Last Days in Paris

Sunday was the day we planned to take a train to Giverny, the home of the great French artist, Claude Monet.  I have loved Monet's paintings since my college days, and was looking forward to the side trip.  However, I didn't feel well on Sunday morning.  (I like to think it was due to lack of sleep, but perhaps it had to do with all the wine and rich food I consumed the night before.)  In any case, the weather had also turned cold with the threat of rain, and we decided to skip the all-day trip and get some badly needed rest.  After a lazy morning in our hotel, we took the subway to the Montmarte neighborhood.  We both love this area of Paris, and had just started exploring it when the rains came.  What started out as a drizzle soon became a hard, cold rain.  Fortunately, we did have time to climb up to the beautiful Sacre Coeur church,  which was reached after climbing steep hills and many stairs.  There is a tram that will take you to the church, but we chose to skip the long line.  The climb was well rewarded with beautiful views.  Since I still wasn't feeling well, we made our way down the hill and took a bus back to our Rue Cler neighborhood for a late lunch of crepes.

Monday was a new day, and we had to make up for lost time on Sunday!  I felt much better, the sun was out and it was our last full day in Paris!    Previous breakfasts in Paris consisted of coffee. pastries and fruit in our room.  But on this, our last day here, we walked to a neighborhood cafe that we remembered visiting in 2012.  During breakfast we discussed our priorities for the day.  What a day it was!  We started out with a subway ride back to the Montmarte neighborhood for some strolling and shopping.  Then we walked to the Paris Opera House, one of the most beautiful buildings I've seen.  Be sure to go inside if you're ever in Paris!  We never had a bad meal in Paris, and lunch this day was superb--including some great French wine.    We purchased dessert to "take away" (a term the French use for our "takeout")--almond pastries!   We still were a distance from our hotel, but we decided to continue to walk in the sunshine rather than take the bus or subway.  By the time we returned to our hotel, we had been out for over six hours, most of it walking.  If I walked this much at home, I could probably lose the extra weight I've been carrying around!

After a short afternoon nap, we ended our last day in Paris with a romantic dinner and a stroll to the Eiffel Tower.  Two things I will definitely do if we return is to go to the top of the Eiffel Tower and visit Giverny!  But now I must look ahead to our stay in the Loire Valley.

Until tomorrow, au revoir!

Paris in the Springtime

Saturday was a beautiful spring day in Paris!  We decided to use public transportation, which included the bus and the metro (subway).  The bus, while slower, is actually more interesting, as you can see the city.  Before we headed out though, John went out in search of breakfast goodies, and returned with lattes, a bagette with raspberry jam, and croissants!  Quite the (un)healthy meal!

Our exploration of the city began with a ride on the #69 bus.  Rick Steves recommends this bus ride as an excellent way to get a general tour of the city.  We started at the Eiffel tower, passing Les Invalides, the Louvre, Notre Dame and the Bastille monument.  Getting off at Place Bastille, we walked to Place des Vosges, the first planned square in France--a beautiful park surrounded with classic buildings, including the home of Victor Hugo.  We continued to wander through the Le Marais neighborhood, past the Holocaust Memorial, noting the presence of police security.  After a delicious lunch at a lovely street cafe, we walked to Notre Dame and its surrounds before catching the #69 bus back to our hotel.

John and I like to get up early even on vacation, and we have discovered on this trip that there is nothing better than an afternoon nap!  Then we are refreshed and ready for a late dinner and an evening of fun.  Well, "fun" by our standards is still pretty conservative!  On this particular evening we took the Metro subway to the Latin Quarter, which was close to the restaurant John wanted to try.  I liked the Latin Quarter more than John did, although I agree with him that it was perhaps a little too crowded with tourists and tourist traps.  Here is an excerpt from John's journal:  "Blvd. St. Germain was crowded, tacky, filled with overly touristy bars ('happy hour', 'margaritas', hot dog').  Man, it sucked."  So we wandered to the beautiful Luxembourg Park, and then attempted to find the little restaurant John had read about and so wanted to try.  It took a little searching, but soon we found the street, at which point I became a little apprehensive.   The street was a little sketchy, but Le Bistro du Perigord was one of the best restaurants I have ever visited.  Run by two very personable brothers, the atmosphere and food were excellent.  We ended the meal with an apple pastry with caramel sauce!  The owner called us a cab, and we returned to our hotel full and happy.

