Last Few Days in Paris

October 4. 2005

The last few days are a blur as we walked through various Parisian neighborhoods visiting her famous sights, mingling with her people, eating her food and drinking her wine. Were it not for my digital camera and its date-stamping feature, it would be hard to remember where we've been and when we were there. Sometimes, after a few days travelling, there's a little game we enjoy: what did we do and where did we eat on day 1? Day 2? Day 3?, etc. If we forget (some others write diaries) I can just check my photos to remind us.

My conception of this trip was that we would just soak up the feel of being in Paris. Stroll leisurely through the neighborhoods, sit leisurely at a cafe here and there, window shop the interesting streets, just hang out. Stacey and I have been here several times; we've seen the sights, gone to the museums, etc. But Lynn and Mike have not, so we owed them those visits. And, thus, this visit was one of touring and tiring from touring which I hoped to avoid by just being here. Maybe next time?

....

On our third day here, Ellen suggested a Chopin piano recital that was held in a tiny church near our hotel. We agreed and it was a wonderful experience. Afterwards, we had dinner at Chantaireille, a restaurant on a tiny side street specializing in the cuisine of the Auvergne region. What can one say about French cooking that hasn't already been written about voluminously? I'm sure one can find terrible places in which to dine. We haven't had any yet.


After dinner at ChanAirelle restaurant.

Sitting at a cafe, watching the world go by is, to me, one of the very enjoyable aspects of life in Paris. The weather, by the way, has been chilly. If we're having an extended summer in New York, the autumn has arrived here with a vengeance. Cloudy, moody skies (beautiful for my photos), a nippy wind and temperatures in the low to mid 60's (and even lower at night). But, of course, all the cafes are equipped with propane heaters that whisk the chill away and allow sitting outside in complete comfort. Une cafe e une baguette, sin beuure, si vous plez (my French is awful; but, trutfully, I never studied it, so pardón). That only set me back about 4 or 5 Euros, but you sit as long as you want and the bonus: wifi to upload my blog posts for free and at high speed. C'est bon!


At the Cafe Contrescarpe near our hotel, watching the world go by.


People watching at Place de Contrescarpe, one of Paris' charming squares.

Brian and Ellen took their leave to return to the States and the four of us were on our own. Today, Saturda, October 1st, we would explore royal Paris: the Place de la Concorde, stroll up the Champs Elysees and visit the Arch de Triomphe. Despite the fact that it was October, Paris was still being visited by many, many tourists but I like to think it was somewhat less congested than the summer.


The Obelisk - gift of Egypt to France in the 1850's.


Oh my - a 2CV putters through the Place de la Concorde - you don't see many of those any more. The obelisk lines up with the Eiffel Tower in the background.


The arch is visible down the Champs Elysees as viewed from the Place de la Concorde.


Champs Elysee - London Planes have been French poodled.

It's been written about over and over - the American commercial invasion of Europe and of France. And how the French have resisted. Disney Paris was a failure, but since turned around and said to be very succesful. McDonald's is omnipresnt - but one man (a hero in French eyes, and in my too) even set fire to a McDonald's in southern France in protest of the dire economic consequences (to French farmers) of McDonald's penetration. And it has wrenched my heart to see those fast-fooderies everywhere we go. But the Champs Elysees has been a victim of American commercialization for a long time now and it was even more evident now. As we walked, we passed one store after another, inhabited by this and that American store and corporate giant. Were we in Soho or in Paris?


Is this France? What has become of the Champs Elysees - for many years now.


Stacey on the Champs.


Cafes and strollers - near the Arch de Triomphe.


12 avenues enter and leave the circle that surrounds the Arch de Triomphe!

We took a metro to Les Halles (or what had been the huge market in years past - now a modern and giant shopping center) to visit the touristy (but wonderful) Au Pie du Cochon restaurant, where Stacey and I had dined back in the 70's. It was said to have the best onion soup in Paris (and according to Frommer's still does). We sat in this splendidly decorated restaurant and lunched on huitres (oysters), snails and onion soup. Tres delicieaux! The restaurant is so named (at the foot of the pig) because its other specialty, besides the soup, is "pig's trotters" ... yep, pigs feet, served every which way.


Four Americans at Au Pie du Cochon in Les Halles.


Huitres (oysters) at Au Pie du Cuchon (at the foot of the pig) in Les Halles.


A beautiful restaurant - in year's past a working man's lunch spot -- no longer -- now an expensive restaurant frequented mostly by tourists.

After lunch we wandered around the neighborhood and then found the Cathedral of St. Ephraim - said to be second only to Notre Dame on the Ile de la Cite. And, indeed, it was splendid. The organ is the largest in France and the church was so tall inside that one could image midevil people believing that they were in the presence of God and heaven.


Mass was taking place while we visited.


St. Ephraim's cathedral near Les Halles...reaching to heaven.


Leaving the church through a back alley.

After resting up a bit at the hotel, we set off for the Eiffel Tower at sunset. This time with Mike and Lynn (who had not been there earlier). This time we took the elevator to the top, after a long wait of an hour or so and the views were magnificent. There she was Paris and environs, sparkling in the night.


The tower at dusk.


The Seine at night from the Eiffel Tower. The Arch de Triomphe lit up in the distance.


The Trocadero across the seine from the Tour Eiffel.


No title necessary, is there?

We took the metro back to our hotel - a very long day. A very satisfying one. But so much walking. Oy, my legs, my back, my body!