JP left for work in Blois at 8:00; we had a leisurely breakfast and played with his cat Loli, then headed off at 9:30 for the Sixt rental office at the Gare, five kilometres away, to return our car. It had to be back at 11:00, but we have found you can't allow too much time.
A huge merci to all the helpful, cheerful French citizens who stopped what they were doing to give us directions, consult their phones or even to draw a map or two while we drove through their country. We were more than happy and relieved to turn the car in unscathed considering some of the tight situations we'd been in, 3,257 kms. and 24 days after picking it up. Would we do another driving trip like this again? Probably not, but it let us visit some wonderful, isolated places in our own time, so it was the thing to do. Now we can spend our last week using public transport or on foot, not worrying about parking or being cut off.
The TGV trip to Paris was fast and comfortable and we made our way to our next apartment in Boulogne - Billancourt smoothly by Metro and were waiting when Soufian showed up at 3:00. It's a tiny studio with a fold up futon on the 4th floor but has everything necessary so long as we don't trip over each other. And it's about 2 kms. from Stade Roland Garros, where we're going on Monday and Tuesday.
On tonight's news we learned about the labour reform protests going on in Paris, with some violence. We don't know where the protests occurred so will just keep our eye and ears open.
May 27:. Exploring the city
We decided to walk along the Seine towards the Eiffel Tower, going as far as we felt like. We followed the lead of students and workers and picked up lunch from a deli to eat by the banks of the river, a tasty change from our usual baguettewich. We have been told every French person eats an average of one baguette per day. Hours later we returned, having walked almost a half marathon! We can say that the unrest in France doesn't appear to have affected tourism, at least not from the number we saw near the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame.
May 28:. Montmartre and the rain
Having walked enough for several days yesterday we opted for the Metro to Montmartre where we joined the throngs lined up to get into Sacre Coeur. The view of the city from the hill is always magnificent and the shops are plentiful. On the way back we stopped in at Galeries Lafayette for some more shopping. Lily has asked if we're bringing back souvenirs ;-). There are three buildings, kind of overwhelming. I could have spent a few hours at Le Blanc where the food displays were very tempting but was hustled out before any damage was done. Only to be faced with a downpour. Fortunately there was a Metro station outside the store.
Sun. May 29: The real fete des Meres
I was mistaken about the date for Mother's Day. Many beautiful bouquets were on display and the nice man in the Franprix gave Jim a rose to give me. We also went on a wild goose chase looking for the Paris Marathon which was clearly NOT run today. Another nice man we met on the street, a runner, checked for us on his phone and it's over. There was a 20 K but it wasn't near us. Maybe it's time I go home and recharge my brain!
Mon. May 30: Stade Roland Garros
Okay, the weather report was not promising but it looked like there would be periods of no rain.......not! We spent four hours waiting around while they showed old matches on the big screen and finally went to Court 1 where they said the players had been advised there would be no play until 1:30. We dried the seats, sat down and waited, ate lunch...... Shortly after 1:30 it was announced there would be no matches today, their first total washout in 16 years. We hope for better luck tomorrow.
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Tues. May 31: Roland Garros, the 2nd day
Today we did see some tennis, the second half of one match and the first three games of another, about 1:15 hours, played through drizzle and rain with several long rain delays. The temperature was only 11° C so not comfortable for players or viewers. Play was finally cancelled about 7:00 p.m.
Court Suzanne-Lenglen
Wed. June 1: Last day in Paris
Because the Paris Metro and RER trains are going to be affected by the greve starting tomorrow we did a dry run of our route to get to the RER station at St.-Michel Notre-Dame via Metro. We plan to leave lots of time as delays are inevitable.
Today was dry and there was lots of tennis played at RG but we were not there to see it. Just bad luck as the two days we had tickets were the worst of the tournament. Paris had the wettest May in 143 years and the banks of the Seine are flooding in places. Where we walked along the river last Friday was under water. Other parts of France are suffering from flooding too.
Our walk today on the Left Bank took us to the churches of St. Sulpice and the Benedictine Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Pres as well as the Luxembourg Gardens. Then we crossed to the Right bank and passed through the courtyard of the Louvre, through the Tuileries and along the Champs Elysée to the Arc de Triomphe. We found Le Corner Cafe on Kleber near the Trocadero for our last meal in Paris, dining outdoors. We packed and polished off our last bottle of wine when we got home.
Au Revoir Paris! Je t'aime.
book sellers, Left Bank
statue on the Pont des Beaux Artes
the Seine with rising waters
the Louvre
the Carousel 
Arc de Triomphe 
stately 16th Arrondissement 
1 comment:
Lynn, I enjoyed your photos and your commentary. I will look at your other adventures when time allows.
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