Greetings from Paris. I’m taking the blog a little out of order to go ahead and fill in yesterday’s adventure in Paris.
Tyra, Cooper, Katie and I woke up very early (between 4:30 and 5) to head to the St. Pancras station to catch the Eurostar high speed train from London to Paris. Our car showed up right at 5:30 when we were walking out the door, and he drove us straight to the station (well, with a U-Turn thrown in, since the one of the roads was closed, and you can’t turn right off of that particular street…). We arrived at the station, grabbed some snacks at the only open food shop, went through French Passport control and ended up in the waiting area until our train was called. We quickly boarded, found our seats and settled in for the 2 1/2 hour high-speed train ride.
Around 10:45, we were in the middle of Paris and headed to the Eiffel Tower. This was the main reason KT wanted to go to Paris – to go to the top of the tower – so we took RER (Suburban Rapid Trains) trains B then C from Gare du Nord to the “Tour Eiffel” stop, and headed toward the tower. As we got close, we started getting accosted by “salesmen” trying to sell cheap tower souvenirs and ladies trying to get us to sign something (like we had any sort of authority in France – most likely trying to distract us so we could get our pockets picked…). We had to keep saying no, and headed to the ticket line; while in line, they kept coming by to see us “stuff” and we had to keep saying no – once we were in the main queue, they didn’t bother us. We bought our tickets to the top and then got on the first “inclinator” (the term used for an elevator that goes both up/down and sideways) to get to the second level, then got in line to the top. We got to the top and could see some things, but the weather was overcast and slightly foggy, so the view was not all that great, but we made it to the top and took some pictures. We headed back down to the second level took a few more pictures, hit the souvenir shop and then back in line to go down.
Finally back at the bottom, we worked our way through the gauntlet of illegal (according to the sign inside the tower – of course if the police would police the grounds, it wouldn’t be an issue…) salesmen and headed toward the far end of the park to take a picture of the family with the tower in the background (similar to one Steve and Tyra did years ago). We headed back to the RER through a different neighborhood to avoid being accosted, and got back on the train where we split. Tyra, Coop and KT headed for Notre Dame and the Louvre, whereas I headed to Musée d’Orsay having been to the other two sites less than 2 years ago.
I stopped for lunch before heading to the Musée d’Orsay – a Croque Monsieur from a small cafe near the museum. Croque Monsieur is basically a ham and cheese sandwich with the cheese on top (bread/ham/bread/cheese) – Mmmm good!
At the Musée d’Orsay, the building is undergoing renovation, due to it’s upcoming 25th Anniversary, so things were not all on display, nor were they in their normal places. Just a few highlights: Whistler’s Mother, Pastels, Impressionists, Manet, Monet, Gustav Mahler, Art Deco Home Furnishings, statues, and lots of stairs. I don’t have a favorite, but enjoyed the afternoon at the galleries.
Outside the museum, I saw the “Ring Scam” – a lady or a man “finds” a “gold” ring asking if it’s yours – they try to convince you that it’s not theirs and that it’s “real gold” – and either try to jam it on your finger where it won’t come off or just sell it to your very cheaply (€5). Some of the people have a very good “drop” – others didn’t.
After the museum, I headed across the Seine river to the Tuileries – the buds are coming out and in less than 4 weeks, everything will be in bloom, but for now, things were starting to come out. After the Tuileries, I headed toward the Arc de Triomphe along the Champs Elysees – checking out the shopping scene in Paris (nothing I had to have…). After the Arc de Triomphe, it was time to start heading back to the train station to head back to London. I took the Métro (subway) from George V to Châtelet to try and grab some dinner (in particular a chicken and tomato crepe) before getting on the train – with no luck.
I headed back into the Métro to get to the RER B line – the Châtelet-Les Halles “complex” is a giant maze of tunnels getting from one line to another with several moving walkways between train platforms (about 1/2 mile from one end to the other…). After finding my way to the RER B line, I headed to Gard du Nord to find something to eat before heading back to London. I wandered briefly around the neighborhood and saw nothing that looked good, so I headed back to the train station, got a sandwich and an Orangina for the train.
I went though French Passport Control, then UK Passport control (another form), then security, then to the waiting room to look for Tyra, Coop and KT (who weren’t there yet…). They showed up, we boarded the train, and a slight 2 1/2 hours later, we were back in London.
Once there, we were at the St. Pancras/King’s Cross station complex – so we had to make our way to King’s Cross Platform 9 3/4 (actually located near track 8) for some pictures (HP fans know exactly what we’re talking about…) and then headed home, where we filled in Grandma and Papa on the day’s events.
Au Revoir!