I was early and eager to get onto the sleeper, the Cassiopeia City Night train from Munich to Paris, to see how this was going to work. I had googled to get some info…"train sleeper etiquette" to be precise. The only info I found was to wear loosely fitting clothes and that it would be “close”. On my bottom bunk #32 there was a folded sheet and blanket, and pillow. I stowed my suitcase and backpack under the bed-oops make that bunk. I heard a baby crying insistently in the distance, but soon that crying was in my compartment! His apologetic parents from Long Island explained that he had been asleep and had just woken up. He did go to sleep quickly! A young couple came in and each took a top bunk on either side. The train pulled out of the station at 10:48; we were due to arrive at Gare d’Est in Paris at 11:15. (It would normally have arrived two hours earlier, but construction on the lines caused a detour.) I tried to sleep….The bunk was very narrow-maybe 30”? I did feel like I was leaning into the center of the compartment, but I never fell out of my bunk! I did finally fall asleep in an on-again off-again sort of sleep! At Stuttgart a man stumbled in to spend the night in the remaining open bunk. At maybe 8, someone came through passing out boxes of (Nesquick) chocolate milk and packaged croissants. There was NO coffee to be found anywhere! We arrived in Paris on schedule, and I bolted to get to my destination, as much to move forward as to get out of the compartment. I’d rate the experience a B-; the Orient Express would have been better, but that was not an option!
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| Frederique painted this blue cow! |
I had directions to take the bus 47 to rue Pascal 87 in the 13th arrondisment. It was all quite simple. Couch surfer Frederique met me at the door of her charming flat on the 1st floor. My room with a shower and sink was on the 1st floor; the WC was just down the hall. She and her friend Bruno were having lunch, and she asked me to join them. I showered, did a wash, and took a nap, as we were going to the Nuit Blanche. This translates as White Night, but means endless night. http://www.paris.fr/loisirs/les-grands-rendez-vous/nuits-blanches/p6806 about 7PM. This fabulous event has been held every year for the past ten years. Frederique had told me about this when I first emailed her, and that was one of the reasons I opted to stay with her. This year it especially took place around Montmartre and Pigalle. We saw maybe eight different things. One was a short film called "No Man is an Island", a wonderful three minute film, where a variety of men in a bar end up all singing, “Crying”.
There was group of people dancing all sorts of dances in a square-tango, rock and roll, Big Band. Each group came in and danced around the outdoor space; then the next group came in; etc. Each group was dressed appropriately for the respective dance and wearing head phones listening to the music for their dance. It probably did not last more than ten minutes and was great fun to watch! We stopped to eat in an outdoor bistro (not great food on that street) about 10 and continued on. We were back at her place by 2!!! It was not unlike First Night in Boston but with much more original and creative pieces and WARMER. The weather was spectacular for an event like that on October 1st! Frrederique said that there had been nights when she had gotten home at 4!
Sunday morning I slept until 10, when I got up and headed off to take advantage of Paris free first Sunday of the month museum event. First stop was the Orangerie, as I had not been there since my first trip to Paris with Melissa and Peter. The line in the sun looked daunting as well as hot, but it only lasted twenty minutes, so it was worth it. I visited all the Matisse and some of the Modigliani, and moved on. (They also have many of the Renoir “Water Lilies”, but I passed on those as I have seen them in different places, including the MFA. Plus I figured those would be very crowded.
And it was another wonderful day, so I really wanted to be outdoors, so I figured out how to get to the Rodin Museum. Google maps said it would be twenty minutes, but it took me longer. (Tough to go west as the directions say without a compass!) I had visualized sitting outside enjoying the gardens and statues….They have an outdoor cafeteria, which WAS my first stop. THEN I saw the sign apologizing for the gardens being closed for renovation. (Is there a pattern here? How many things have I tried to see so far that were closed or partially closed?) Anyhow it was not too crowded, and the gardens were not totally closed, so it was really a pleasant stop. Lunch of the traditional ham and cheese baguette was great!
I had never visited the Bois de Boulogne, and again wanting to savor the sunny day in Paris, I headed that way. The Metro was a bit of a challenge, but I did get there eventually. What I didn’t factor in was that I would be “running out of gas”! So I really did not get the true experience there….Back to Frederique’s for a pasta veggie dinner, and I was off to bed to have a full Monday!
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| Sign in Metro |
The 13th Arrondisement was new to me, and I decided I wanted to enjoy some of its offerings. Practically around the corner is the Gobelins Museum, where textiles were manufactured long ago. I had looked it up online; their website said it would be open at 11. NOT true….Next stop was the Jardin des Plantes, a wonderful space of gardens as well as green houses, museums, etc. A gym class was using the periphery of the gardens for running practice! The Lutece Ruins are just a few blocks away; they were discovered in the 18th century which Victor Hugo helped to save. Amazing to think of gladiators in this space! Then on to the Contrascape, a square, where Rabelais used to hang out…touristy, but time for lunch too! Last place on the agenda for the day was the architectural museum overlooking the Eiffel Tower. Well, I really liked this museum and would have found it vastly more interesting had I bought the audio! NEXT TIME….Everything was in French. Back to Frederique, where I worked on this blog, before she and I walked over the L’Alouette, a local restaurant, for dinner. (And after all the times I have sung “Alouette”, I NOW know that this is the French word for lark…)
Next stop, Metz, to spend four days with Renee and Marcel….
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