Paris - Day 5. Aug 12

Alas, today is going to be a down day.  Down not meaning down as in depressing.  Quite the contrary, it will be a relaxing day, a day of recovery.  I neglected to put in last nights commentary that I had a bit of a crash on the bike.  Or I should say the bike had a crash.  I have been using the Velib bike sharing program.  These bikes are tanks. They are heavy, not very nimble and certainly not quick to stop.  I was rolling along heading out of the city when a little 5 year old strayed across my path.  I tried to stop and veered off the curb.  The bike went down in a tumble but somehow I simply walked off of it while it was crashing. Oh yes, the 5 year old did not even know what she caused and was not affected.  I remained upright while the bike did it's crashing thing.  No bumps, no cuts, no bruises...  A seemingly uneventful occurrence.  But this morning my knee is being a bit of a pain and complaining of ill use. I must've torqued it as I walked off the ill fated bike.  Stairs seem to be problematic.  I know, I know, what a complainer...

I am therefore going to give it a rest rather than push it by walking through museums or exploring new parts of the city.  I have plenty of time for all that.  A leisurely day reclining along the Seine is just what is needed.

Yes, this is the ticket...  😊   

Relaxing on the right bank overlooking the Ille St. Louis, my home.  The guide book lists this little isle, my isle, as the most desirable address since the 17th century.

The bridge as seen in the photo as in all the bridges used to have homes built up upon them.  They were residences of the well todo.  The Pont Neuf bridge (1607) was the first to have just a bridge and no houses upon it.  In its day, it was a marvel in that people could walk across the bridge and have a view of the river.

Pont Neuf means new bridge.  Although it means new bridge, it is now the oldest bridge spanning the Seine.  All the others that used to have houses upon them have been replaced.  Just some fun facts for you...

Another view of my relaxing day on the Seine.  I feel quite safe... as you can see in the photo is a police boat patrolling the river with 4 heavily armed policemen aboard.

Here is another picture of the right bank.  They have brought in sand and made "beaches" along the way.  It really is quite nice to walk along the river.  There are quaint little cafes setup to enjoy the river views.  Ahhhh this is the life!

And here is a picture of where a rather famous person resided on the Ille St. Louis just down the street from me.

Madame Curie lived at this residence from 1912-1934.  

Now here is something that once you see it you can't unsee it:  (this is a disclaimer, if you have young children viewing at this time please remove them from the screen)

Here is a svelt French gentleman in his thong bathing suit (if you could call it a suit) partaking of the  great weather and sunbathing along the Seine.  I warned you...  You can't unsee that!

It was a beautiful day.  It started out cloudy but then became quite nice with a high of 79 (26C).  I think the cold front is through now.  😎

Here is what has become my favorite:

It is a Mille Femille which supposedly means a thousand layers.  I'm pretty sure it means a thousand calories, or more...  I get one from the little patisserie that is right around the corner from my flat.  I get one at night so that I have it for breakfast.  The problem is... it doesn't seem to make it til the morning. So I have to go back and get another the next morning.  The shop owner knows me now.  When I enter the shop he goes and gets one out for me.  Isn't that nice...

And lastly for today...

Sunset over the Seine, highlighting Notre Dame as viewed from right outside my place.  Nice!?

Paris - Day 4 Aug 11

Well last night the left bank came alive again.  When I say left bank I don't mean the general geographical area known as the Left Bank.  I literally mean the left bank of the Seine.  It seems as the normal Paris life goes to bed, the youth underground awakens and begins to party.  Around 10:30 the music began.  Last night it was not the thirty person brass instruments collection.  It was more of a loud techno rave twist on music.  Their selections were quite good actually.  The sound carries across the waters of the Seine and reaches my flat with a tenor and volume that makes me feel a part of the celebration.  So rather than stew about it, I selected the investigate and experience it option.  It was quite a spectacle.  There were jugglers of sticks and swords, nunchucks and batons and even fire, yes fire jugglers!  It made for a great party.  There certainly aren't any laws against open container alcohol beverages here.  Everyone had bottles of wine and beer with a high level of consumption.  And they were dancing all about.  I would say that I was probably more than twice the average age of the group.  They played on past midnight and then magically shut it down.  I guess there must be some law.

