Further Adventures In Paris.

This is the last part of the story of Colin and Barbara' trip to Paris. As you have already read, they were lucky to be able to stay with friends, Keith and Meta, in the 5th arrondisement.
Colin wrote this account from Barbara's diary; so the first person in the Adventures is Barbara.
All the grammatical and spelling errors, in fact any mistakes whatsoever, are Colin's

Sunday 2/9/01 Day 38. Mild to Warm.
Keith and Meta left 7-40am to catch the plane for Abu Dhabi, the first leg towards Katmandu. We slowly got mobile. I did a couple of loads of washing, and I telephoned to Kath, in Queenscliff. Meanwhile, Colin phoned to activate new credit cards received here while we were in Beauvais. And then,
"Hurray! Rich Once More."
We went out by street to the monthly market in Place Monge. From the wonderful array of wares displayed under awnings by a polyglot band of vendors, we bought olives and cheese, lettuce, mushrooms, bananas, raspberries, apples and pears, and a bottle of wine. In addition, we bought some Marseilles soap and a new wallet for Colin's restored fortune. On the way home we went to a boulangerie and bought a baguette. At home we made a wonderful lunch from our purchases.
In the afternoon, we took ourselves to the nearby Pantheon. It is huge. Inside, at street level, the walls bear enormous murals depicting historical scenes: the onslaught of Attila the Hun; Joan of Arc; and St. Genevieve. There are many sculptings and a Foucault Pendulum. Down stone steps into the vaults to find the tombs. A beehive network with descriptions of the occupants' achievements. We saw the tombs of Voltaire, Victor Hugo, Antoine St.Euxpery, Pierre and Marie Curie, heroes of the abolition of slavery, heroes of the Resistance. The impression was, enormous!
Back at the flat, the evening meal was pretty spacious, too. We had a salad with Spring Rolls (rice-paper rolls also from the market), more olives, bread and cheese, and wine. After tea we did emails ironing and the diary.

Monday 3/9/01. Day 39. Overcast, Showery, Warm. Today we went to the Louvre. With a 3 day museum pass, bought in the Metro, we are set for a feast of museum visiting. The Louvre is VAST, ENORMOUS. Our passes took us past the queues and straight in. We stayed from about 11 to 6 pm. Mindful of the inner person we ate lunch say 12 or 12-30, and had an afternoon tea of coffee and pain au chocolat about 3 pm. Museum viewing is hard work: tiring, ache inducing, but mind-boggling. We saw painting, sculpture, artifacts from the Copts, and the Greeks. Italian art, French sculpture, it went on and on. I defiantly took some photographs (there were signs eveywhere saying not to, but lots of people disobeyed) but not of La Giocanda to which all paths lead and almost everyone snapped to prove they'd "done the Louvre".
On the way home, we bought some goodies from an Asian food stall, to eat with salad, a bottle of wine and a bread stick. These, supplemented with fresh fruit, made an easy and delicious tea.

Tuesday 4/9/01. Day 40. Early Rain, becoming fine.
We set off, wearing raincoats and carrying umbrellas. Our goal was the Musee D'Orsay. We travelled on the Metro via Place Monge and Solferino to reach the Museum, but when we got there about 11-30 am (well we had got up late and had not hurried), we found half a kilometre of queues stretching along three side of the block. Hearing English being spoken, we learned that almost no-one was being admitted because so many were already inside.
As the sun was about to pass the yardarm, we abandoned the Musee idea: we descended into a cafe for lunch and a reviving glass, and quickly produced Plan B
We came out of the caf� to find the rain had stopped. We set off for Les Invalides, passing on the way the Assmblee Nationale Palais Bourbon. It was built in 1722 for the Duchesse de Bourbon, daughter of Louis XIV. The Palais Bourbon was confiscated during the Revolution. It has been home to the lower house of the French Parliament since 1830.
On reaching Les Invalides, we visited the Museaa de l'Armee. It contains military history from the Stone Age to World War Two. One of the most comprehensive museums of military history in the world, it is housed in two of the four former refectories on either side of the magnificent courtyard of the seventeenth century Hotel des Invalides. We looked at the westside gallery containing arms and armour from China, Japan, India, and Turkey; also the Pauillac Gallery of Renaissance swords and daggers; and the Arsenal with its suits of armour, thousands of helmets, and hundreds of spears swords, and ancient firearms.
After spending quite a while in the Musee de l'Ordre de la Liberation, devoted to "Le Grand Charles" and the wartime Free French, we walked through the grounds to the Dome Church.
Louis XIV, the Sun King, had the Dome Church built by Jules Hardouin-Mansart for the exclusive use of the Sun King and for Royal Tombs. The Dome Church is one of the greatest examples of seventeenth century French architecture. After Louis XIV's death, plans to bury the Royal Family in the churchyard were abandoned, and the building became a monument to Bourbon glory.
In 1841, Louis-Phillipe decided to install Napoleon's remains in the church crypt. Since then, the addition of tombs for Vauban, Marshal Foch, and other military fiures have turned this church into a French military memorial. Sebastien le Prestre de Vauban, who died in 1707, was the great military architect and engineer of Louis XIV. Vauban was appointed Marshal of France in 1703. He revolutionized siege warfare with his introduction of ricochet batteries.
Inside the church, the Dome ceiling by Charles de la Fosse (1692) shows the Glory of Paradise with Saint Louis presenting his sword to Christ. The tomb of Marshal Ferdinand Foch was built by Paul Landowski in 1937. Napoleon's remains were encased in six coffins, and placed in the crypt in 1861.
Back at Keith and Meta's, we made a meal of an omelette and vegetables, bread and cheese, washed down with wine, and held in place with an apple.

