hot it is outside.
The good news is the Hop On/Off Big Bus stops nearby so I stagger through the hot afternoon and up to the open top deck to be driven around the city sights.
As luck would have it one of the bus stops is Notre Dame Cathedral, where my hotel is, so an easy drop off. I am deposited outside my favourite cafe, Le Depart for an early dinner of the house special with a glass of Bordeaux.
It’s another spectacular day. The temperatures are climbing every day and today was a shade under 30deg which is quite a shock from the decidedly inclement Wellington winter.
One small problem has developed though. I rented a Velib bike and cycled to the Louvre to meet the small tour group however, the bike station was full where I dropped off and I did not lock (de-hire) the bike correctly, so no “returned correctly emai”. A quick check of the Velib website indicated I could be up for a huge charge if the bike is lost. Remember the canal thing. A nervous day but turned out Ok as whoever picked up the bike finally retuned it and I was let off the hook. Now that’s a let off right there.
Relaxing start tomorrow and off to Orly airport for 1pm flight to Pisa, Italy…..I can hardly wait.
Via Francigena Italy - 2022 