I am getting into a pattern of going to bed getting an hour or so of sleep, then awakening to the joyous sound of music.  Getting up, experiencing the music and then walking the city to finally come to rest after 1 am.  😳

Had a bit of a tough time getting back to sleep after my walkabout.  Finally drifted off after 3.  Guess the time difference is still playing havoc with me.  😳

After I did get to sleep I was awoken by a shivering.  I had the windows open and the temp dropped to 47 degrees (8C).  Brrrrrrr

Needless to say, I did not wake early so I had to go with plan b on the agenda for the day.  No Louvre, the lines would be too long.  So I went exploring instead.  And it was great.

I went walking through the Marais District.  It is supposed to be the chic bohemian district, although that is what they say about Monmarte as well.  I came across the church of St. Eustache.  It was recommended by my night bike ride guide.  It was beautiful yet a bit sad in its disrepair.  The years have been tough on it.  The cornerstone of the church was laid in 1454 yet the church as it is today was built from 1532 to 1640.  It took over 100 years to build.  

This picture captures less than a third of the building.  It is massive.  The construction and craftsmanship that took to build this is unsurpassed in our times.  There just isn't anything like it.  It's history is steeped in the history of and upheaval of France.  Cardinal Richelieu was baptized here and King Louis XIV's Holy Communion was celebrated here.  During the French Revolution the church was converted to the temple for acgriculture.  The French Revolution was not just against the monarchy but against all high figures of authority.  In 1871 during the La Commune revolt, the church was heavily damaged by missiles fired upon it.  

The beauty and craftsmanship is breathtaking.  The middle altar is of carved wood with with marble inserts.

As you can see in the above photo, there are intricately beautiful stained glass windows depicting scenes of religious importance (window on the left).  And there are windows that are replacements to the originals that were damaged or destroyed over the churches history (window on the right).  The artistry of the original windows is difficult and extremely expensive to replace hence the plainness of the replacement.  Also, you can see the details of the pattern painted on the column and the state of disrepair of the base which has been worn off with time.

The ornate wall paintings are dull and dark with age.  They are also pealing off the wall.  If you look closely at the top of the wall painting you can see where they have applied a tape to temporarily repair the cracks in the painting.  The vibrancy of the colors has been muted with years of dirt and weather.  It would take a great deal of time and money to restore this and the other murals to their original glory.

Many of the mural paintings are so detailed that they look as if they could be hanging in the Louvre.  Yet when you are up close it is evident that they are deteriorating with time and weather beating them down.  You can see in the middle painting above the altar cracks from the building through the right and left border of it.

The church is now being restored slowly.  It has found new life due to renovation of the surrounding area.  There is a new grand shopping plaza that has been built adjacent to the church.  There is a great deal of construction going on to expand this shopping mall.  It is sad that the mall is modern and stark in its architecture and a sharp contrast to the beauty and grace of the church.  The shopping mall replaced the former market area of the Marais.  Yet the good news is the area had fallen into disrepair and crime.  It is now on a comeback revival.  The old is being saved due to the new...  

My exploration of the Marais continued.  I walked and walked turning down this street and then that street when it piqued my curiosity.  As I walked some might say that I was lost.  But being lost means that you are wandering counter to your destination.  In that I had no destination and that the wandering itself was the point, I was not lost.  Although it could be said that I was lost in the exploration in and of itself!  Ha, so I was lost!  😊

As happens when you wander in an area, there comes a discovery...  I stumbled upon the Museum of the National Archives.  It was a real treasure!

The museum was the former residence of the Duke of Guise.  This was a house in which a family lived! And this picture is only of the main house.  There is a collection of other buildings with a compound and intricate gardens for various occasions.

A grand entrance through which guests would pass and follow a cobblestone path leading to the main residence.

The origins of the property were in 1371 when the constable of France bought the property and built a fortress.  It fell into disrepair and changed hands, was rebuilt and restored to the form that it is in today.  The gem of the display is the main rooms.  There are several rooms that are as they were in the medieval times.

The princes bedroom...   The ornate masterpieces of the tapestries on the walls and woodwork on the doors is something to see.  You can see that there are two hidden doors that lead to other rooms.  See the two white upholstered chairs?  Each has a hidden door right behind them...

