Today we did a lot of walking… a mini “power tour” of some of the famous highlights of Paris!

But first, let me wish a very Happy Birthday to my son Steve!  A special day for sure!  Years ago poor Steve would occasionally have to start his school year on his birthday – no fun at all – but he was always a good sport about it.

And now back to today’s adventures!

After a nice breakfast at a cafe in Montmartre we took a subway ride to our first stop for the day – the Arc de Triomphe!

Arc de Triomphe
///overhaul.trams.spacing
48°52’25.9752″N, 2°17’42.0216″E

I got this photo while standing on a little island in the middle of a crosswalk in front of the Arc. Traffic circling the Arc is crazy!  I think the best way to travel on this road is in a taxi or on a city bus!

We decided to walk to all of our planned destinations for the day. Access through some areas was still a bit restricted due to the Para Olympics but fortunately we just had to take some short detours.

These types of detours were very pleasant escapes from the busy traffic streets.

We walked down the Champs Elysses towards our next stop – the Petit Palais art gallery & museum. Another Scottish bargain as there was no admission fee! 

On our way there we walked past the fanciest construction site I have ever seen – a new Louis Vuitton store. The construction site is hidden behind this “wall” that looks like a treasure chest!

Petite Palais
///walkway.curbed.long
48°51’58.3200″N, 2°18’52.3764″E

This museum has many famous paintings & sculptures & a beautiful inner courtyard & garden.

The art gallery was not very busy so it was easy to be able stand and study a painting or a sculpture without worrying too much about blocking someone else’s view.

On our way to the Place de la Concorde we got a pretty good view of the Olympic Flame.

Most of the Place de la Concorde was still fenced off and crews were dismantling all of the temporary stadium seating so we kept on walking to our next destination – the Louvre.

On our way to the Louvre and just past the Place de la Concorde is an amazing row of apartments. The French certainly know how to do high density housing with a lot of class. That begs the question – why can’t we do this in big cities back home?

On to the Louvre

Louvre
///spreads.share.sober
48°51’39.8880″N, 2°20’8.9232″

None of us were interested in going into the building as it was really busy, so we just spent some time enjoying the architecture and people watching.

I had forgotten that you can look back down towards the Champs Elysses from the Louvre and there is a smaller Arc just across the road. You can also get a really neat view of the Olympic flame from this location. It would be interesting to see this at night.

Onward we go to our final sightseeing stop for the day…

Eiffel Tower
///sailed.renew.copying
48°51’30.5712″N, 2°17’38.7744″E

It was also very busy at this location (no surprise) and access around the tower was limited. We were all content to enjoy the view from a close distance and after a brief rest we headed towards the subway system. The trains were very busy on the ride back to our hotel. It looked like the end of the workday for many people plus there were lots of students getting on and off at each stop.

By the time we got back to our hotel we figured that we had walked about 10 kilometers in total. That’s a pretty big accomplishment for me as most of my “steps” at home are associated with cutting our small lawn plus several trips back and forth from the fridge to the TV.

When we got back to our hotel Catherine & Valerie headed to our rooms for a rest. We took a pass on riding the carousel in front of our hotel.

David & I paused briefly outside for some liquid refreshments.

Tomorrow we take the train to Angouleme. Our last stop before we pick up our charter boat on Monday afternoon.

Cheers!

Musée Carnavalet
23 Rue de Sévigné, 75003 Paris
Musee
///blaring.beans.moment
48°51’26.3016″N, 2°21’45.3852″E

I just love all the crazy names that what3words assigns to individual latitude and longitude coordinates!

blaring.beans.moment = famous French museum!

Anyway, we woke up to pouring rain this morning & decided that it would be a good idea to spend some time in an interesting museum. Catherine suggested that we go to the Musée Carnavalet which was a short subway ride away & also not far from Notre Dame Cathedral.

This museum is dedicated to the history of the City of Paris from Roman times up to the 20th century. There is no admission fee to the museum (Scottish bonus!) & it has dozens of fascinating & interesting displays. A person could easily spend a full day in this place & there would still be lots more to see on another visit.

All of the metal work signs were a favourite of mine.

Unfortunately the courtyards & outside cafe were closed on this day – another reason for a return visit.

I love this door that was preserved from a local building. I think it would be effective at keeping door-to-door salesmen away!

