After finally having digested the holistic meal - did not take long as most of it was channelled through my aura it was time for me to cook once more. Won't bore you too much but suffice to say it involved chicken and breadcrumbs - yes, a schnitzel. Would you believe another thing I have never done? Seems like I never left the house, well if that is the case I certainly never entered the kitchen. Would you believe I could not find breadcrumbs in the supermarket so had to make my own. How many housewives do that??? So here is the result.....please note that the omelet on the salad was used making the leftover egg wash....waste not want not I say. And it was all washed down with a delicious Cloudy Bay from the land of the long white cloud.
But enough of this and on to more European adventures. As Stephan was abandoning me for something called work in Turkey, I was at a loss. But wait I was saved by the arrival of my dear friends Penny and Darren who have also given up work (well, they are on long service leave) and left their teaching behind to explore the wilds of Europe and then do an eight week trek to Santiago in Spain.
I needed no encouragement to jump on the interweb and find how to get myself to Paris. I was beside myself when I found the cheapest fare was on Air France as guess what, I have not flown on them before. Wait for it....it was also to be in economy class! You will be even more thrilled to hear that as it was such a short flight that there is only minimal description I can give you of the service (there was little) and the in flight comfort (there were rows and rows of seats going on forever.....). Still I can share some pictures.
21 August 2012
So the day of travel arrived and S and I whisked ourselves off to the aerodrome in the SLK. S had received some indication that his Swiss flight to Istanbul may be delayed. Seemed unlikely as this is Switzerland and you can set your watches by how trains and planes run on time here. It was actually true as we were to discover and the flight was delayed. I am sure there is a Swiss Airlines employee who is now out of a job. After some time the lovely agents were able to change his flights and we also got to overhear of a family who missed their return flight to Tel Aviv by three days!!!!
Goodness, this story has taken some time and I have not even got to Paris yet. Heard there is not much to do or see there so this should be quick!
In the end my flight ended up leaving before S's flight and an hour later I was in glamorous Paris, well not the airport. Let me tell you, Terminal 2G, the regional terminal, looks like some sort of prison. Bienvenue, I don't think so!!
So it was off to Le Marceau Bastille Hotel near, funnily enough, Bastille and where Penny and Darren had secured an apartment. Lovely little boutique hotel with bright and airy rooms and big for Paris!
I had to wait for Penny and Darren to come and meet me as Penny had a meeting with a giant meringue which clearly outranked me!! Just kidding...they came to the hotel and it was great to see them and we celebrated in true Aussie style and went and had a beer! It was then time to pick up some supplies for a pre-dinner snack and aperitif. This was had in P&D's groovy Paris Pied a Terre. Penny managed to throw back the wine like there was no tomorrow!!
We then found a little restaurant nearby as Penny was dry and needed more wine (as of course did I...I don't like being dry). Lovely little place with fun staff and some good traditional fare. Everyone loves a good coq.......au vin!.
22 August 2012
I wandered over to P&D's for breakfast to discover that Penny was moving a bit slower this morning. The poor lass was suffering with the effects of the vin blanc. We have all been there but here not having memory of the naked run down the street was a bit alarming.
I must press on as we had a carefully timed and full schedule to complete by days end. First stop, where it all ends, the local Paris Cemetery - Pere Lachaise. Why go there you ask? It is full of famous dead people....would be less fun for them if they were alive! So we donned our walking shoes and off we hiked. Please note that P is the tour master, or was it that D and I were too scared to challenge her?
The cemetery is quite beautiful and we spent a couple of hours wandering the environs. Some of those interred here include Oscar Wilde (below top left), Jim Morrison, Chopin, Marcel Proust, Edith Paif and Julia Gillard's political career. We did also wander through the Columbarium (two lower pictures) but not after having to coax P as she believed it would be "boring and just full of boxes". Some tourists are tough customers!
There are also a series of memorials including those for the holocaust and for air disasters such as the Air France flight AF447 which crashed into the Atlantic in 2009. As someone who jumps on the occasional jet, it does make you reflect, yes, a sombre moment for me.
We were then allowed a little reprieve from the walking on cobblestones and had a bite to eat at a local cafe.
Time was a wastin' so were were off once more to visit some local parks with some of the best views in Paris per P's trusty Paris App. I am glad we were in a group as some of the neighbourhoods we has to traverse to get to these "views" were less then savoury. P kept referring to them as "up and coming" and "you won't recognise them next time you are here".....I think real estate agency is her true calling. Imagine what she teaches her students!! That said managing to avoid knife attacks, drug deals and crazy people was all worth it for the view from the top of Parc de Belleville. In fact one review I read called the neighbourhood "gritty".
Our march continued to another park with more views....some more attractive than others....
Our feet were basically numb by this stage but Penny enticed us to keep walking with a promise of a beer. We did get to take the Metro which was nice. The promised beer arrived in the surrounds of the Louvre...aaah, sweet nectar. We then went to Musee L'Orangerie where some amazing Monet murals are housed.
It was then back (by foot of course) to the hotel/apartment to meet Penny's friends from Germany Rose and Uli for dinner. So with bloodied toes we continued but my energy returned when I discovered a cool shirt shop and bought four shirts!! As an aside the sales assistant was from the USA, married an Australian in Adelaide and had her honeymoon in Broome! The things you find out!
Dinner was had locally (and much less alcohol) at a cafe and it was wonderful to catch up with everyone. It was not a late night as frankly we were knackered!! It was off to bed and rest my weary toes.
23 August 2012
It is morning once more which means another croissant for breakfast and the promise of a river cruise with much less walking. We all met at about 9:15 am to head off to our cruise through the canals. Probably not widely known that Paris has a canal network that has a series of nine locks and part of the canal is now underground.
Anyone who has sailed through locks knows this is not a speedy experience, especially when there are nine! Still it was a lovely and relaxing start to the day with some lovely scenery.
Uli and Rosa
If you gotta go...
Heading into the underworld (above) and some local fireman out exercising (above right).
After disembarking near the Musee d'Orsay we wandered to find a little light lunch. This was followed by a gentle walk through the streets back to the hotel where I had to farewell P&D.
What a wonderful couple of days in Paris with some great friends, a lot of laughs and some sore feet but all worth it! My little flight home was just fine and I waited at the airport for S to come back from Turkey (it was that night in case you thought I decided to camp out there!).
Would only be home for one night as S had organised a wonderful weekend getaway. That will be coming up very soon.
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