Days 7-8 GRAY Par-EE

Days 7-8

GRAY Par-EE

You get the sense that this place, Paris, must be special as there are so many people here to see it.  Everywhere you go after 10 am seems crowded, and by noon it is definitely crowded.  That said, some places are immediately exciting.  Notre Dame, even with gray skies and high water, is amazing.  The Eiffel Tower, even in the fog, is so much bigger than any picture (but that is all I have to show you).

it was amazing hearing the story of Gustav Eiffel and his tower.  There was to be a World Fair in Paris on the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution (1889).  The French government had a competition to determine who would get the right to build a commemorative monument, and he won.  His plans had the French building being the tallest building in the world at that time (300 feet), and being a reliable bridge builder, they figured he could build a tower of steel.  The only problem was the cost.  The monument commission informed him they could provide 18% of the cost, but he would have to bear the rest.  Being a shrewd business person, as well as a great engineer, he required 20 years of charging the public for entry.  As you might guess, he made all his expenses back plus millions more. Our only regret is that we didn’t visit on a better day.  At the top, we only saw the inner view of the clouds.  It was still amazing getting to know some of the history of the tower from over the years.

The amazing thing about our gray days in Paris is that we have not deployed our umbrellas so far.  We were headed to parts of Paris not closed by the flooding when we noticed the grounds to the Louvre were open.  This is the largest art museum in the world, and we were glad to know the grounds were open.

While checking things out, we noticed a long line of photographers waiting their turn for a picture.  I decided to be clever and go to a spot 6 feet to the left of the front of the line and take the same picture.  You need to know that the front of the ‘glass’ pyramid at the Louvre, looks like the front face matches part of the building immediately behind it.

My picture from 6 feet away is almost as good as any of theirs, don’t you think?

We did find our way to the Champs Elysee for our first visit.  We know little of Paris so most everything is a discovery.   First, a good part of it is not paved and it’s not motorized.  It’s a very wide walkway with lots of statues, benches and portable chairs, small gardens, occasional ponds, and lots of people strolling.

Then we came to the 8 lane paved part, and being the first Sunday in the month, it was closed to all traffic except walkers and bikers.  This too we did not know about.  This picture makes it look like there might be the makings of at least a small riot of people, but in reality, there’s lots of space to move about.

While we probably walk at least 5 miles a day, we do use the subways extensively.  We are becoming experts at knowing how to get around.  That is no small task considering the flooding has closed some of the most convenient subway lines.  Oh . . . did I say subways?!  They are Metros as not all parts of the lines are underground.  We might create a special class called the ‘Art of Subway Travel’.

While here, we have not been starving.  Our challenge here is picking the right restaurant.  On the recommendation of our hotel staff person, we went nearby and selected a beef fondue.  We think of fondue as a melted cheese-dipping meal.  With meat, you dip the meat in hot boiling oil.   What a surprise!

We did have something that was not a surprise - a good French onion soup.

These two days were fun and an adventure even with the gray skies.  Finally, toward the end of these days, 4 hours after our Eiffel Tower trek, the sun came out.  The Notre Dame was much more pleasing to look at.

And the Seine River, even though still above flood stage, has a special charm.