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    • Our Europe Excursions!
      11
      Day 3

      Descending to the Land of the Dead

      May 29 in France ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C

      This morning we took the metro south and did a tour through the French ossuary AKA the Catacombs. Learned about the underground limestone quarries, and the history of the millions of dead that live under the streets of ParisRead more

    • Camino de Santiago
      12
      Day 2

      Arrive in Paris

      June 15, 2022 in France ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

      We arrived in Paris after about 5 hours of sleep in the past three days. (The flight put us in Paris at 2am Indy time but 7 am Paris time- since it is pretty hard to sleep on a plane and I was distracted by the plane’s trivia game (I felt the need to smoke PJ whoever that was) none of us slept that night and the check in for our room was 3pm. That meant we had the whole day with all our stuff to wander. Aiden got an A on his test on French public transportation and he proved it by confidently getting us into the city. Since the point of the trip is to walk with all we need for the trip on our backs I decided we couldn’t really complain. But it is HOT in Paris and always crowded. We rented bikes and decided to hit the top sites all around the city since Jon and I decided that popping up from the subway doesn’t give you a good feel for where you are (we’ve done that method of site seeing here before but both times it was winter and cold). The biking seemed like a good idea because Paris is supposed to be a bike friendly town but I felt like cars and pedestrians were just daring me to play chicken with them and I always chickened out. I decided biking around Paris is not as romantic as it sounds. The trail on the Seine is fine but the Champs Elysees by bike is not for the faint of heart (more power to you, Tour de France riders. That’s some bumpy cobblestone!). I had never seen the Arc de Triomphe so close up and it was a lot bigger than I thought! Napoleon is still taking revenge on the foreign cultures because Jon got his ATM card eaten by a machine at Napoleon’s tomb. Now we are a little concerned about how to acquire cash for the little alburgues in Spain. We still have one more but now we are hesitant to use it.

      Aiden and Ollie’s French has been useful to me and especially their knowledge of culture and history. Aiden even understood the significance of the bike locks on the bridge to Sainte Chapelle. I would have missed that detail had he not known. Madame Blaz has done her job! We even ate baguette hot dogs today because Aiden did a presentation on them for school once. Ollie always acts like he doesn’t pay attention in school but he definitely can pick up where Aiden leaves off. He’s pretty sharp.

      We are staying in a hostel because we had to really spread the grant money thin since I did the budget 2 years ago. We have our own room and many families are here but in true French style what they advertised as air conditioning is really just a fan that doesn’t stay on and a window that doesn’t open all the way. It is hot. (Did I mention that?!) The cool breezes of the Pyrenees will be welcome.      Read more

    • TravelerEat Pray and Eat More
      1
      11
      Day 5

      Paris

      June 20, 2022 in France ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

      Galleries Lafayette .. such a beautiful shopping building ! No €€€ spent here ! Mastered the Met 🚊 spent the day wandering all the little streets. Weather a bit like home ! Warm amd sunny one minute then raining the next ! Almost need a pair of jeans and long sleeve top - which I don’t have !Read more

    • Our Europe Excursions!
      111221
      Day 2

      Seine walk and Musée d’Orsay

      May 28 in France ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

      Jet lag is a mindset!!! (Kidding, we are very tired but powered through). Such an exciting day getting to share my favourite museum and restaurant in Paris with Thomas. ❤️ A highlight for us today was all the incredibly friendly and helpful locals that made our transition day go swimmingly.Read more

    • Our Europe Excursions!
      1111
      Day 5

      Waltz outside the Louvre

      May 31 in France ⋅ ☁️ 14 °C

      On our way to Versailles this afternoon, but took a detour to walk through the Louvre Gardens on the way to our train station to see the "second most extravagant building in France". So many little details all over the building it's impossible to look away!Read more

    • Camino de Santiago
      11
      Day 3

      Art Day

      June 16, 2022 in France ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

      We had early morning tickets to see some art so after a lovely breakfast and good strong coffee we hit the bikes again and risked our lives in the Paris streets. We were 30 minutes late for our time slot but Aiden said it was very Parisian of us to be late. It didn’t matter anyway because no one even checked our tickets! (Note to self, just walk in like you belong there and save the dough!) Here’s where Daniel shined. He has read every Rick Riorden book on the planet and really knows his Greek and Roman gods. The Mona Lisa was in the new room which is nice considering the last time we were there she was in a dark hallway. I prefer the big art anyway over her. The Wedding at Cana is more my style.

