29 Mar 06 The Paris Chronicles
We’ve been home more than a week and I’m just getting to writing all about it (excessively I should add)… Have spent some time choosing photos and editing for an album which will be ready and posted shortly as well. Like this shot of the Eiffel Tower? It’s shot from across the Seine at the Trocadero.
Thursday
Matt and I met up at Waterloo station to catch the 7:45 Eurostar - the train has about 30 cars and was about 3/4 full. “Ladies and Genkelmen, welcome aboard the Eurostar to Parisse,” said the announcer. I like that word ‘genkelmen’, it makes me smile. We had probably the worst seats on the car which weren’t really bad at all except for the lack of leg room and poor position to look out a window. It was dark already so no problem, but I was convinced this was the quality of seats you get when booking a short break deal at lastminute.com. Overall a very easy 2:40 train journey, though when entering the Channel Tunnel, you definitely feel the pressure change and ear-popping ensues.
At Gare du Nord we queued for a taxi to the hotel. Our driver spoke little English, but between showing him the address we were headed to and pointing it out on his map, he worked out the route. Even in the dark I noticed the city appeared quite hazy with fog, pollution? Shortly into the drive we passed into a tunnel when I flashed back and thought I had seen it before… and thought this was where Princess Diana had died. Then the driver asked, “You know Lady Di?” and I felt a little tingle, nodded, and he said what I expected. “This where the crash.”
With a bit of trouble we found the hotel (the signage had a different name than what we booked), paid 15 euros for the ride and checked in. The antique room key came attached to a heavy, brassy brick thing - not the kind of key you tote around the city, but leave at the front desk instead. The room was quite large by what we heard is Paris standard, the bathroom clean and tiled with marble and a comfy bed with white linens. Double doors opened onto the French balcony (ie. one too small to sit on). The quirky wallpaper had foam backing that you’d bounce right off should you take a tumble.
Friday
We started the day consuming the inclusive breakfeast, a buffet spread with croissants, scrambled eggs, ham, cheese, cereals, fruit salad, yoghurt and juice. Oh and tiny wieners! Our game-plan for the day was to visit the Louvre, and when we stepped out the hotel there was a perfect view of the Eiffel Tower on the other side of the Seine. We walked down the Champs Elysees, a broad street lined with mostly high-end shops, past the Arc de Triomphe and followed our map a couple km to the Louvre. Definitely too enormous to view in even a few days I think, we narrowed our focus and planned to see all the paintings (spread over two wings) and the Islamic Art wing, and chose to split the day by crossing the Seine for lunch at Cafe Voltaire.
This marked the first occasion I was laughed at for speaking feeble French! I ordered the terrine de poisson lunch special, which sent the woman at the next table into uncontrollable laughter. Her man-date said, “You mean the terrrrine!” excessively rolling the r’s. “You do not want to eat a tarine!” I can only guess he was attempting to rescue me from ordering hideous excrement for lunch :) The meal was delicious, and to get out of our corner seats after involved the hostess elaborately rearranging the furniture and other diners. No humble or graceful exit allowed.
After the Louvre we wandered the (touristy) area and found an American bookstore, Brentanos, and purchased the Everyman Paris guide and an Instant French book in an effort to prevent further communication difficulties! We sat in a funky brasserie around the corner that had long strips of film hanging from the lights, opened the Paris guide and discovered it was written in Spanish! We went back and exchanged it for an English one.
I now realize how easily Canadian travelers abroad are mistaken for Americans. We speak generally with the same accent, and Canadians make up only 10% of the potential North American population of travelers. Our genuine attempt to speak any French we could was well-received though, so it worked in our favour and we were treated well overall.
The weather was lovely, sunny and warm, so we strolled along the bank of the Seine, toward the Trocadero and back to the hotel for a rest. Our room overlooked Rue des Belles Feuilles (’Beautiful Sheets’), a street with a number of amazing food markets individually selling bread, seafood, meats and sausage, cheese, olives, wine, pastries… It would be wonderful to have access to shops like this in our neighbourhood in London! One patisserie in particular, Paul, was ubiquitous in Paris and there happens to be one in Covent Garden where we’ve enjoyed a treat on occasion.
Saturday
On a mission to shop, we checked out Victor Hugo street where I discovered Promod! Some of you know I’m a picky shopper and tend not to spend (’splash out’ for the Brits) much on clothing. When I do find a shop I like, I usually stick with it - Promod would be one of those few but there are no stores in the UK :( You can purchase online however, but prices are higher than when you walk in and pay euro prices. I managed to find two great tops, a jacket and bracelet there.
Later we walked to the Eiffel Tower intending to take the elevator to the top, but lineups were just silly so we skipped it. Next up was the Rodin Museum which turned out to be a highlight of the trip. Previously unfamiliar with how prolific a sculptor Rodin was, I also had no idea how romantic and expressive his pieces are. Add that the museum is set in an enormous house where Rodin lived and worked, and in the surrounding gardens, and the result was an absolutely wonderful, sunny afternoon art experience.
