Standing in the shadows

Finally the sun has been poking its head out from behind the clouds and we can feel some warmth on our bodies, but like Melbourne, it changes so you can't really get bored with the weather.

The day started with an early ride to pick up my Parisians Aussie mate Leigh. He’s a bit like my guardian angel really. Stops me from getting lost or run over. Having said that I find the drivers are mostly courteous to cyclists. I see them riding through red lights and not wearing helmets, mothers, old people, etc, it just seems to flow and mainly without any angry tooting. Drivers seem more aggressive towards pedestrians here.

Just a hint for future Aussie travellers who haven’t been here - look right but both ways constantly if you don’t want them to get you.

About getting lost without Leigh, I seem to always go in the wrong direction. I think this is due to my internal compass being set for the southern hemisphere.

I did finally arrive at the Cipale Velodrome to meet Michel for a training session and my Leigh had his first ride on a track bike - fixed wheel and no brakes - I think he might be a convert.

I’ve mentioned this before but the Velodrome is named after Jacques Anquetil, the great French Tour de France rider and the scene of several Tour finishes. For me its awe inspiring to pedal around this grand old Velodrome.

After the training session, we popped off for coffee at the Café de Sport, as you would!!!!

Michel Briat is no stranger to Australia, well Sydney really. He's been to Oz for the World Masters Track Championships and lives in Paris. This is his  home track where he trains. He tells me the current Elite World Sprint Champion trains here as well

Michel poses here with my guardian angel in Paris, Leigh Pascoe. When I am in Paris, Leigh protects me from getting lost, the traffic and my general well being. Oh yes I forgot, he is also a great interpreter for Michel, who speaks no English and the hopeless me who has virtually no French except the thanks, hello and goodbyes.

The afternoon was dedicated to shopping the two great emporiums of Paris (neither had a bike shop), Galleries Lafayette and Bon Marche. Galleries Lafayette we have visited on previous trips and had lunch in their cafeteria. Salmon with a carafe of Rose went down well. Above the cafeteria is a great rooftop viewing area and it is at a height that offers views of the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, Sacre Cour and just in front is the Paris Opera House.

After lunch, I’m dragged off to Bon Marche, kicking and screaming, although I changed my mind as we arrived. Sue’s favourite part of Bon Marche is the food department. Mmmmm, wonderful choices here. I wandered over to the wine section to find that there were a few selections of Aussie wines, however no where our best. Penfolds had their Rawson’s Retreat and Koonunga Hill, great BBQ wines but not at 10 Euro. Much better and lower cost French wines are available here so why would you but a Penfolds.

Two reasons I enjoy Galleries Lafayette is for their old style Coles/Myer cafeteria, with a pichet of vin, naturally. Now some people when they take a photo try to take away the "get in the way" stuff, but I Like to think they add something. Don't You?

I thought that this moustache added to the Shiseido lady's elegance.

Views from Galleries Lafayette Rooftop

The Arc de Triomphe pokes above the rooftops of the Apartment buildings of Paris.

Sacre Cour in Montmarte - definately a must to see while in Paris.

Still yet to climb to the top but you miss seeing it when your on it. One day maybe.

Bon Marche and the foodie heaven building that we enjoy best.

Chocolat at Bon Marche and this is just a minute example of the choices.

All the best in French bubble here.

Just a silly photo of a poster that seemed to appeal to me at the time.

Being Bonsoir time, or in Oz, "beer 'O' clock" we decided to sit in our local Brasserie and watch the local human traffic and here are a couple of examples.

Walking workers on the way home

I just wish I could getaway with this sort of dress sense.

A casual walk home and a quiet night in the apartment saw the end of the day for us. We almost felt a bit like locals in a way. We’ve started Bonjouring (is that a word?) familiar faces in the street lately.

Tomorrow - a big day at the Saint Denis Cathedral and dinner at Sarkozy’s restaurant.

A Brocante and Vincennes Finally

On my ride the day before to Vincennes we passed a Brocante. In France a Brocante is an antique or trash & treasure fair. This one went over the Easter period and I thought that Sue might find it of interest as we’d been to several in rural France. A Brocante in Paris didn't have the same atmosphere the one's we experienced in rural villages. The items ranged from classic to junk but all at classic prices. Interesting just the same - and some of the most interesting pieces on show were the customers. People watching in Paris is a past-time in itself. The Brocante took in the distance from one Metro station to the next. There were a few items I would like to have purchased, however I might try Ebay when I get home.