      Then Saint Chappelle- I heard Daniel walk in and say “whoa!” That says it all.      Read more

    • Our Europe Excursions!
      Day 3

      Eiffel Tower afternoon and French dinner

      May 29 in France ⋅ 🌧 16 °C

      After a needed nap and some errand running to fix our blunder of bringing the wrong adapter (oops!), we went to the Eiffel Tower in the authentic Parisian gloom and rain…
      We ate a lovely French cuisine dinner of escargots, lamb and duck. Thomas asked me what French cuisine generally is. To which I replied, “things… in sauces.” I seem to have been justified.😆
      We ended the night meeting a girl from Turkey haphazardly who asked us to take her photo. We then joined her to a famous jazz club!      Read more

    • TravelerWalking France and Spain, 2024
      2
      Day 41

      Wonderful last day in Paris

      May 20 in France ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

      Last night after the flight delay, we didn’t check in to the hotel till after midnight (after walking 1.8 kms through terminal 2 to get to the little train shuttle that took us to terminal 3 where our hotel is!!) so we slept in till about 8.30 this morning, and felt very leisurely as we didn’t have to pack or check out…

      We got the RER to the city, and our first mission was to collect a watch Amr had taken when we first arrived for repair…long story, but it hadn’t come back from where it was sent…(I wonder if Amr will ever see it again..), but they were officially closed today and at first were very offhand till one person tried to be helpful…so that wasn’t a great start to the day, but then things improved greatly! The watch people said May 20 is a French holiday - they didn’t know why, and I must look it up…but anyway, Paris was surprisingly manageable, and not fighting crowds etc, which was good.

      Our next goal was to go to Chez Denise to see if we could make a reservation for dinner tonight…but when we arrived the whole entrance was blocked off with black covers..and they were filming..(we found out it was for a film about de Gaulle)…we couldn’t even enquire or go in at all…one person said she thought they would be open tonight…so that was another not so good thing, but we did keep positive about the chance of going tonight, but it was an uncertainty! Then we stopped for coffee and pastries having not had dinner last night, and only a mandarin and banana at the hotel, much needed.

      After that we had a shopping mission to Galeries Lafayette…quite a session there - the enfant floor to find something for Amr’s godson Harry’s daughter, the Mariage Freres section for Amr’s special teas, and the perfume section for Denise….After that we (I) was weak from hunger and shopping (not really my thing) and we went to a favourite cafe near the Opera and had a perfect “French” lunch of onion soup and a goat’s cheese salad and a glass of rosé. That was perfect, and we were both rejuvenated. Even enough to have a look into Uniqlo! On our way from there to the Tuileries where we planned to sit and read, Amr spotted a man carrying a TWG bag, which is a very special tea shop that he didn’t know was in Paris. So he asked the man where it was and it is a special shop in the Ritz, in their gallery of special shops!! So with heads held high we marched into the Ritz, asked where to find it and walked the hallowed halls…very beautiful, and Amr bought more tea, and also coffee at another shop!!

      After all that excitement we did go and sit and read on chairs round the pond in the Tuileries until the weather changed (which had been predicted - we even took umbrellas) so we scuttled with everyone before there was a downpour, and found a cafe where we took refuge in an upstairs hideaway, had a drink and didn’t actually notice much rain, but when we emerged there were puddles everywhere, but again we were lucky as it stopped by then and I never did use my umbrella!

      We then thought we’d try our luck with Chez Denise, found it open - or not open, but people there and all the film covers gone, and made a booking for 7.30…a wait of about 45 minutes..so we wandered in the Forum Les Halle’s which is now an enormous Westfield mall and rather ghastly, but we discovered we could pick up the RER back to CDG from there - the dread Chatelet/Les Halles metro and RER interchange which we have many times got lost in - but it looked straightforward- and after dinner we tried it and it worked and we were expressed back to the hotel.

      To fill in more time till 7.30 we looked into the enormous church we always see near there - St Eustache…it is huge, and beautiful, and we managed to see and admire before it closed for the day. Then we went back to Chez Denise and had, as usual, a wonderful meal. You always get chatting to your neighbours as you are so close, and we had 2 Frenchmen next to us, then at their table a young couple from HongKong were seated next to them…so they were delighted to have Australia on one side and HongKong on the other, and very good ambiance. We had the chef’s terrine and the kidneys (they are big servings and we now know to share) and I had to have their enormous ile flottante!! I have to add that I don’t have my phone with me so Amr is in charge of the pics and will not wait till you are posed and smiling…)

      Anyway, a lovely end to the day, now back and semi packed ready to start the big flights home tomorrow morning.      Read more

    • TravelerTwo Jims' European Adventure
      Day 62

      CINQ FOTOS- Day 3 Paris

      June 14, 2022 in France ⋅ 🌙 19 °C

      We started the day with another wonderful breakfast prepared by our hosts. The feature pastry was a clafoutis, a rich cherry cake.

      When we booked our travels to Paris, it was a bit of an afterthought. We realized that the proximity by fast train from Amsterdam made an easy trip. We also knew that it would be impossible to select too many attractions in such a large city with so much to do.

      Our learning in two months on the road is that some of the most priceless adventures have been to just wander and explore. This was one of those days as we had the opportunity to meet the mother and her husband of one of our good friends back home, Judith and her husband Chris and our friend Khoa later in the day.

      Judith proposed that we meet in Place du Trocadero, a plaza and gardens with spectacular views of the Eiffel Tower. After a warm greeting, we enjoyed our walk near the tower and the adjacent greenspace. Judith told us about the different neighborhoods that we were ealking through. We had a leisurely lunch at a classic French restaurant, and we enjoyed our conversation. After our farewells, we returned to the flat, and I took a very long nap. I had been up late after Moulin Rouge realizing that too much Coke Zero at dinner meant Sleep Zero due to excess caffeine consumption.

