Day 2 in the City of... Sidewalks

Well, the heat wave finally broke, which helps with the sleeping, but Wednesday was supposed to be a day of rain. And it started off a bit rainy so we decided to go visit Montmarte and the Sacre Coeur Basilica. It was by far our longest subway ride but we are getting pretty good at it. Haven't left anyone on the subway in day.....

Montmartre is a beautiful artists haven. Canvasses line the streets, portraits and landscapes are being painted with loving care and sometimes a bit of whimsy. The cobblestones of the streets take you back to a simpler time when the journey was the adventure, not the destination. And the scent of fresh pastries fill the air with a magical sense of hopefulness and the possible.

And... there are tonnes of people which make you constantly worried someone is going to pick your pocket and walk away with your favorite Kenny G CD (and YES... I take it everywhere!!)

But the Basilica is cool, the views of the city are great, and the singers on the sidewalk that get the crowd to join in just makes you smile. We don't tip those guys though. Heck, we are doing half the work. 😉

Then Jen says, let's go see.... something.... I don't remember. We look at the maps and it's like a 30 minute subway ride. But we don't want to keep whizzing by the city underground. So we decide to take a bus... but there are "disagreements" about which bus to take and where the stop is. So "someone" suggests.... LET'S WALK IT!!

And that is where our day turns. The idea is great. We knew the general direction... south and to the east... (I guess I could have just said South East but I get paid by the word). So I tell Jenny, put your phone away dear.... I got this.

So we started walking... and we walked and walked and walked. We saw amazing streets and cool buildings and some arches I never heard of. And Jenny gets a bit... uh... "twitchy" when she doesn't quite know where she is... so that was a bit entertaining too. In the end, I got us to the neighborhood she wanted and it only took us like 2 hours... of straight walking.

In the end, we got to Place Des Vosges. It is a famous Palace sort of thing that many rich people like Victor Hugo lived at with a courtyard for doing duels.... that kind of thing. We just finally laid on the grass for awhile soaking up the ambiance.

As you lay down in a historical place, many thoughts come unbidden into your mind. What is the legacy I will leave? Is there anything I am doing that will leave such permanency?...

Then it started to thundershower so I thought, how do get home without dying....

And so that pretty much ended the day. We had plans to go out but the constant threat of thundershowers kept us in. So it was a long day but in the end, we truely did find more enjoyment in the journey than in the destination.... SEE WHAT I DID THERE?? THAT IS STORY TELLING!!!

And now we are prepping for a big day tomorrow at Versailles. Should be a good one. Thanks for sharing this journey with us.Read more