All in all, it was a busy but wonderful spring day in Paris!!  How I love this city!!!

So much to see....So little time

Having been in Paris before, we decided to concentrate more on exploring neighborhoods this time rather than seeing specific sights like last time.  After arriving on Thursday afternoon, we walked around the Rue Cler neighborhood and to the Eiffel Tower.  We are staying just off of Rue Cler, which is a short street closed off to most traffic, and full of fresh produce stands, wine shops, and other specialty shops.  My favorite is the boulangerie...or maybe it's the cheese shop....or perhaps the chocolate shop!

Yesterday (Friday) was a full day of walking.  We started with a walk to the Orsay Art Museum, where we saw the works of famous artists such as Monet, Van Gogh, Gaugin and Renoir.  We then strolled along the Seine River, exploring little side streets when they looked interesting.  Finally we walked back to Rue Cler, purchased a bottle of red wine, a fresh bagette, some French cheese and chocolate, and picniced in a park adjacent to the Eiffel Tower.  Very romantic and very Parisian!  After a mid-afternoon nap, we changed for dinner and walked back to the neighborhood of the Orsay Museum.  We had the most wonderful dinner at La Bonne Excuse (The Good Excuse), where we had monkfish, quail and the best apple tart imaginable.  The French eat dinner very late by American standards, which has taken some adjustment for John and me.  But just two days into our visit, we have become accustomed to dinner at eight!

I can't believe we're already halfway through our vacation!  We still have much on our list of things to do, and not nearly enough time.

Until tomorrow, Au revoir.

English observations

I love England!  Here are a few observations I made while a visitor there:
*The English are very warm and friendly.  Everywhere we went, they wanted to know more about us.  They associate Seattle with Starbucks!
*Just like the weather, the English style is similar to Seattle's--casual.  Jeans and leggings were the standard.
*The English not only drive on the "wrong" side of the street, but they also drive like maniacs!  This is especialy true in London, but applies even to the much smaller city of York.
*Mashed peas are a common accompaniment served in English pubs, especially with fish and chips.  Rather odd, in my opinion.
*I love the savory pies they serve everywhere in England.  I must try making them at home!
*The English must be very fond of American sixties pop music.  We often heard tunes from the Beachboys and Motown groups in restaurants.
*I saw more selfie sticks during my 3 days in London than during the entire rest of my life!
*Monday was a "bank holiday".  We never did come to understand what that meant, except that a lot of places were closed!

Perhaps I will post more of these observaations as they come to mind.  I love the English!

Train to Paris

Woke up to sunshine after encountering our first rain last evening.  We gave ourselves plenty of time to catch our train to Paris this morning....even had time for a latte at Starbuck's!  John and I have a rule when we're on vacation:  never eat or drink at a place that is available to us at home!  But sometimes an exception is in order!!

The last time we were in Europe, the "travel" days were the most tiring.  But today was actually relaxing.  We ate our store bought breakfast, consisting of muffins, bananas and orange juice, on the train from York to London.  We easily found our connecting train to Paris, where I spent a good portion of the trip napping.  Well, I actually began by reading, but the gentle rocking of the train had me napping in no time!  We arrived in Paris about 3:00 this afternoon, losing an hour from London time.  Our hotel, Hotel du Champ de Mars, is lovely.  Thank you for the recommendation, Jamie!

John just went out in search of a cash machine, leaving me to unpack and settle in.  We have reservations for dinner tonight at my favorite restaurant from our last trip, 7eme Vin.  We agreed to try all new restaurants this visit, but John surprised me with this repeat culinary experience.