      Our friend, Khoa, who we've known for about ten years offered to meet us for drinks and dinner. It was fun to visit with him to catch up as we last hosted him in our home in 2018.

      The restaurant was also a traditional French Restaurant, and I enjoyed the lamb. While Jim C enjoyed the baked Camenbert cheese with fries. As we were leaving the restaurant, we met Khoa's partner and exchanged greetings.

      We decided to skip the metro and make the two-mile walk home on a beautiful Parisian night. The temperature was perfect, and we enjoyed the walk. It looks like Paris is going to heat up to about 38°C this weekend, and I'm glad to miss it as I really don't like the heat.

      When we returned to the flat, our hosts Stephan and Stéphane were still awake. We had a great conversation about politics in our respective countries, while sampling their offerings of home-made apertífs.

      I think some of the best parts of our trip have been sharing times with the new people we've met as well as enjoying adventures with friends and family.

      We will have a bit more time in Paris tomorrow before we return to Amsterdam. It's been a wonderful visit. Ciao!      Read more

    • TravelerTwo Jims' European Adventure
      Day 61

      CINQ FOTOS-Paris Day 2

      June 13, 2022 in France ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

      We woke up this morning to a generous breakfast made by our hosts to start the day.
      I managed to sleep in a bit, and I'm grateful for the rest before an eventful day.

      First on the agenda this morning was a trip to the Louvre Museum. Our hosts sent us tram connection routes, and it was a crowded, but easy ride over.

      The tram stop was very close to the Louvre, and we walked over to get in line. Although we had a timed entrance, getting into the Louvre still required a fairly long wait before getting into the museum.

      It was interesting to see additional Greek antiquities and compare them to our travels in Sicily and the Museo Archaelogico in Naples.

      We decided to explore the Islamic exhibit, and it was really quite beautiful. I admittedly hold some deep prejudices about some Islamic countries, particularly as it applies to horrible treatment of women and GLBT people. The exhibits were beautiful, particularly the pottery.
      Jim C offered a poignant reflection that it was a missed opportunity to create displays of artwork on a time continuum rather than socio-political divides. I'd further offer the thought that the creation of art in all forms is an opportunity to demonstrate commonality rather than differences.

      We did see all the popular attractions at the Louvre. The Venus de Milo was incredible, abs I enjoyed getting close to the Mona Lisa. It's smaller than I expected, but I still thought it was cool to see it in person.

      In some of the Biblical portrayals, I find it interesting, and a little creepy, that there is "spoiler alert" foreshadowing of the crucifixion of Christ. One such portrayal is of Jesus and John the Baptist playing together as toddlers under the watchful eye of Mary. John is holding a small crucifix in the painting.

      Once we witnessed some of the popular pieces, we talked about how downplayed the fact that the Louvre was once a significant palace. This contrasted our experience at the Hague where both Escher's artwork and the palace were acknowledged and celebrated.

      When we left the museum, we walked near the adjacent garden with several sculptures. There were also a couple of small reservoirs with chairs and reclining chairs around the perimeter. It was a beautiful day, and many took the opportunity to bask in the sun and chat.

      When we left the museum and gardens we looked for a place to grab lunch. We found a great outdoor café and we split a dish of croque monsieur, a ham and cheese grilled sandwich that was grilled and smothered with gruyere cheese. It was quite rich and tasty with a glass of Chardonnay.

      After lunch we went to the Opera House which inspired the writing of the "Phantom of the Opera". The hall was beautiful and ornate. We thought how fun it would be to see a performance in the Hall like we did in Barcelona's Palau de Música nearly twomonths earlier.

      We returned to our flat and we enjoyed sums relaxation time. We made plans to go to dinner at a restaurant close to Moulin Rouge, at the recommendation of our hosts. We had the added bonus of joining a couple we met online, and we were reminded of our "small world" as we have many friends in common in New England and the Pacific NW.

      We wrapped the evening with a very late-night performance at the Moulin Rouge, a performance hall dating back to the late 1800's that has witnessed performances from the likes of Edith Piaf, and Collette, a performer who almost caused Moulin Rouge to be closed when she gave a lengthy kiss to one of the other female performers.

      We were seated next to a couple from New York who had recently married and were on their honeymoon. We enjoyed our conversation with them, and we compared some of our favorite European experiences.

      It was noticeable that the women performed with very little clothing and the men, in contrast were fully clothed. Similarly, the women often made many sexual gestures, and the men's dancing was a bit sterile in comparison. There were some unusual circus type acts including a woman who swam in a water tank with pythons, as well as amazing balancing acts by men. A big hit with the audience was a couple who did amazing choreographed maneuvers on roller skates. The show concluded with a rousing performance of the Can Can

      We made the most of our first full day in Paris, and we look forward to time with friends tomorrow.
      Bonne nuit, amis et famille!      Read more

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