Around Paris: our last full day in France

November 15, 2009

Weather: sunny

Today was supposed to be raining, but of course most of the day was sunny instead, and warmer than when we were here in October, with lots of leaves left on the trees. We had a lovely time walking along the Seine River, past Notre Dame, the Louvre and the Musée d'Orsay in the pleasant fall weather, watching the joggers, cyclists and families out for a stroll. The contrast between our mental states now and a month ago, when we arrived jet-lagged and mostly unfamiliar with the left bank of Paris, is interesting. Now we know our way around and what to ignore, how to get where we want to go, and most important, the location of good patisseries and brasseries.

We started out in brilliant sunshine to tour the city on foot.

The little park behind Notre Dame was empty of tourists this time of year.

On Sundays, some of the roads along the Seine are closed to car traffic and reserved for skaters and cyclists.

In the late afternoon, we returned to the chambre d'hote and hauled the bikes and their cases up the stairs to the landing outside our room where Al packed them up in preparation for the flight home tomorrow. Mme. C. was so taken with our “petite” Bike Fridays that she brought a gentleman friend upstairs to see them in their suitcases. We had a nice chat and tried to tell him (en français) that the suitcases could be used as trailers, but we didn't know the French word for “trailer”. Luckily we remembered that the packing instruction booklet showed the BF logo complete with trailer, and then he understood.

The staircase. Perfect for hauling bicycles up and down four flights.

The familiar room at the chambre d'hote.

We took a final evening stroll through the neighbourhood already feeling nostalgic and wishing we could stay longer. We've been told by people (who live in Paris) that Paris is “not really France”, but rather a sort of special case, partly due to its size, and quite distinct from regional, rural France. We don't know enough to say what this might mean, but we do think the parts of rural France we've seen are truly excellent for cycling, and we look forward to returning sometime to try other roads and other hills.

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