The princesses bedroom...  Notice the hidden door on the wall at the foot of the bed?

The grand meeting room... This is where visitors and guests were presented to the Duke.  The room is so large I could not get it in one picture.  It is round in shape and had mirrors strategically placed so that when you looked in one it would have the reflexion of another directly opposite.  It would give the feel of a never ending and expansive room.  

The opulence and details of everything was impressive.  The ceilings, the doors, tapestries, wall coverings, paintings and all were meant to impress.  And I must say they are impressive today let alone 400 years ago.  This was a wonderful find that was not in any suggestion from the guide or tourist books. 

The day was culminated by a 3 mile bike ride out of the city center to de Bercy park to hear a Brazilian trio in concert.  The music was great but it did lose something in translation.  Or should I say lack of translation.  The songs were all in French and the main person would tell a story about the song and the crowd would laugh.  All I heard was...  bla, bla bla, bla, blaaa. Oh to know another language would be such a gift!  I do believe it would have been better had I known what was going on as everyone else was really into it.  They were even singing the songs and refrains with the group.  

And to end the day was another unexpected treasure.  Upon my return to my home base I heard a nice sound emanating from the bridge between the Ille de la Cite and Ille St. Louis.  I investigated and was treated to a half hour of Alice Hill.  She was a street performer who played guitar, sang and performed original songs that she wrote.  She was great!  And she sang in English!  You probably haven't heard of her as I had not either.  But she was great.  She is 23 out of Berlin.  She did a song she wrote about her mother that brought a tear to your eye.

That was a fantastic ending to another stupendous day... 

Paris - Day 3 Aug 10

I will start today with a recap of last night...

I did a three hour bike tour of Paris starting at a bit past nine.   It was chilly but great!  The city looks so different at night.  The tour turned out to be me and the tour guide.  That's right, it was a private tour after all.  The tour guide said that tourism is off 40 to 50% due to fear of terrorism since the attacks in France.  He said most of the Parsians are out of the city on holiday but usually the city is packed with tourists at this time of year.  He said this is the most empty he has ever seen the city.  The economy is really hurting.

The tour being just me made it exceptional.  He asked what I wanted out of it and I told him... take me to the out of the way little gems that you know.  We wound our way through the city meandering down cobblestone streets and back alley ways.  It was quite the adventure.  I have become somewhat acquainted with how the city is laid out.

The guide had met me on the island where I am staying.  He reinforced my choice of lodging locations.  He said that it is the best location in the city of Paris from which to explore.  He also said that it was the most expensive real estate in the city.  

Oh the sites we did see...

    The dimming light as the sun is going down over the Seine.

    The pyramid of the Louvre as lit up at night.

    The lights of the Pont Neuf bridge at night.

    Palais Garnier as lit up at night.

    And of course the Eiffel Tower.  The Eiffel Tower is lit up at night but after dark at the start of the hour the tower comes alive with a display of glittering lights that is not to be missed.  It is spectacular!  

The pictures do not even begin to show the beauty and scenery that I encountered on the trip.  But they will give you a taste of what Paris looks like when night descends and the city of lights wakes.

After a good nights sleep I embarked on a day of walking exploration.  It was a brisk day starting out in the 50's and topping off at 63 degrees (17 for my metric friends).  It kind of had a feeling of fall this morning.  It definitely required long pants and a jacket for the first part of the day.

First up though was getting the SIM card issue worked out.  It turns out that the wifi in my rented flat was just that... Flat!  It was down when I came and the workaround that the owner proposed did not work either.  But I went and got a SIM card as I do wherever I go.  The issue is the instructions when you call their automated system are all in French.  So picture calling a help line that you cannot understand the options from which to choose.  And when you choose numbers randomly in the hopes that there is a language selection it only takes you to a submenu that is equally unintelligible.  So back to the little shop of purchase I did go...  All sorted out I think.  I use that rather unsure statement due to the fact that the shop person had English as probably his third or fourth language in order of mastery.  And the word mastery diminished greatly as he descended down the list.  😳

Oh well, at least I am back up live again. 😊

I walked about the Left Bank and Latin Quarter for the morning.  I got my coke and a couple of pastries from a little patisserie.  The little pastries over here are quite rich.  I think I need an extreme bike ride to be able to sustain this caloric intake.  But alas, I must endure...

