September 10, 2008
Wow, someone was sure looking out for us! The fire in the Chunnel between England and France was the day following our trip. If that fire had occurred immediately before or on the day we were traveling, we would have been in a Royale mess. We heard on the news it was going to take three days before the tunnel would be reopened. Three days with no accommodations and lugging around eight, 55 pound bags would not have been a pretty sight.
However, we made it just in time. The Euro Star station in London is modern and beautiful! Ed tried to take photos, but was promptly told no pictures were allowed and had to delete them. But, before getting caught, we had already taken two in the waiting lounge! The First Class accommodations in the station were quite comfortable. And, on the train, brunch and champagne made the trip go quickly. We really didn’t realize we had passed through the Chunnel until we were in France and checked GPS on the iPhone! It’s was a very quick trip. The countryside is mostly agriculture, but pleasant scenery.
When we arrived at the Paris, Gare du Nord train station, the waiting line for taxis looked like the ride queue for “Space Mountain.” Dorothea stood in line for the taxi while I, probably unnecessarily, watched our stuff. I doubt if any sensible thief would have risked a hernia trying to cart it off. Regardless, while standing there doing my duty, on three different times, gypsies (they didn’t actually have a sign saying they were gypsies but they did look the part), approached me asking if I could speak English. Responding, I replied with corresponding hand gesture, “Nien, Ich nich, sprecken Deutshe, verboten, verboten, nadda, nadda, vamoose!” They kind of looked at me quizzickly and left.
On the way to the hotel, we asked the taxi driver if he took British Sterling Pounds for payment. Emphatically, he said no. Having no other currency except credit cards, which were not accepted, I had to come up with a way to make payment. Thinking I had thought of everything by opening an HSBC Bank account before I left the States, I asked him to stop and wait while I made an Euro withdraw from one of the Paris branches. That’s when the fun began. I tried my brand new HSBC debit card and couldn’t get it to work. I went inside to get help which made things even more complicated. After about a half an hour of trying to communicate with the French Bank reps and my US rep, the taxi driver came in, visibly irritated, speaking a mile a minute in French, which I didn’t understand but knew he wasn’t too pleased with this American. He got in the middle of the discussions and things got deeper and deeper and I’m thinking, this cab fare is going cost more than our plane tickets. Finally, HSBC gave me a 100 Euro emergency advance and we were on our way.
Our Paris hotel, the Royal Cardinal, is located in the Latin Quarter, close to St. Germain, Notre Dame and is centralized for seeing many of the sites. But the hotel . . . built before Napoleon’s parents were born, well, it left something to be desired. Not anything close to the hotel in London, which was fabulous. Live and learn. But, the architectural sights and the whole Parisian atmosphere made it bearable. The buildings and statuary are truly amazing. The effort that went into creating both is beyond my imagination. Having designed many and built a few homes, it is truly remarkable what was done with limited knowledge and tools of 500 to 700 years ago.
We walked to Notre Dame – what a beautiful cathedral. Seeing it up close and personal is just jaw dropping. We were lucky enough to see a special video presentation in the cathedral at 9:00 pm which reviews the history of Notre Dame.
Brasseries are everywhere and as they say – wine truly is cheaper than water! Patisseries tempt you at every corner with their pastries, desserts and breads.
Ed and Dorothea
Wow, someone was sure looking out for us! The fire in the Chunnel between England and France was the day following our trip. If that fire had occurred immediately before or on the day we were traveling, we would have been in a Royale mess. We heard on the news it was going to take three days before the tunnel would be reopened. Three days with no accommodations and lugging around eight, 55 pound bags would not have been a pretty sight.
However, we made it just in time. The Euro Star station in London is modern and beautiful! Ed tried to take photos, but was promptly told no pictures were allowed and had to delete them. But, before getting caught, we had already taken two in the waiting lounge! The First Class accommodations in the station were quite comfortable. And, on the train, brunch and champagne made the trip go quickly. We really didn’t realize we had passed through the Chunnel until we were in France and checked GPS on the iPhone! It’s was a very quick trip. The countryside is mostly agriculture, but pleasant scenery.
When we arrived at the Paris, Gare du Nord train station, the waiting line for taxis looked like the ride queue for “Space Mountain.” Dorothea stood in line for the taxi while I, probably unnecessarily, watched our stuff. I doubt if any sensible thief would have risked a hernia trying to cart it off. Regardless, while standing there doing my duty, on three different times, gypsies (they didn’t actually have a sign saying they were gypsies but they did look the part), approached me asking if I could speak English. Responding, I replied with corresponding hand gesture, “Nien, Ich nich, sprecken Deutshe, verboten, verboten, nadda, nadda, vamoose!” They kind of looked at me quizzickly and left.
On the way to the hotel, we asked the taxi driver if he took British Sterling Pounds for payment. Emphatically, he said no. Having no other currency except credit cards, which were not accepted, I had to come up with a way to make payment. Thinking I had thought of everything by opening an HSBC Bank account before I left the States, I asked him to stop and wait while I made an Euro withdraw from one of the Paris branches. That’s when the fun began. I tried my brand new HSBC debit card and couldn’t get it to work. I went inside to get help which made things even more complicated. After about a half an hour of trying to communicate with the French Bank reps and my US rep, the taxi driver came in, visibly irritated, speaking a mile a minute in French, which I didn’t understand but knew he wasn’t too pleased with this American. He got in the middle of the discussions and things got deeper and deeper and I’m thinking, this cab fare is going cost more than our plane tickets. Finally, HSBC gave me a 100 Euro emergency advance and we were on our way.
Our Paris hotel, the Royal Cardinal, is located in the Latin Quarter, close to St. Germain, Notre Dame and is centralized for seeing many of the sites. But the hotel . . . built before Napoleon’s parents were born, well, it left something to be desired. Not anything close to the hotel in London, which was fabulous. Live and learn. But, the architectural sights and the whole Parisian atmosphere made it bearable. The buildings and statuary are truly amazing. The effort that went into creating both is beyond my imagination. Having designed many and built a few homes, it is truly remarkable what was done with limited knowledge and tools of 500 to 700 years ago.
We walked to Notre Dame – what a beautiful cathedral. Seeing it up close and personal is just jaw dropping. We were lucky enough to see a special video presentation in the cathedral at 9:00 pm which reviews the history of Notre Dame.
Brasseries are everywhere and as they say – wine truly is cheaper than water! Patisseries tempt you at every corner with their pastries, desserts and breads.
Ed and Dorothea