Wednesday. 5/09/01. Day 41. Fine.
After yesterday�s disastrous beginning, forewarned is forearmed, a wink is as good as a nod..., the early bird..., etc. We arrived in good time at the Orsay, having set off soon after 9 am. This time there was no queue; so we went straight inside. Beautiful!
Up to noon was spent examining the exhibits on the ground floor. Just after noon, we had lunch in the museum restaurant. Keith had recommended this as a must do. I had the 94FF menu: it was bread rolls, grilled tuna steak on a bed of Chinese cabbage, ice cream for dessert, and a glass of wine. Colin had Duck with a celery quiche and vegetables, a cheese platter and a glass of wine. This was one of the nicest restaurants we have ever eaten in: the meal, service, and surroundings were perfect.
The afternoon was spent viewing the two upper levels (Colin managed the basement, too). We had a break for coffee and pain au chocolat in a quite down market eatery in the highest part of the museum. We were kept busy looking at things until 5-30 when the museum closed.
This night's tea was falafel and lettuce entree, bought from the Lebanese takeaway opposite the flats' front door, fish (grenadier) with vegetables, bread and cheese, white wine, fresh raspberries and ice cream.

Thrsday. 6/09/01. Day 42. Overcast early, rainy on and off.
Due to the weather we aborted plans to go to the Eiffel Tower and to the Louvre. Instead we walked around searching for "Lady and the Unicorn" wrapping paper, and for a card missing from the series we had bought in the Cluny souvenir shop some weeks earlier.
This search wasn't just aimless wandering; we bought the missing card in the Cluny bookshop, but had no luck there with the wrapping paper. We went to a shop Keith had suggested: "No go.". But they suggested another shop. We drew a blank there, too, but the quick-witted cashier didn't. She gave change of 100FF for some postcards I had bought, but I had given her 200FF. Accused, she swelled to twice her size in furious denial. Neither of us had the French to protest our case.
Hot Lebanese sandwich. The sandwich came from the same takeaway stall or nook, across the road from Keith and Meta's apartment block. This area could be described as food heaven; there were so many businesses selling ready to eat food at reasonable prices. Back to the sandwich: it was filled with small beef sausages, pine nuts, and spices such as cinnamon, probably lettuce and tomato and tomato, too. Hot and very tasty.
After lunch we visited the nearby mosque. It was a very attractive building with coloured tiles. It smelled of incense. Entry to a guided tour cost 15FF each. It was difficult to follow the guide�s speech, because it was all in French. As well as tiles, there were intricately carved timber and brass hanging lamps. In addition to worship areas, the building contained offices, meeting rooms, a library, a pretty covered garden and a library.
We walked back to Rue Mouffetarde and bought an afternoon tea in a creperie. Crepe flambee with Grand Marnier and a coffee each. This was something that had been on Margaret's list of things to do in Paris from 1998. Then we walked back to Rue Monge and bought two dripcatchers (for wine bottle necks) at a Drogerie (hardware store). We bought envelopes at the PO; two pork chops; cheese, bread and wine.
After some letter writing, we went out walking to the XIVth arrondissement, and found the Hotel Moulin Vert where we with Win had stayed two separate nights in 1998. Colin was caught short on the way so we bought beers in a hotel in order to use the toilet. Risky, but the only toilet we saw on the way was one of the coin-operated self-service sort. Took a photograph of the Moulin Vert.
As it was getting late, we returned on the Metro to Place Monge. On the way home we bought "nems" from an Asian food place at the bottom of Rue Mouffetarde. Nems are what we call rice paper rolls, I think.
Altogether, these things made up a pretty good meal: hors d'oeuvres, nems; main, (crumbed?) pork chops and vegetables; after, cheese and pears. We drank a bottle of wine and two cans each of "Amsterdam" beer. These turned out to be super beer: alcohol content 11.3%.