We ventured to Les Halles, apparently the biggest shopping mall in central Paris, but found little to stimulate the opening of the wallet. Several stores were the same as what you find in London, or in any mall anywhere for that matter.
In the evening we ate at a Lebanese restaurant, Noura, which was recommended in the guidebook. Most menu prices in Paris include tax and service gratuity, so they seem overblown high. And spending GBP is far more gratifying than spending CDN or USD would be, since the £ exchanged to 1.44 EUR. The Noura waiter chuckled when I meant to order une verre du vin (a glass of wine) but instead ordered une glass du verre (which, pitifully, sounds like I ordered an ‘ice of glass’).
Then we did the jazz thing, first checking out a lounge called Salty Kiss (in French) but ending up at Duc des Lombards - a red-velvet and mirrors, ground level spot with close seating and a tiny stage. Somehow they fit three guitars, drums, double bass and a piano though, and we enjoyed some excellent improv over the next few hours. Had to run down Rue de Rivoli to catch the last metro back to the hotel.
Sunday
We boarded a sightseeing boat to catch a lift down the Seine from the Eiffel Tower down to see the Notre Dame Cathedral. From the boat we had terrific views of the river banks, watching people liesurely strolling, rollerblading and walking dogs. The Notre Dame has some mighty fine buttresses and the northern exterior of the building is spotted with evil, jutting gargoyles - many with heads busted off. Inside Sunday mass was taking place, pews were entirely full and throngs of tourists rambled around the perimeter, gasping at the beautiful stained glass and architecture.
The Picasso Museum was next on the agenda - it apparently holds the largest collection of his works but the museum is relatively small, so exhibitions must rotate rather frequently. This visit offered an entire floor dedicated to his muse Dora Maar, which showcased an incredible range in style of his work. Dora Maar was a photographer, and many of her portraits of Picasso were displayed too. The museum is in The Marais district, an area stuffed with shops and restaurants, so we wandered… We tracked down lunch at Boulangerie Patisserie Heurtier, indulging in some richly cheesy, decadent yummies which we ate on a bench in the square out front.
We had some afternoon entertainment in mind which involved a substantial walk, so decided to reference the map for diversions along the way. Place des Vosges is a beautiful square park bordered by historic buildings. A small orchestra had assembled to play under one of the building archways. A fair distance northeast was Canal Saint-Martin where coincidentally a tour boat was approaching to pass through the locks. This is an extensive process that we watched part of, but I think I’d lose patience fast if I had been sitting on that boat waiting to pass through!
The entertainment we were after was to take in some ‘chanson’ (French word for ’song’). Event listings we looked at confused us as to what chanson really is… Some events had music, others spoken-word performances and others stated anything goes, so we figured chanson meant ‘variety show’, or ‘open-mike’. Still not sure on that, but we patronized a hole-in-the-wall spot called Chez Adele to check out some chanson! This chez was dripping with wood-paneled character and Adele himself stood the bar with a wall covered with family photos behind him. Pine cones strung from the ceiling, tiki dolls and giant Greco statues contributed their part to the decor - a true find this place. And oh, the chanson: a gypsy-style familial group sang traditional French folk songs, playing accordian, clarinet and guitar. A true Parisian experience :)
Down the road I have to note we checked out a high-end kids shop, and the music playing was a kind of Mini Pops version of the AC/DC classic Highway to Hell. Surreal!
Dinner offered more adventure - we ate at the canteen-style Boullion Chartier, a gorgeous mirrored dining hall with an eclectic mix of patrons. A fella beside us ordered steak tartare, mushing it with a selection of condiments until it resembled dog food. The Japanese girls on the other side of him cast similar glances at his plate as we did, but he happily chewed it down and wished us all “bon soir” before he left.
Monday
Sunday and Monday in Paris many shops, restaurants and attractions are closed, with Monday being particularly quiet. We managed to entertain ourselves primarily with walking and discovering culture on the streets, and had a tasty sandwich in the Latin Quarter.
It’s true that in Paris dogs are like kings. They crap everywhere on the sidewalks and their owners don’t pick it up (with the exception of one rogue we saw). Much walking time must be spent dodging the loads and smears, but inevitably you will feel that dreaded slippery squish under your shoe and will have to waste minutes cursing, groaning and scraping away at the curb.
In the afternoon I had my hair cut by a guy who spoke three or four words in English, but the result was fine enough - he was all about the blow!
By the end of the trip we were absolutely beat from trekking the city as much as possible in four days. My heel tendon even hurt - lots! And the Louvre alone could kill. We had enough energy to take the metro to Gare du Nord instead of a taxi though, which was probably a better rush-hour choice.
And we were thrilled to come home - as you tend to feel after traveling. Home to London!
