France
Pont des Arts

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    • Day 45

      weekend with Maddie

      February 20 in France ⋅ ☁️ 8 °C

      Hi! No long winded post-today, just a few pictures from a cute weekend I had with my friend Maddie, who visited from her study-abroad program in Ireland. She was the impetus for me to finally visit the darn Eiffel Tower, which despite being overrated is still iconic. Bonus, looking doesn't cost money. (I also hate taking pictures of myself, but Maddie convinced me to throw a few in here.)

      1. and 2. Eiffel Tower
      3. Lunch
      4. the clurbbbb
      5. random subway pic
      6. breakfast
      7. brunch with Charlotte
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    • Day 2

      Weiter geht es nach St. Malo

      May 2 in France ⋅ ☁️ 10 °C

      tprint

      Satellit
      Weiter geht's nach St. Malo
      Reise
      Bretonisches Fronkreisch
      Ankunftsdatum
      02.05.2024, 23:25
      Übernachtungen
      3
      Zweiter Versuch... ich hatte schon ganz viel geschrieben, dann kam das Essen und wenn man nicht speichert... tja dann iss alles futsch. Also nochmal von vorne.
      Wir haben gester eine kleine nette Bar in Amiens gefunden, in der wir das Halbfinalspiel zwischen dem BVB und PSG gucken konnten. Wir waren natürlich die Einzigen, die bekennende Borussen waren, optisch. Innerlich gab es da noch einen Franzosen aus Straßburg, der uns immer wieder während des Spiels aufsuchte und mit uns fachsimpelte... er wäre schon sehr viele Jahre Fan von Borussia Dortmund, aber das dürfte er jetzt dort vor Ort nicht sagen. Sein Deutsch war super und ich war kurz davor ihm meinen Schal zu geben.. Wie auch immer... die Freude bei Georg und mir war groß, beim dem Rest nicht so sehr.. Waren wir auch nicht in Paris, sondern 2 Autostunden entfernt, so fieberte Frankreich für die französische Mannschaft. Ist ja klar.. macht der ein oder andere Deutsche ja auch wenn Bayern noch drin iss... Mit Freud im Herzen, einem Grinsen im Gesicht haben wir tief und fest in unserem kleinen Apartment in Amiens geschlafen.
      Nach dem ersten Kaffee im Bett ging Georg dann erfolgreich auf die Jagd und kehrte mit Baguette und Croissant zurück. Der französischen Einstieg war getan...
      Auf dem Weg nach Le Mont St. Michel entschlossen wir uns spontan noch einen kleinen Umweg zu machen. Eigentlich bin ich es ja die gerne auf Friedhöfe geht, aber diesmal brachte Georg den Stein ins Rollen. Er wollte sich mal so einen großen Soldatenfriedhof der Amerikaner anschauen. Also ging es zum American Cemestry and Memorial in Colleville-sur-Mer, am Beach Omaha. Hier liegen über 9000 US-Soldaten, jeder bekam ein weißes Marmor-Kreuz mit Inschrift. Angehörige konnten sich das Grab eines Familienmitgliedes zeigen lassen, ansonsten war es untersagt zwischen die Kreuze zu gehen. Es waren Gräber mit Meerblick, mit Blick auf den Ort wo sie ihr Leben lassen mussten. Neben den Gräbern gab es pompöse Monumente, Statuen, Tafeln mit den aufgezeichneten Schlachten. Und wo es ging wurden starke Sätze in den Beton oder Marmor gemeißelt.
      Mir tut jeder einzelne Mensch und vor allen Dingen dessen Angehörigen leid, aber diese Selbstbeweihräucherung der Amerikaner ist mir höchst unsympathisch. Sie sind stark, sie sind da und sie wollen immer helfen. Es muss immer eine Show sein. Die ganze Anlage war super gepflegt, kein Randstein hatte Wildwuchs, der Rasen war perfekt geschnitten. Wir sind überzeugt das es dort Gärtner gibt, die den ganzen Sommer Rasen mähen und nichts anderes machen. Super moderne sanitäre Anlagen. Das Besucherzentrum haben wir uns gespart. Dieser Ort war ein Pilgerort für Amerikaner und zugleich wurde die Freundschaft zwischen Frankreich und Amerika gefeiert.
      Wir machten uns wieder auf den Weg nach Le Mont St. Michel, als wir ein Hinweisschild für einen deutschen Soldatenfriedhof entdeckten. Natürlich wollten wir den nun auch sehen. Er heißt La Cambe.
      Er ist viel kleiner, viel bescheidener und dennoch haben über 21000 Menschen dort ihre letzte Ruhe gefunden. Also mehr als doppelt so viel wie auf dem amerikanischen Friedhof. 80% davon sind um die 20 Jahre alt, der Jüngste 14. 2100 davon sind Soldaten der Waffen-SS.
      Uns gefiel der deutsche Friedhof viel besser.. und das sicher nicht weil es der Deutsche war. Er war mit Respekt angelegt, zum Gedenken und mit Achtung.
      Genug schwere Kost.. jetzt sollte es endlich in die Bretagne gehen… noch waren wir ja in der Normandie.
      Nächstes Etappenziel die Abtei die auf einem Felsen erbaut wurde, mitten im Meer. Früher konnte man nur bei Flut zur ihr, heute hat man eine Brücke gebaut, der die Flut nichts anhaben kann. Im Sommer wird man gar nicht mehr Herr über die Touristen, wir bekamen eine Vorstellung wie es sein könnte. Es war voll.. man wird rechtzeitig ca. 2 km vor der Insel Le Mont St. Michel auf einen riesigen Parkplatz geleitet. Von da aus läuft man oder nutzt die Shuttlebusse. Angekommen ist man schon überwältigt von dem Anblick… wenn da nur nicht die vielen Menschen wären 🫣. Wir möchten das niemals im Sommer erleben. Überhaupt haben wir für uns festgestellt, das solche Orte viel von ihrem Reiz für uns verlieren. Es ist laut, es ist voll.. der Charme geht unter.. und die Welt hat so viele schöne Orte.. muss man dann an solche Orte.. so imposant das Ganze heute auch war.
      Und dann kam die letzte Etappe. Gegen halb 8 erreichten wir dann St. Malo. Wir wohnen hier in einem kleinen Hotel, in zweiter Reihe zum Meer. Man kann es hören ☝🏻und ist in ein paar Schritten auch da.
      Die Schritte in die Altstadt sind da schon mehr.. 2,6 km.. aber schon am Meer lang. Wir hatten Hunger … in der Altstadt fanden wir dann auch ein nettes Lokal und schon gab es die ersten Austern und Miesmuscheln.. mit handgemachten Pommes.. den Nachtisch eine wunderbare Noisettecreme haben wir uns geteilt. Bauch voll toll… die 2,6 km zurück reichten nicht um das Völlegefühl los zu werden.. Georg schläft bereits und ich versuche jetzt auch die Kalorien im Schlaf zu verbrennen 🤔…
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    • Day 15