Thinking of our luggage weight, we didn't make any purchases but it was fun looking.

Cutlery, postcards and crockery.

Some great Citroen Traction Avant miniatures but at 40 euro - no thanks

This particular card appealed to me. I've never had my bottom groped before, how sad is that?

So we caught the Metro to Vincennes - but first a little story for my cycling friends back home.
Just recently a young Australian sprint track cyclist came second in the World Championships to a Frenchman in Copenhagen. His name is Shane Perkins. I rode with his father Daryl many times and before I came to France, Daryl did ssome work on my bike to bring with me. He told me of his experiences racing in Belgium and France. He would train at the Velodrome and in the parklands of Vincennes before his World Title attempts.


As we arrive via Metro, there was the entrance drawbridge to the grounds but we thought lunch might be in order beforehand. It was a great decision as we lucked upon a great restaurant just across the road. How boring are we, both ordering the Confit de Canard, AGAIN. But the wine, superb. It was a 10 year old Bordeaux. For 19 euro. Now tell me where in Melbourne, you can buy a year 2000 Bordeaux for $27.00?

If you ever get the chance to visit Paris and Vincennes, then lunch at "A Table des Troys" is a must. A great menu and superb wine list at good value prices.

On our past visits to Paris, I’ve ridden many times pass the Castle of Vincennes on the way to train in the parkland which house the Cipale (Jacques Anquetil) Velodrome.

The parklands were the hunting forests of the Capetian monarchs of France in the 12 century. Today as you ride through the parklands you can imagine Royalty on their horses with hunting dogs in the name of sport. That is until you see the homeless amongst the forest in their small tent cities. One must wonder how they survived the harsh recent winter.

The entrance to Vincennes. A moat surrounds the outer grounds.

The castle grounds today contain the Keep, the Holy Chapel, and the classical pavilions built during the 1600s. About 250 metres apart, these huge buildings were the separate abodes for the King and Queen. Sue said that we need such a situation where she could leave her shoes where she felt and the same with me concerning my Cds and bike stuff.

The earlier castle and Donjon dating from the 11th century.

As well as being overawed by the big picture, certain details took my interest. Graffiti is carved into the dungeons by the prisoners, including the Marquis de Sade, Diderot and Mirabeau. Later prisoners were transferred to the Bastille.

Another moat surrounded the castle. Entering by the drawbridge, you needed to climb to an upper level to enter the castle by another drawbridge. You can see why this castle was "almost" safe.

Graffiti by the prisoners in 1871.

In the mid 1600s King Louis spent time there before moving to Versailles. During the 1800s Napoleon used it as a military base.

The Chapel founded in 1379 by Charles V and completed in the 1500s

Surrounding the courtyard of the latter bulidings (mid 1600s) were all these classic sculptures. The male nude figures seemed to be without their penis as each stature had this part of their anatomy broken away - I know it was a harsh winter in Paris, but I don't think this was the cause.. I'm sure there was some historic point to this but I've totally forgotten why. Maybe some one can make a comment on the subject please.

This picture gives the extent of the moat that surrounded the property, keeping in mind that there was a further moat that surrounded the actual castle within the grounds.

Its difficult to not stop taking photos in the surroundings of where the kings and queens of France lived their lives more than 800 years ago. There are so many images you see.

It had been a long day with a lot of walking and so the end of the day came early with a night of left overs, reading and a little French TV. Well afterall, we are now old folk. I hear from another room, Sue saying, "talk for yourself".
 
Tomorrow is an exciting day for me. I get to spend time with my Paris friends Leigh and Michel at the Paris Velodrome and doing a little training. Possibly I will meet some of Michel's friends.
My penance will be to take Sue shopping in the Arvo....
I'll let you know tomorrow

The Rain in Saint Germain, Book Shops and CDs

The Left Bank of Paris is a little like home to us. It’s the first place we stayed in 2006 and again in 2007, we rented an apartment for a week in St Andre des Arts closer to the Seine off Boulevard St Michel. It was a loft style apartment with the sleeping quarters above the living area.

These two street signs give us a feeling of a second home. A bit touristy but close to everything.