Friday. 7/09/01. Day 43. Hot and Sunny.
We felt somewhat the worse for wear when we got up. But it was a perfect day for the Eiffel Tower. Meta had suggested a trip by bus was a good way to quickly see the above ground city; so we tottered, blinking, to the bus stop at the Luxembourg Gardens. From there we took a bus through various areas seeing nice buildings etc., to near the Eiffel Tower. We walked to the base of the tower to join the queues for admission.
The tower looks huge, even intimidating from right underneath, and we wondered about the ascent, because Lynne had said she felt very uncomfortable when she visited in 1997. But she had climbed by the stairs. We went right to the top in lifts, and it was no problem to us, even allowing for our slightly queasy stomachs.
I copied a lot of interesting statistics about the tower.
It was built in 1889 to impress visitors to the Universal Exhibition. Designed by engineer Gustave Eiffel, it was meant to be temporary, but it stayed despite the loathing of some of the artistic and intellectual establishment. Until 1931 when it lost its crown to the Empire State Building it was the world's tallest building. Including antennae it stretches 320 metres above the ground. On hot days due to metal expansion it is 15 cm higher. There are 1,652 steps to the third level. 2.5 million rivets hold the tower together. It weighs 10,100 tones, and 40 tonnes of paint are applied every four years. The structure never sways more than 12 cm, probably implying catastrophic failure at some future point of time.
On a clear day it is possible to see for 72 km (using a telescope), including a distant view of Chartres Cathedral. The first level at 57 metres is reached by 360 steps or a lift. The second level at 115 metres takes another 359 steps or another lift. The third level at 274 metres (more steps or another lift) can hold 800 people at one time.
From the Observation Deck, protected from unfortunate impulses by a wire cage, you can see all sorts of things. Such as.
The Palais de Chaillot, neo-classical, constructed for the 1937 World Fair, replaced the Palais du Trocadero which had been built in 1878. Pont d'Jena is directly in front. It was built by Napoleon to celebrate his victory over the Prussians (1806), and widened in 1937 to complement the Palais de Chaillot. The Trocadero Gardens stand in front of the Palais de Chaillot.
After descending from the tower, we ended up coming home, because I was feeling poorly. We took the interesting above ground Metro, I forget which line, part of the way, 'til we reached the appropriate "Correspondance".
We wrote some more letters, went out to post them and had one more unsuccessful try to find the elusive "Lady and Unicorn" wrapping paper.
We went round the corner to eat couscous at a North African Restaurant; this was also on Margaret's list of things to do. Though she had suggested the North Bank.

Saturday. 8/09/01. Day 44. There was no weather today.
It is the 17th anniversary of Juliet's death. We feel anxious to have to travel on a day so totally associated with catastrophe.
We cleaned the flat and packed our belongings. Colin shopped for toilet paper, jams, and bottled water to leave in the flat.
We both went out to buy 3 bottles of red wine and 3 cheeses to take to Marg and Simon. We bought baguettes for lunch and yum, yum, yum! 2 religieuses.
We left the flat about 2-15 pm for Gare du Nord via Cardinale Lemoine, Gare d'Austerlitz, then on the pink line to Gare du Nord, arriving 3 pm. Things seemed better organized at the Paris end than they were at the London end when we left for Paris.
We boarded about twenty minutes before departure. The train left on time (16-07), but with a broadcast warning that the journey would require twenty extra minutes because of work on the line.
We arrived in London at 6-16 local time, but this was a three hour trip because London is an hour ahead of Paris time.
We passed through customs and immigration at Waterloo Station, then by several underground and local trains we reached Dulwich North about 7-30 pm. It was noticeably darker at 7-30 than it had been three weeks before. Simon's mother, Marion, was at 76A Beckwith Road with Margaret and Sacha, but Simon had gone to work in Greece for three weeks.
Margaret had cooked a "Dad" sauce for spaghetti, and a chocolate pudding: both very enjoyable welcome home dishes. We drank some of the red wine we had brought from Paris, and ate one of the cheeses, the Pont l'Eveque, because its smell was so strong and pervasive (and persuasive).

We liked France so much we went back there again in 2003, and the next year Margaret and Simon, in partnership with Jill and Paul Ingham, bought a house in Provence, somewhat north of Nice. You can read about that at "Provence House Stay - Entrevaux".