Speaking of eating, here is the spot I had lunch at:

It is a little used spot at the tip of the Ille de la Cite, the island Notre Dame sits on. The guide last night told me about it.  He said it is a little known park on the tip of the island.  A place to go and get lost or read a book in relative peace as he said.  He was right...

    This was my lunch view.  There is an interesting story that my guide told me about the bridge closest in the picture.  It is the original love bridge.  Remember the picture from yesterday with all the locks on it?  This bridge was the first to be adorned with the locks of love.  There were so many locks on it that they posed a safety risk to the bridge.  There were tens of thousands of locks he said.  So much so that the structural integrity of the bridge was at risk.  The bridge was actually sinking into the Seine under the weight.  The bridge engineers never envisioned the weight in its construction.  They only planned for foot traffic.  The railings were cut off with all the locks and replaced with new railings and plexiglass sheets to prevent any new locks being placed on it.  The lovers therefore moved to the next bridge down, the Pont Neuf.  That is what I had a picture of yesterday.

Several people have asked me about security over here.  Since the terror attacks it seems that security has been beefed up.  There is a significant police presence everywhere.

You see police walking along in two person teams.  Both are armed and one of them typically has a rifle or automatic weapon.

There is also a military presence as well.  There are 4 person teams of soldiers moving about.  And they are all armed with automatic weapons.  They also do not like having their picture taken.  After I took this one I got in a fair bit of trouble when the soldier saw me taking this of them.

Needless to say, if trouble started, there would be a very rapid response with a significant force and weaponry brought to bear.

Well enough of that.  I have more but I am a wee bit exhausted.  Tomorrow I think is the Louvre day followed by a live Brazilian Music festival tomorrow night.  

I think I'm going to need a vacation after this to rest up.  😊

Paris - Day 2 August 9

Day two was a good day but before I get to day two I should cover night one...

Last night was great other than the serious lack of sleep.  I went to bed a bit after 9.  That was all I could last with the missed night sleep encountered the night before.  But a little after 10:30 I was awaken by what sounded like a full orchestra breaking into play outside my window.  I waited till the passing of several songs before I decided... what the heck I might as well go and experience it.  To my surprise the music was coming from across the Seine.  From the Left Bank was a raucous amount of sound.  I walked over the bridge and was in wonder at what I saw.  It was not an orchestra or organized music group but a collection of "musicians" gathered to perform.  An impromptu collection of over 30 brass instrument players.  There were trombone players, trumpet, tuba, saxophone and  French horn players.  They were all mostly playing the same tune.   But they were all having so much fun.  They were dancing with their instruments and jumping all about.  The average age of was mid twenties.  A crowd had gathered as well and most were dancing about with the players.  It was a site to see.  So much music and revelry from only brass instruments.  Have not seen anything like that before...  :)

I followed that with a walk along the Seine till well after midnight.  The city of lights is the place to be if you are sleepless.

    Notre Dame lit up at night as viewed from the Left Bank.

    Barges moving along the Seine at night.

Day two was an exploratory day.  It was a high of 68 (20 C for my metric friends) and mostly sunny, quite a beautiful day. The place where I am staying is as you can see in the center of Paris:

 It is on an island in the middle of the Seine:

And it is in walking distance of many of the sites.  Notre Dame being within stones throw and the Bastille and Louvre not even a kilometer away.  An easy walk to just about anything.

And that was how I started the day... with an easy walking tour of the central city.  It seems that Paris was started some 800 years BC by Celtic tribe of fishermen called the Parisii.  They started and established a fishing village around 300 BC on the island in the middle of the Seine where Notre Dame now sits.  They prospered for 450 years until the Romans came.  The Romans decided it would make a good home base for them so they annihilated the Parisii in a battle on the grounds where the Eiffel Tower now stands.  After the decline of the Roman Empire a group called the Franks took control of the city and area.  Hence the origins of the name Paris and of the name France.  I know, enough of the history already...

I followed the walking tour with a hop on hop off bus tour of the entire city.  It is a good way to orient yourself with a place. It was a good tour which encompassed all the major sites.

    The Eiffel Tower...

    Palais d'institute de France...

    Hotel des Invalides...

    The Louvre...