      The Sunday market saga

      January 21 in France ⋅ 🌬 8 °C

      Hi! Sorry I've been gone for awhile. I didn't feel like I had that many interesting things to report, and last week was not all rosy; more like one of those scam roses from the vendors lurking outside bars, hoping someone will be drunk enough to pay 6 euros for one.

      Here's a small list of things I did this week, if you're short on time:

      1. first exam in French. (went fine)
      2. ordered first döner kebab in Paris
      3. went out to a jazz club! (Unfortunately a French dude twirled me so hard that all of my belongings fell out of my bag and I lost my housekey)
      4. First thrift store! Found one cool jacket.
      5. class trip to ritzy shopping district. not my cup of tea, but fun history facts were included
      6. first real market trip (today). easily the highlight of my week

      Jazz club: an absolute blast. We packed into a small basement and met lots of French people. The musicians were Dutch and did a tribute to Louis Prima. The energy was immaculate and I even got Kevin (a self-professed disliker of jazz) to dance. Only downside was we had to wait 40 minutes in line and buy a shot at a nearby bar to use their bathroom. After a delicious trip to the gyros joint, we were accosted by a group of French guys, one of whom offered to buy me a taxi home in exchange for my number and address. I hastily declined and hailed us a taxi myself, like my mother taught me.

      Onto the highlight: le Marche!

      At ten, Kevin woke us up bright and early for a hangover breakfast/market trip. Our first spot was a pho joint, and the walk there took us all through the 13th arrondissement, also called the Chinese quarter or "Quartier Chinoise". The regular beef pho was delicious but Kevin, ever the Vietnamese chef, ordered one of the strongest tasting seafood soups I've ever tried. Needless to say we took most of that to go.

      The market was bustling and full of activity. The majority of the produce vendors were middle eastern and called out to customers at megaphone volumes, sometimes adding a musical touch that resembled a mosque's call to prayer. One vendor offered us free oranges and was very interested in hearing us speak English. He said he was a lawyer from Egypt, saving up to get his qualifications to practice in France. He gave us his business card and proclaimed "we are friends now!" It was very sweet.