Our next stop was to see: pitchers.visitor.risky

Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris, 6 Parvis Notre-Dame – Pl. Jean-Paul II, 75004 Paris
///pitchers.visitor.risky
48°51’11.8476″N, 2°20’56.4144″E

Lots of activity still going on there & lots of people watching all the action. Fortunately for us the rain was letting up so we had a good look around & then found a dry place to sit down & have some more “refreshments”.

Our last stop for the day was to show Valerie & David one of Emily’s favourite places – across the river from the cathedral with the hotel’s tiny upper floor windows offering a clear view of Notre Dame. She will be staying here again in a few weeks!

Hôtel Esmeralda, 4 Rue Saint-Julien le Pauvre, 75005 Paris
///defining.airbag.rumble
48°51’8.9352″N, 2°20’50.2224″E

Not sure if Emily would approve of the what3words address.

By the time we got back to our hotel the rain had completely stopped for the day. Another brief rest & then another very nice meal at a local restaurant.

Tomorrow we plan to visit some more of the “must sees of Paris” including the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe and the Champs Elysses.

Cheers!

Hotel Regyn’s
Pl. des Abbesses, 75018 Paris
///shapes.guess.monk
48°53’4.7832″N, 2°20’17.0520″E

We landed in Paris at 10:00am local time. Passing through French Customs was unbelievably quick. After collecting our luggage we found our way to the train station that is  connected to the airport terminal & took a local train to Gare du Nord. Then  we hopped on the Paris Metro that had a stop that is very  close to our hotel in the Montmartre area.

Our hotel is in a very nice area of the city with lots of cafes & interesting shops & architecture. We also like it because the majority of people live in this neighborhood so it is easy to get a small sense of what it’s like for the locals to live here.

We arrived at the hotel too soon to check in so we dropped off our bags and went to a nearby cafe for some refreshments.

David & I were quick to make our choice.

Valerie & Catherine opted for tea!

After refreshments were finished we took a brief stroll around the neighborhood & then checked into our hotel.

Our hotel rooms are very small but clean & comfortable & reasonably priced for the area we are in.

Later in the afternoon Catherine & Valerie & David walked “up” to see the cathedral Sacre Coeur – about a 30 minute walk from our hotel. I was feeling jet lagged so I opted for hanging out with the locals in a very small neighborhood park.

This apartment building overlooks the park. I’d love to be able to get a close look at that rooftop garden!

By 6:00pm we were all starting to feel hungry so we walked down the street to a nearby restaurant – Le Sancerre – & had a great dinner.

Followed by an amazing dessert – millefeuille with fresh raspberries, that we split 4-ways. Still plenty of calories to go around for everyone!

We all slept well after that feast!

Cheers!

Via Rail Station London
///totally.legal.bliss
42°58’52.6152″N, 81°14’48.6600″

You will notice that I am adding a new  “feature” to my blogs. Maybe you have heard about the mobile app called “what3words”. It is a free app that takes  any latitude and longitude coordinates and converts them to 3 simple words that are used to only that specific location in the world.

So, the Via Rail station in London GPS coordinates of 42°58’52.6152″N, 81°14’48.6600 are assigned the words: ///totally.legal.bliss.

These words are much easier to remember than a group of numbers. It is becoming so popular that delivery services and even police and emergency authorities are beginning to recognize and use this app.

If you are interested in learning more, here is a link to follow:

https://what3words.com/about

And now, back to the blog!

Bonjour, mes amis!

We started our new adventure at the Via Rail station on York Street in London. Joining us are long time friends Valerie and David.

We are headed to France to spend a few days in Paris & then we will travel south to the Charente River region to cruise for a week on a charter boat.

Valerie & David have spent time with us aboard Ananda, our 36 Nauticat and also on Santosha, our 34 Marine Trader so they have a pretty good idea of what to expect.

Here’s a preview photo of our charter boat:

This is a screenshot from the charter boat company’s website. We pick up the boat on Monday, September 3. 

We have been planning this trip for about 9 months & it’s hard to believe that it’s finally happening!

After the train ride to Toronto we took an overnight flight to Paris, landing on Wednesday morning at 10:00am local time. The flight was uneventful but none of us got very much sleep during the flight.

Catch up to you tomorrow!

Cheers!

It’s been awhile since I last posted anything but that will be changing very soon.

Stay tuned for more adventures!

Wally