One more interesting thing along the Seine...

This is a fence along the bank on the island side of the Ille de la Cite.  It is just off the bridge of Pont Neuf.  These are all locks that have been attached to and left on the bridge.  It is a practice of love.  A couple comes and professes their love by placing a lock on the fence and then tossing the key into the Seine River.  Thus their love is locked in place forever...

Tonight I have a night bike ride around the city of lights planned.  It could be a bit chilly but it will be great!

Paris - Day 1 August 8

Arrived in Paris after a fairly uneventful set of flights.  Got from Charles de Gaulle airport to the flat with no difficulty whatsoever, thanks to the wonderful directions of the flat owner.  

All I can say is WOW!  This is so cool.  The flat is in a location that is magnifique!  It is so central to everything.

    This is the street it is off of.  

This is another view of the location from the river side:

At the top of the ramp to the right coming up from the river is the street I am on.  Not even a half a block up is the flat.

 And this is Notre Dame which is only a block away.  I can hear the bells of the cathedral from my window.

And here is the little cafe where I had a three course dinner for only 18 Euros.  It was complete with a street musician playing an authentic French tune on an accordion.  It was as if they wanted to make sure I had a quintessential Parisian experience from the start of my trip.

And lastly, here is the little courtyard of the building where my flat is.

Someone recently asked if I was livin' the dream.  All I can say is YES!  This is so good it has to be a dream.  If it is, don't pinch me 'cause I don't want to wake up.

I have to go now as the missed night sleep and jet lag is beginning to invoke a forced shut down of my mental capacity. 

I will see you tomorrow...   :)

Paris! The next adventure...

It is almost time!  I will be leaving in just two days for 7 weeks in Europe.  It is going to be an amazing adventure starting with two and a half weeks in Paris and then on to Germany to start the month long bike trip along the Dabube.

I am so excited.  This is going to be a trip of a lifetime.

I have a small apartment rented in the heart of Paris.  Actually it is situated on the Ille Saint Louis, an island in the middle of the Seine River.  It is within shouting distance of Notre Dame.

Stay tuned and join me on my next adventure....

GAPCO - Day 7 July 10

Another fantastic day... I know, I know, it seems to be getting monotonous me saying what a great day it was.  But it was!  We did about 40 miles all told.  

It was a great ride with the sun shining, the temperature perfect and the trail great.  

As I was riding early on, one thought came to mind...  God I love riding a bike! There is nothing better than being out on a bike riding through beautiful scenery.  It is so relaxing and soul reinforcing (don't think that is a word but it fit).  You can't  help but be in the moment and see and feel so much!

    A little stream feeding into the Potomac.

   Shear cliff dipping its toe into the canal.

    The canal meandering along the side of the trail.

A wonderful site just off the towpath trail was the Great Falls.  It is a series of falls that interrupts the pleasant flow of the Potomac.  

   It is more of the series of falls that comprise the Great Falls (pics above and below).

   Me at the main Great Falls...

    The Great Falls were one of the reasons the Potomac could not be used as a means of moving goods on the river.  It made it impossible to navigate both up and down the river.  The C&O canal was devised to give an easier way and more controlled way for commerce.

After the Great Falls we had a short 15 mile run down into DC.  The path from the Great Falls down to mile post 0 (end of trail) was very crowded with walkers, runners, bird watchers, and cyclists.  All the people coming out of DC for the day. Just outside of Washington the gravel trail turned into a paved path.  That was great but it meant we were getting close to the end.  😞

As we got into DC we began hearing the noise of civilization and the city... highway noise, airplanes overhead, etc.  We had been out in no where land for a week and hadn't noticed the absence of the typical intrusive sounds we filter out daily.  But it brought me back to the thought of reentry into the world.  😕 

The sites of the capital and the monuments were great though.

   The Lincoln Memorial...

    The Reflecting Pool...

    The Washington Monument...

   The Wprld War II Memorial...

    The moving/emotionally stirring Viet Nam War Memorial where the names of 56,000 US soldiers killed is listed.  

Alas, the trip has come to an end.  😳

But it is only the beginning of the adventures.  There is so much more to do and explore.  I have several adventures lined up in the coming months.  

So stay tuned!  

So long for now...  It was great riding with you!