      The market has everything that you could possibly want. Most of the pictures speak for themselves, but the market alone spanned two and a half blocks. Next to lush piles of meat, fish, and produce there were vendors hawking kitchen utensils, African fabric, bags of Doritos, fake watches/perfumes/bags, clothing, bedsheets, blankets, slippers, German candy, makeup, laundry detergent, and mechanical toys. The selection was overwhelming but always reasonably priced. Markets are a great place to experience the spectrum of the immigrant population in Paris. It's also an experience to communicate in French when both parties speak it as a second (or third or fourth) language. But where language fails, the pointing gesture always prevails.

      After a long market adventure, we sat down in a tiny, cramped café hoping to order Vietnamese coffee. Kevin has the distinct advantage of speaking Vietnamese to compensate for both our inability to speak French. But as it turns out, we were not permitted to order coffee and dessert without ordering food first. This is an odd and distinctly French policy. We decided to leave, which an older Vietnamese employee took great offense to. Kevin explained the situation, to which she responded (in Vietnamese) "If you want coffee then go to a f*cking coffeeshop." Quality customer service at its finest.

      We went home. I took a nap. It was a good Sunday, all in all.
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    • Day 31

      Cooler wanderings

      August 5, 2022 in France ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

      Last few days little data available to upload photos, so now on 4G which should work. We all In troppo mode and happy to cruise about and take things as they come. Came south to cruise the Oudon river to Segre, as the Sarthe river is now closed due low water. Lock operation can be limited at times, especially where the barrage ( weir) adjacent to the lock, has little water going over it. Have enjoyed eating out where we can, especially last night at La Table du Meunière which I booked 3 weeks ago …. A long lightning / thunderstorm last night and a good bit of
      rain - had to run like crazy from the restaurant to close the hatches over the cabins.
      Much cooler now so all extremely pleasant. Only disappointment has been to see a baguette dispenser machine or two. Quel horreur . We making our way upstream again to Chateau Gontier where we have arranged to leave the boat to be winterised. Have engaged Edouard to manage a monthly inspection until May next year. Definitely wouldn’t return in July heat .
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    • Day 14

      Day 13 Paris

      September 12, 2023 in France ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

      The weather forecast was incredibly accurate for today. We got up late after our late night and after watching a crane hoist lift things to the top floor of a neighbouring apartment, we didn’t get out the door until 10am. Then we set off to catch our Toot tour bus from the stop at the Louvre, unfortunately there was a film being made in the area so we couldn’t walk through it at all and the bus couldn’t get in either. So we had to walk a bit further and a bus never came, so walked further and finally got one. We rode up top for a while but then on cue at 11.30 the rain started and it was pretty heavy. So downstairs we went and it seemed to be a good idea to stay on the bus for a while which we did until we got to the Notre Dame stop.

      We were both feeling pretty hungry by then. We had started our day with a banana and pain au chocolat quite some time before. I was also feeling pretty cold as I had crocs on with no socks and only a t shirt. We found a lovely little restaurant with a 3 course meal for 14 euros. The French Onion soup was amazing with a slightly unusual chicken with chips and then chocolate mousse to finish, yummy!

      Notre Dame is not open after the fire but they are working hard for that to happen for 2024. We were not far from our hotel so went back there for me to find some warmer clothes. The reason I have been wearing the crocs is due to blisters I got with the heat. They have gone down a bit and with the cooler weather it was lovely to wear long pants, merino sox and my normal shoes.

      Tomorrow we are doing a bike tour to Versailles, so today worked out the train route we needed to take and had a practice run. After that we visited the Petite Palace which is a free museum which had some interesting things to see. And then off to the Eiffel Tower. I have never been up there before because getting tickets seemed too tricky. But Trish was keen so we went for a look and just walked straight in and bought tickets. We bought them right to the top, but I didn’t realise that meant only 50m lower than the very top. It was very high! When we first got out of the lift we couldn’t see a thing because of the cloud cover, but then it started to lift. It was a great experience and we could see all the places that we have been. We stopped at the 2nd floor on the way down as well. I’m very pleased Trish was keen to do that as it was awesome.

      By this stage we were hungry again as it was about 7pm, so stopped for a quick bite to eat before heading to the Arc de Triomphe. It was much later than we expected, and after climbing the 50 million steps, it was dark when we got to the top. But we had incredible views of the Eiffel Tower being lit up as well as many other things. And of course there was car watching to be done. Just fascinating watching them navigate the lanes of traffic from the 12 roads that enter the roundabout. We could have stayed there for longer but were conscious of our early rising for tomorrow. So then back on the train and straight through to our station at Chatalet.