I am excited  to have four full days in this wonderful city, but must admit that I wish we'd had more time in Merry Olde England.  I felt a connection there, knowing it was where my grandmother was born and raised.  Unfortunately, I never knew her, as she died before I was born.  Perhaps I can return sometime, and actually visit her hometown of Liverpool.

We have good wi-fi here, so I will try to post more often!

Au revoir!

Goodbye London, Hello York

I had the same feeling when I left London yesterday morning that I had leaving Paris in 2012--the feeling that I had far too little time there.  I am confident that I will feel the same tomorrow when leaving York.  York is a two hour train ride north of London.  Our time here is very short--a mere day and a half--but we have taken advantage of every minute!

York was settled as part of the Roman Empire in 71a.d.  It was a walled city, and you can still walk along the wall today.  In the heart of the walled area is York Minster, a beautiful cathedral built in the twelfth or thirteenth century.  This morning we participated in a walking tour of old York, and learned much from our guide, Chris.  He was not only very knowledgeable about the history of York, but he also had an engaging personality and a wonderful sense of humor.  We ran into Chris again this evening while having an after-dinner drink in a pub, and he invited us to join him and two friends.  Needless to say, there is no better way to get to know a foreign country and its inhabitants than to sit down and chat with the locals.  What a wonderful evening!

There is no shortage of eateries here in York, and we've had some wonderful food, including lunch at a pub called The Hole in the Wall, and dinner tonight at a slightly fancier place called Bennett's.  I have had a traditional English savory pie with beef and vegetables (delicious!), and a traditional drink called Pimm's (good but not great).  The town is also fullof cute little shops, ranging from souvenier shops to boutiques to bakeries.  I managed to look without buying!

Tomorrow we will be getting up very early to catch an 8:00 train back to London, where we will transfer to our train to Paris.  I apologize for any typos or spelling errors--it's not easy typing this on my 7" tablet!  Plus, it's late and I'm tired!  I will try to write another post tomorrow when we get to Paris.  I still have some thoughts about London and York that I want to share with you!

Good night!

Greetings from London!  After spending far too much time trying to figure out why I was unable to edit and add pages to my travel blog, I gave up and started over with the new blog address!

We left home on Friday afternoon via Icelandair, and arrived in Reykjavik seven hours later.  Imagine our surprise when the entire plane was boarded, and no one was assigned to the seat next to us!!!  So we had an entire row of three seats to ourselves!  We didn't have the same luck on our next flight, but it was only a little over two hours from Reykjavik to London.

Going through customs at Heathrow Airport in London was a far better experience than the one we had in Paris two and a half years ago.  It actually took less time to go through customs than to retrieve our checked bags!    Our hotel had arranged a ride for us, and while it was a little more expensive than a cab or shuttle, it was nice after the long trip to have a driver waiting for us in a Mercedes.

Knowing that our time in London would be short, we made a list of priorities, and with few exceptions have seen everything on the list.  We have seen Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben and the Parliament buildings, Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus, the Tower of London (amazing!), the Crown Jewels and St. Paul's Cathedral.  We've also strolled along the Thames, explored the high-end shops on Regent Street, took John's photo in front of the John Lewis department store, rode the "Tube" and a double-decker bus and consumed some great food and beer!  We still hope to walk through Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens tomorrow morning before catching a train to York.

We did not realize when planning our trip that this was a three-day weekend here.  As a result, a few things were not available to us.  One thing that disappointed me was missing the changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace due to holiday weekend events that were going on there, like the 10k run which ended at the palace yesterday.  We are amazed at the huge crowds everywhere in London.  I'm not sure if it was due to the holiday weekend, or if it's always like this.  We agreed that the only city where we've seen crowds like these was Florence, Italy.

I will share some more thoughts on London in my next post, but I have loved every minute here and wish that we had more time.  Tomorrow we will take the train north to York, a town rich in English history.  Please leave feedback so that I know someone out there is reading this!