Paul, clinging to life ... I mean a wall
I arrived in Paris at about 1:45 pm on Saturday. It is/was a pretty swift train ride – 300 km in an hour and 40 minutes. A full train, but uneventful. I arrive at Gare de Lyon and Paul scares the bigilikers (totally made up the spelling of that made up word) by walking right up to me when I didn’t even see him. Screamed and pretty much drew attention to me in the middle of a busy Paris station – but that didn’t even phase me.
Butte Park near where we are staying
Anyway, poor Paul had arrived about 9 am and had been walking around Paris with his pack on waiting for me to arrive. Then we headed to our accommodation which is this sweet little apartment in the Belleville area of Paris. It is only about 400 square feet but it is really sweet. It has a little sitting room, a kitchen, a bathroom and a bedroom. It really is all you need. And it is in a really cosmopolitan part of town.
... how to fit an elephant into a box ...
We headed out after a yummy European style of light supper of a baguette and other dippings, cheese, and veges. We walked around our region, got lost a fair bit and finally found this funky little bar – the Escargots – where we stopped for a beer.
The wall in this alley way were all pushing out and crooked - weird
The historic Hotel de Ville - house of the City Administration since 1357
Today we covered a good section of Paris by foot and both of us are absolutely sore and exhausted. But one thing we really didn’t think about was that we would be in Paris during Easter weekend. So not only some things bound to be closed, but a lot of people clearly thought it would be a great idea to go to Paris for the long weekend. As we hit places like the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower, the lines were outrageous. Luckily for me, Paul was no more interested in standing in those line ups than I was.
The Bells Of Notre Dame Cathedral
Crowds walking through the park up towards the Champes-des-Elysees
It's all a hoax, the Eiffel Tower is not as big as you think!
Unfortunately we are having a cold spell. Really the coldest weather I have had yet. Only about 11C and cloudy and rainy. But all is well. Tomorrow, the intention is to go for a good run in the Butte Park which is near us. Lots of hills and stairs so that should keep us out of breath.
Well ,really, the weather is not that bad!
Glad to hear you are having agood time with Paul – doing quite a bit of sightseeing. I am thoroughly enjoying wandering around Edinburgh and having snacks and lunches in all the best places. great place to wander around but I have to say that I don,t think I could move back here – makes me appreciate Canada – I do have a pretty good life there. I would miss not being able to use my car so much. love Mum
Well glad you are getting clarity Mum, I figured that you might discover that.
I like that Hotel de Ville from the outside. It’s very imposing. Are you able to visit inside?
Thanks for including those bells of Notre Dame Cathedral. I looove the sound of church bells, because it reminds me of living in Germany and hearing the church bells of small villages ringing across the land.
I look forward to your next post of Versailles and I can’t wait to see amazing pictures…..