June 4, 2024 to June 7, 2024
Three Days in Paris
Fun tennis and a Little Sightseeing
It’s been a a great few days. Our two-bedroom flat on the fourth floor of a traditional building is nice, with high ceilings, marred only by the fact that there is construction going on on the second floor that reverberates through the entire building. Since we were out during the day we were all able to laugh about it- it would have stunk if we had been hanging around. Our Air BNB host Julian stored our bikes in the bike shed on the ground floor. The shed was packed, but we put our bikes away for the duration of the trip so it didn’t matter.
The neighborhood was perfect, with lots of stores and restaurants, cafes and a 20 minute walk to Roland- Garos. It worked very well.
Dave and I follow tennis but have had only live viewing at one or two tournaments - Indian Wells and then the Swedish Open - and seeing a Grand Slam has been a bucket list item. Our friend Melinda is connected in the tennis community and she had friends in the French tennis federation. It was through those contacts that we were able to get tickets. Thank you Melinda and her buddies.
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The tournament was awesome. Very well run with typical French flare and we had good seats for two days in the main court - Philip Chatrier stadium. It turned out that our stupidly expensive tickets included entrance to a lounge where we got free drinks- coffee, wine, and lunch, and that was really fun. The French cook up laughably good meals even for a crowd and nothing is served in a plastic cup or on disposable plates. Our rosé was served in a wine glass with orange peel and rosemary. In addition, the presence of a bathroom in the lounge where you don’t have to line up was appreciated. We saw Coco Gauff play Ons Jabeur (really good match) and some upsets (Sabalenka lost to Andreev and Rybakina lost to Paolini), and also some excellent doubles.
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On our free day we took the RER train to Musee d'Orsay and had a great morning at the Museum. The presentation of the art in the context of the history of France was very helpful and while we were enjoying our tea break in the fancy Museum cafe, we were inspired to look up more French history to help us understand what was going on in the world. In a way, it made us understand the political dramas our world is going through right now- there is a cycle to these things - and we are in one right now. Afterwards we had a typical Parisian lunch at a bistro.
The neighborhood was great for seeing the tournament and the many local restaurants were perfect for our needs. Unlike in the rural parts of France, there was no need for prior reservations and we could pop down for dinner and find a place within a block of our accommodations. Each night we had a nice casual dinner with our friends. Paris prices were more expensive than in the country but not ridiculously so. This portion of the trip exceeded our expectations and I feel I have fallen in love with Paris again after a rough trip six years ago. All good.
We are off to Tours Friday morning on the train to begin a week in the Loire area with our friends. Weather report is positive. Fingers crossed.
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