      We really do have an awesome location here, very close to train station and other things.

      20,262 steps with lots of stairs. High was 20 degrees which was just lovely.
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    • Day 2

      Arriving in Paris !

      September 22, 2023 in France ⋅ 🌧 13 °C

      After a good flight with fellow rugby travellers like Graham and Ros Mitchell and John Smit 😉we arrived at Charles de Gaul - caught a taxi and arrived at a quaint Hotel Le Daum . We set off a little while later for the Eiffel Tower and an awesome trip on the Seine river. Dinner at a Brasserie with beer, pizza and pasta was the start to an exciting holiday !

      Saturday we caught up some culture at the Louvre and enjoyed seeing some famous pieces like the Nike statue and the Mona Lisa !

      Lunch with Herman and Janine at the Latin Quarter and then ready for the rugby !!
      More Gees you could not get from the South Africans and the Irish !!! An experience of singing, comeraderie and fun ! Unfortunately the outcome was not so exciting but the trip home continued with many discussions !

      An early morning today and we are off to Les Arcs in Provence via the TGV at 298 km / h

      Luckily there is a bar available as Charles and Graham need some more Gees !
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    • Day 19

      Upriver

      July 24, 2022 in France ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

      Pete and Carol arrived in a welcome thunderstorm and 19 degrees, same time as battery man , so G happier now . Hot again now but we away from fires further south . Pleasant quiet berth last night, good walk this am for baguettes and local tomatoes. and now at Daon after a nice cruise. Not many boats around . Rivers are getting low and we can expect 2 boats per lock and waits therefore it seems. Hope all well in NZ . We getting to know the friendly French boaties at the Marinas . Au voirRead more

    • Day 2

      Gen Paris in der Luft

      October 30, 2023 in France ⋅ 🌧 13 °C

      Der Zubringerflug mit Air France (Schreib- und Lesart Berlin: Eier Franke! 😂😂) beginnt mit einer Horde quäkender und heulender Blagen in der Reihe schräg vor uns. Die offenbar aus dem arabischsprachigen Kulturraum stammenden Erzeuger müssen wiederholt vom Kabinenpersonal energisch zum Anschnallen ihrer Brut angehalten werden. Multikulti - wir schaffen das..... Das in nämlichem Alterssegment befindliche Kleinkind in der Reihe direkt vor uns ist den ganzen Flug über ruhig und unauffällig.

      Ansonsten wird der Beginn der Tour stilvoll-stillos mit einem horribile dictu (!!) gut gekühlten Cabernet Sauvignon aus der 350ml-PET-Flasche au milieu du ciel französisch-passend zelebriert. Der Flug verlief abgesehen von einigen kleinen Turbulenzen störungsfrei.
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    • Day 6

      Playing House

      July 11, 2022 in France ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

      Just a quick hello. Still playing house, but lists coming down. Bought our Nakamura E bikes today - Yay ! All shop assistants wonderfully helpful and friendly. Lots of cyclists to watch from our berth - a constant stream. Hope to join them soon.Read more

    • Day 2

      Arriving at Capella in Grez Neuville

      July 7, 2022 in France ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

      After 48 hours in sunny vibrant Paris where Les Parisiennes are very happy to imbibe outdoors, (while we sorted local phones and Wi-Fi, ) we caught train south to Angers, rental car, supermarket , then to lunch at Grez Neuville by the lock as guests of Maryvonne, the recently widowed owner, with her granddaughter Alais as translator, and Alain & wife Morisette who live quayside and are happy to assist us with getting organised. Absolutely superb food at this 5* restaurant. Sorry photos are blurry , very hot and I think camera got foggy. Then to boat nearby - its great, so light and spacious, master cabin heaps of storage. Morisette will show us where to shop today for “everything ! “. Glad I bought our linen and pillows so we could be on board last night. G has opened every hatch already to check things out. Alain will take us down river soon to Pruille to the marina where Maryvonne owns a spot and is happy for us to stay for however long. She bought us a beautiful set of crystal champagne glasses as a welcome gift. Everyone very kind and helpful, but no one speaks English, so we in the deep end learning to parlez Francais. Sure makes you learn fast - Google Translate vital at this stage !Read more

    You might also know this place by the following names:

    Pont des Arts, جسر الفنون, Пон дез Ар, Puente de las Artes, Passerelle des Arts, פון דז אר, ポンデザール, Мост Искусств, ปงเดซาร์, Міст Мистецтв, 艺术桥

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