We once again started the day by emerging from the Metro, this time at Boulevard Saint Michel with anticipation of returning to familiar sights. We weren’t disappointed as the familiar scenes appeared as we hit the street. The cafe, the fountain, our old street and the book shops were all there to greet us once again.

Sue wanted to buy some English novels and there are a few book shops specialising in English language literature in this area. Gibert Jeune on Place Saint Michel was our first stop. I even purchased a book titled “Paris, a Secret History” written in a not quite, but similar manner to Bill Bryson. It starts from the early settlement of the Seine islands by the Parisii Celts and progresses to the time of Caesar’s widening his power through Gaul. He gave the area the name Lutetia when he defeated the Parisii after a short battle. The Parisii were shrewd enough to realise more was to be gained by a short altercation before getting on with their lives under Roman rule.

Many signs of Roman settlement still stand in Paris, mainly on the Left Bank. Last year we visited the remains of a Roman arena, now a small park. Also in the Sorbonne are the remains of Roman baths.
I posted these on my "leapingleapingleonsfrenchfancies" blog on a previous visit.
But I digress, the reason for returning to the Left Bank was for Sue to buy some English language books and unknown to me at the time was to buy a very, very expensive handbag. Walking up Boulevard Saint Michel to Boulevard Saint Germain, the heavens opened once again and it was up with the brollies. The Boulevard also has a couple of great shops with both second hand and special priced CD shops and the rain was my excuse to pop in. I can spend hours checking out CD shops, hence there are five French artist Cds in my luggage to enjoy when I get home.

One of the book shops I really did want to see (and I will return to before going home) was Shakespeare and Co. It has a rich history of selling English language books in Paris since the early 1900s. It sits in the shadows of Notre Dame at 37 Rue de la Bûcherie and has its own website. If you like literature go to http://www.shakespeareandcompany.com/

Initially started by Sylvia Beach, I became intrigued by the book shop's history and found this on Wikipedia,

The original bookstore's proprietor was Sylvia Beach. It opened in 1919 and was located at 8 rue Dupuytren. In May 1921, Beach moved the store to a larger location at 12 rue de l'Odéon, where it remained until 1941. During this era, the store was considered to be a center of Anglo/American literary culture in Paris. The shop was often visited by artists of the "Lost Generation," such as Ernest Hemingway, Ezra Pound, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Gertrude Stein, George Antheil, Man Ray and James Joyce. The contents of the store were considered high quality and reflected Beach's own literary taste. Shakespeare and Company, as well as its literary denizens, was repeatedly mentioned in Hemingway's A Moveable Feast. Patrons could buy or borrow books like D. H. Lawrence's controversial Lady Chatterley's Lover, which had been banned in England and the United States.

You could spend hours discovering the most obscure English language books in its narrow, winding hallways of bookshelves.

It was time to consider lunch and so we walked through the narrow meandering streets of the 5e to discover the enchanting church of Saint Severin. Although we knew of its existence on previous visits, we’d never actually found it. The leadlight windows, the ceiling architecture and the fact that it was established in the 15 century made it all the more interesting. It is believed it was built on the foundations of the earlier chapel of the hermit Severin where it takes it's name. My Paris book tells me it was also built on an earlier burial ground.

As we walked away from the church we located a street full of comic book shops.

I don't know much about Tin Tin but gather it is extremely popular in Europe - can anyone explain please.

I have a friend in OZ who is an absolute fanatical Tin Tin fan. Being an avid collector, he probably has seen most of what is available but I post these pics because he is a good friend with a very sad obsession.

Lunch was galettes at a creperie on Boulevard Saint Michel and at the right time as the rain started again. We sat beside the quintessential elderly French gentleman with a hearing issue. He smiled and made nice small talk on leaving. I had the salmon galette while Sue had the mushroom galette. We swapped half way. Galettes and crepes are an inexpensive lunch in our experience throughout France and even in Paris.

A short walk back down Saint Michel and I was 200 euro poorer. Sue found a handbag and purse to take back home.

No wonder this bike is chained to the down-pipe. It is a true classic English Raleigh and fully chromed. The saddle for those who know is a vintage leather Brooks. Very nice.