Okay, kudos to you if you made it this far :)
20 Mar 06 Retourné de Paris
Just arrived home and read about the riot in Paris while on the Eurostar back to London. We had no idea this was going on during our trip, so yes we’re safe (for those who wondered) and it appears to have been isolated violence amongst a very large but mostly peaceful national protest by students.
I’ll write all about the trip once I’ve had a sleep, but I’ll say now that Paris the city was quite wonderful, surprising and exhausting! And our French was pathetic, though our efforts to speak it were much appreciated.
Goodnight :)
16 Mar 06 “City Break” to Paris!
We booked what they call here a ‘city break’ to Paris over at lastminute.com and leave this evening on the Eurostar train from Waterloo Station. It’s about a 3-hour journey and we arrive quite late at Gare Du Nord. Our hotel, the Metopolitan Paris looks quite comfy, but most importantly it’s very central for us to wander about in the city.
We’ll likely do some standard things tourists do, like head to the top of the Eiffel Tower and visit the Louvre. We’ll just try to absorb as much essence of Paris as possible in four days, plus a little shopping, good food, music… oh and our muddled grade 7 French could come in a bit handy.
10 Mar 06 The Saga of Doing Laundry
I don’t know what it is about the combo washer/dryers used here, but each load can take up to four hours to get done! The barrel isn’t even large, sized big enough for what we’d call a ‘medium load’ in North America.
The Saga:
- Fill up the machine (not stuffed)
- Put in your ‘washing powder’ (two tablets that look like giant pills, placed in a net pouch)
- Pick your setting from a somewhat confusing chart (just worry about the temperature, really)
- Notice the machine doesn’t seem to fill with water, clothes get barely damp
- Ninety minutes later, check to see if spin has completed which it probably hasn’t
- When the spin has completed, remove washing powder net-bag thingy
- Set dryer temperature to high or low and time up to 120 minutes
- When drying on high, check clothes after two hours
- Remove clothes that are wrinkled beyond recognition and hang to completely dry
- Go out on the town dressed like a prune because you hate ironing
10 Mar 06 As seen on Brit TV
They show stuff on TV here you would likely never see in North America, but then again I haven’t watched cable TV in several years so maybe I’m wrong. We signed up for Sky digital cable and now have quite a selection of real estate and food shows to watch round the clock. And enough documentary channels to make for a better overall mix.
What I don’t think you’d see across the pond:
You Are What You Eat
Each episode has the nutritionist/host invade an obese family’s home and work with them to change their eating habits. As a shocker the family is forced to look at a table full of all the foods they normally consume in a week, likely consisting of mountains of fried potato and fatty meat products, snack foods, soda and alcohol - never much in the way of vegetables and greens. This show would be perfect for airing in America, but what you probably wouldn’t see is the part where the nutritionist has each member of the family take a poo in a tupperware and then analyzes it in front of the cameras, in front of the family! At least they all wear face masks during the process, but there’s nothing to spare the viewer a good gag.
Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares
I did see an indication that FoodTV (Canada) was going to air this show (a dead Google link) but perhaps it was cancelled after viewer complaints? Nonetheless this show is a blast to watch - celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay ventures to some out-of-the-way town and descends on a restaurant desperately in need of help. His aim is to point out all the changes needed to save the restaurant from insolvency, and this involves ripping the chef and/or owners and managers a new one. What you won’t see (actually, hear) abroad is half the words coming out of Ramsay’s mouth, since every second one is f*ck or f*ck*ng. :O)
Although these stunts are calculated to create shock value and generate more viewers, and these two examples air on the same channel, I do get the sense there is less censorship on TV in the UK, and in the minds of people in general. No Jackson Superbowl uproars here, methinks.
3 Mar 06 UK keyboard standards a.k.a. Nerdy computer observations
At different internet cafes I’ve seen two variations of computer keyboards: one had all the same keys as the North American standard keyboard, but with the proper currency £ key instead of $; the second was the same, plus switched “ and @ keys.
Since I’ve now got my own computer back I had to do something about my frustration of having no £ key, and discovered the utility of Window XP’s “Regional and Language Options” in the control panel.
I switched my default settings to UK English and I’m almost set, with the exception of now having to adjust to reversed “ and @ keys and the apparent loss of the backslash (now #) and that vertical line symbol thingy (a key I really enjoy, which sadly is now a ~)!
Oh vertical line symbol thingy, I hope we meet again someday!
2 Mar 06 First Impressions
Now that the moving clutter has dispersed and we have internet connectivity, it’s time to share some of my first London photos! Too bad there are none of the New Year’s parade which we saw bits of but were too spaced out from jetlag to properly enjoy…
Here’s the National Gallery at Trafalgar Square, which as you know is around the corner from where we stayed for the month of January:
I’d love to have rooftop access from any building overlooking the square as it’s often host to large gatherings, both planned and impromptu. Anyone know anyone who could help with this?
Take a look at my brief First Impressions slideshow (Flickr) for more. All of these were shot in January.
GET FED: