Paris, Sitting

Before Patty moves us along on our adventure, I must comment on a phenomenon I've seen in no other city but Paris - sitting around outdoors.

Who hasn't said when asked what they planned to do in Paris "go to to the Louvre, and sit in a sidewalk cafe" or "go to Versailles, and sit in a sidewalk cafe".


Since we had a lot to see in our three days we did a lot of walking, trust me, a lot of walking. But everywhere there was this curiosity of Parisians sitting around and, had we been in Paris longer, we would have lounged around more in these beautiful places.

Patty already showed us the Tulleries, but she didn't point out that chairs were provided for people to sit around. They must have been set there but the city and people must value them so highly they don't get stolen. Nice chairs, at that.


They were lounging all over Versaille,


down the hillside at Sacre Couer,


and around the gardens of Luxembourg Palace.


Again, those chairs at Luxembourg that can be moved around, congregated, or isolated, whatever your mood or desire. Reading, talking, congregating, looking, and in no hurry to get anyplace.


What is it about Paris or Parisians that brings out this behavior of sitting outside? Do they have that Buddhist "in the moment"? Because the city is so expensive?

Whatever the reason, I said when I got back to San Diego I would look for some sitting around outside. Haven't found it yet except at the beach, but I'll be looking.

Let's Wrap This Baby Up.

I've been dragging this Paris story out far too long. We were only there three days, for heaven's sake. Time to wrap it up and get on to the real story.

So back at Carol’s on Monday evening, we repacked our bags, showered, and went to bed. In the morning, we had our last French breakfast with Carol. She called a cab for us and we had an exciting ride to Montparnasse train station for the TGV to Bayonne.

Such a nice train – and very fast! The suburbs melted away and we passed through farmland and hills crested with lines of modern white windmills. I wrote my notes about Paris…

Generally, I enjoyed Paris very much - much more so than I did 40 years ago. Perhaps it’s an age thing, or the Parisians are pleasanter now, maybe it was my traveling companions…maybe it was all three. The weather was wonderful, so traveling on foot and by metro was enjoyable. And our B&B location was perfect! Here are our recommendations if you're planning a trip to Paris:

• Wear a scarf about your neck – if you’re female, that is. Even wearing jeans, the Parisian ladies wear a scarf.
• Get a museum pass and keep in mind that some museums are closed on Mondays – e.g., Versailles. And be aware that labor strikes can close a site unexpectedly, so have a back-up plan.
• Take lots of money – Paris is tres expensive!
• Eat at the Louvre's cafe, use the metro, and stay near Notre Dame so you can see it every day.
• And do get out at night.


Next post: The Real Story.

Sunday at Versailles

After we left mass at Notre Dame, we caught the train to Versailles, the seat of French political power during the reign of Louis XIV through XVI, ending when Louis XVI was forced to move his family back to Paris during the French Revolution.


Because we had a museum pass, we hopped to the head of the admission line – so smart, Kath and Kathleen! Here's a view of the gate from the inside. Doesn't that tall guy in the bowler hat look like Charlie Chaplin? Whaddya suppose he's looking at? Maybe wondering when the king's chariot is going to arrive?
This little chapel is just inside the entrance. No wonder the French revolted, eh? I mean, really - did they NEED a chapel with a golden altar in their house?
And then there's the Hall of Mirrors, or the Galerie des Glaces, with its crystal chandeliers catching the light from the windows along one wall and reflecting it in the mirrors on the opposite wall. Just imagine all those tourists in powdered wigs and brocaded silk gowns. I know it's a stretch...
Right at the end of the hall is where the Treaty of Versailles was signed in 1919, ending World War 1. What's there now? A big plastic Murakami "sculpture". Maybe it's just my age, but I totally missed the rationale for having this garish anime exhibit in such a garishly opulent setting. Too much garish for me. Bordering on gruesome. (Are you wondering how I really feel about this?)
Outside in the gardens that seemed to go on forever, we enjoyed walking among the ponds, statues, and trees while listening to classical music. The weather was beautiful and the flowers were tres magnifique!

Down there in the woods on the right, we stopped at a little outdoor cafe for lunch and people-watched from behind our sunglasses.

Back in Paris, we went to Sacre Coeur…a beautiful church despite the hordes of peeps and street entertainers – right outside the front door of the church.

After we observed part of the mass at Sacre Coeur, we trooped down to the Left Bank for dinner at Café Paris, then walked back across to the Right Bank to visit the Tour St. Jacques in the moonlight.

Why did we want to see this relatively obscure 16th century Flamboyant Gothic monument? Ah, that story is yet to come.

Church Photo in Lieu of Attendance - Pat and Kathie Style

I've always admired Joan's "Church Photo in Lieu of Attendance" posts. This post, Pat and Kathie style, is the first of perhaps several such posts.

As Kathie wrote in her last post, she, Kathleen (co-worker and friend of Kathie), and I set off on an adventure about 4 weeks ago. We started in Paris, where we stayed for 3 days. Our B&B, the 3rd floor (that's the 4th floor in American terms) walk-up apartment of Carol Guay Bolton-Brown, was located on the Ile St. Louis - right across a little bridge from Notre Dame. So where did we go as soon as we freshened up from our overnight flight? To Notre Dame, of course!! This was our first view.


Would you just look at those flying buttresses? Drool. (For those of you who must know, the cathedral's construction started in 1163 and lasted about 100 years. Notre Dame was one of the first Gothic cathedrals built and one of the first buildings to use flying buttresses. Go here for more info.)

After walking across the little bridge, this is what we saw.


Nice flowers, eh? Here's the front of the cathedral...


...and its south side from across the Seine River...


Turns out that Saturday was a very busy day in Paris. As a thank you to French taxpayers, a bunch of museums were open to visitors for free - so there was a long line to get into the cathedral and its museum. We contented ourselves with admiring the exterior and made a mental note to return Sunday morning. It was worth the wait.


We happened to visit during 10:00 mass. Kathie seemed to be fascinated by the service. Maybe she was just waiting for the hunchback to appear! The organ music WAS very nice.

Next post - Saturday afternoon in Paris.