Finally at home and it was a feet up rest before popping out to dinner. Our friends Sophie and Leigh had invited us to their home in the 11e for dinner with another couple from London who had just returned from a few days Skiing in the Alps. Kate was an Aussie but had lived away from home for 20 years from memory and Jonathon was a native of Leeds. A great night was had and one we can put in our box of travel memories.

Not an uncommon sight in Paris is the unbelievable amount of cigarette buts littering the streets, however there is very little doggie poo visible these days.

We concluded a great day by hitting the Metro with some trepidation at 11.00 pm. Something we would hesitate doing in Melbourne but we were assured by Leigh and Sophie that it was not a concern in Paris.

We arrived home safely to live another day.

Sunday - a quiet day with a ride in the arvo and Lapin for dinner.
Most things were closed, the streets were quiet generally and the weather started clearing. We decided to check out a museum not far up the road dealing with "Inventors and the progress of unique scientific and technical heritage".
The most interesting section for me was in the restored chapel. On display were early Aero and  Auto inventions against a backdrop of the early chapel.
 

Last year we passed by one of these windmills in the Loire, but didn't quite understand how it all worked. Note the four legs at the base, they of course stay in place while the actual windmill would swivel on the base to take advantage of the wind regardless of direction.

Oh no, not another bike - I heard that, but this is special. Rims and sections of the frame are made of wood with metal connecting pieces. Just a great piece of Velo d'Art, don't you think?

Quite an amazing display of Aero and Auto inventions of the past. Man has always dreamt of flying. Other examples in this museum showed that some failed.

This machine was a cross between Aero and Auto. It had an Aero motor, yet a very racing car body of the era. Note the back wheel on the right. Both back wheels were covered in for the effect of cutting down wind turbulance - nothin is new, cyclists use disc wheels for the same advantage today.

Food and Wine of the day

Beautiful Bunny for dinner, Sue purchased a fresh "Lapin" from our local Boucherie.

And me, I'm in charge of wine - check these 1/2 bottles for approx AUS$7.00 each. Vintage 2005 and 2006. Bordeaux wines are more to the taste of Australians, where the middle bottle is from Provence, south of France and is lighter, bit like a Pinot. The Buzet comes from middle France in the Lot district.
 
The main training area for Parisienne cyclists use the parklands of Vincennes, about 10 kms from inner Paris. As you ride towards the parklands you pass by Vincennes Castle. Tomorrow's blog takes us there.

Lost blog

Last night I prepared the blog for our dayy in St Germain - St Michel. I lost it and started again. This morning I had not quite formatted it when I mistakenly published it, and then deleted it again.
Oh well, I do it tonight.

The Champs Elysee and Autos

Friday morning was a slow start after celebrations the night before. A slightly heavy head was difficult to raise from the pillow and the Doona was comforting on a cold and wet morning.

Today’s plan was to promenade the Champs Elysees in the 8e, something we had not done before on foot. We’d passed by in an open top tourist bus in a past visit to view the Arc d’Triomphe which gives a fleeting sight of the monument as the bus rushes through avoiding the traffic going in all directions. I'm sure I heard the driver saying, " I'm BIGGER than you, move it" back then.


We walked down rue Etienne Marcel to the local Metro station and once again did battle with the commuting population. To me its out of my comfort zone, travelling intimately, shoulder to shoulder with persons unknown. One has do this sometimes to get where you want to go I guess (yes, that’s the snob in me!!!)

Brrrr, its very cold, hurry up and take the photo.

The relief sculptures of the Arc de Triomphe intrigued me the most. Napoleon commissioned the monument in 1809, yet it took to 1836 to be completed. By this time his empire was nearing collapse.

We emerged from station Metro George V after a change of trains at the dreaded Chatelet changeover. Chatelet I believe has a population of lost tourists wandering the tunnels down there that have never found their way out.

Although the sun was not out, it was nice to at least see sky. The Champs Elysees, a different world with the top fashion houses promoting their brands, not that I know much about brand names. I’ll leave that to Sue to tell you. I think she visited most of them.
What did amaze me about the grand boulevard, knowing that this is where the Tour de France final stage is, was the uphill gradient to the sprint finish. Watching it on TV at home, you don't get the full feeling of the indurance that would be required to win this last stage. For final chance sprinters like Robbie McEwan, an Assie now living in Belgium, it is perfect.

He even writes his name like me - which worried me a little when I signed the credit card receipt. I thought they might consider it a bit of mischief on my part.

Feeling a bit peckish, we decided it was about lunch time. We came across “Leon of Bruxelles”. We don’t have this chain of eateries in Australia. Their specialty is mussels in all forms, curried (Sue‘s choice, and with pasta, shrimp and calamari, my choice). I watched a young Asian woman eating this dish and it looked tempting so ordered it. As I was waiting for mine to come, I realised that this young lady had never eaten a shrimp before, well not with clothes on, the shrimp - not her. Normally you would attack the shrimp with your fingers, firstly ripping the head away, then peeling away the body shell along with the legs. By holding the tail, you would pop the tasty morsel into your mouth and throw the tail into the bowl supplied. My "object of interest" was on a very steep learning curve. She knew to break the head off, a good start, but with the shrimp sitting “on a fork” she studied it for what seemed like several minutes before popping it into her mouth with the tail hanging out between her lips. I watched as she began to crunch the body of the shrimp and swallow shell and all, except for the tail. The second shrimp, she carefully undressed before swallowing, but still delicately using her fork to hold it with.

Yes, I imagine eating at Leon’s of Bruxelles was quite an experience for her.
Our frites moules were washed down with a Pelforth Blonde for Sue and for me a Pelforth Brune. I have never seen these beers in Australia but are a favourite of ours since our first trip in 2006.

The Peugeot showroom seemed to attract the most traffic with people taking pics of this futuristic concept car. Having owned a Peugeot 505 GTI and a 307, I've never thought of Peugeot more than an Australian Holden but I have to admit this was something else.

In the land of OZ during the 70s, Peugeot bikes were big, not outstanding but certainly popular due their great rider names. Can anyone name a few???

The fold up bike from Mercedes-Benz was to my mind more innovated than their well designed cars.

And now ready to ride the streets of Paris and then take to the Metro - and all for only 1500 euro. In Oz luka, about $2200 maybe. I really want one Sue, can I, can I, can I, pleeeese.

Back out in the Champs after lunch saw the skies start to cloud over and the thought of an afternoon bike ride started to fade for me. What did appeal to me though were the showrooms of Citroen, Renault, Peugeot, Mercedes and surprisingly Toyota. Being a Citroen fan, I was really impressed with the way they displayed their range. All four marques showcased their competition vehicles as well.

This was the most intriguing THING that Toyota had to offer, not quite sure what to make of it. Does it go on the road or the footpath? Maybe I could use it on the Velodrome!!!!! Or is it a Grand Prix wheelchair?

As I was absorbed in the Citroen showroom, the weather had really changed for the worse and so did the traffic - gridlock on the Champs, umbrellas turning inside out and driving rain. While cosy in the Citroen showroom, I pondered on what would be our next car. The  new C4 Diesel appeals, just that little bit quirky to suit my nature, and so frugal on fuel.

An offering from Renault. My past Renaults were a Renault Dauphine which I truly loved as my first real car and a Renault 16 which was boringly practical.

I really want one of these - Citroen C4 with GRUNT!

And Citroen's concept car. Black, orange and pink, hmmmm - not quite sure about that. Looks like a Toon-Car doesn't it?

The Citroen showroom was I think on 3 or 4 levels and you climbed by spiral staircase to the concept cat at the very top. The glass front of the building was like a stained glass window with the abstract image of Citroen's double chevron logo.

The stained glass window looking down on the Champs Elysees while the rain pelts down on the cars and people below. Sue is down there getting terribly wet, POOR SUE.

And this is what it was like from the outside - they were out to get us.

Ooops' need to go now, I see Sue outside looking very unhappy.

What Leon fails to mention is that I had a small umbrella and he had none. So while he spent his 3,978 hours looking at all things Citroen, I decided to pop down to Monoprix just a little bit down the road and buy him one to protect his poor head. No good deed goes unpunished. While I was inside, the bad weather turned nasty, with the wind turning the rain into a horizontal force to be reckoned with. Umbrella went from outside out to inside out and back twice and I went from damp to sopping in the space of seconds! The trip home on the crowded Metro was a thing of wonder. Everyone was at least damp, most were somewhat smelly and close, and of course all were in grand humour.

I've run out of Arty-Farty, going Whimsical for a while