Paris Continued

Tues 23 March: This begins our last week in Europe unless the threatened strike by British Airways stalls us. To be truthful, neither of us would mind. I'm not anxious to end this big adventure. Be that as it may, we awoke to a bright sunny day. We went to McDonald's for breakfast. Money is tight. They have almost as good coffee as we've had in Europe; the breakfast is satisfying, and it cost 5,20 euro for both of us. Compare that to 18-20 euro at a sit down restaurant. Moreover, at three blocks from our hotel and a dozen steps from our underground stop, it's convenient. After breakfast, we caught our crowded train, made a transfer, and stepped out into bright warm and welcome sunshine. It's the best weather day we've had. First, we walked to Rue Cler to find a "train boutique"- a place where we can make reservations for our Calais to Dover crossing, but it was closed. We walked the Rue Cler with it's wonderful markets, restaurants, and shops- a real slice of Parisian life.We stopped at this charming cheese shop. Keep in mind the French revere their cheeses. It is said that smelling good cheese is like smelling the feet of angels. I don't know about that, since I'm not likely to get close enough to an angel to smell its feet. Meanwhile, I'll take the cheese. With so many choices, Sheila and I could not make up our minds, so the shopkeeper suggested that we take a sampling which was a container with a variety of cheeses. Apparently we were not the only ones with our problem. The shopkeeper said, "But you must also have bread and only wine not water." as he pointed to the water bottle I carried. When we had to select from a variety of breads and wines, we had less problem making our own unguided selections. We asked if their was a problem drinking in the Tuilleries Garden where we were headed. "No problem he said," with a wave of his hand and he supplied us with ice cream cups for the purpose. We paid for our purchases and walked on to the Tuilleries Gardens. Their were signs indicating that consumption of alcohol would not be appreciated despite the shopkeeper's assurance to the contrary. So, we walked on to the Eiffel Tower. This monument, once the highest structure in the world, to French industry is really impressive. It is almost 1000 feet tall. People in long lines waited to take either the elevator, an innovation in itself, or walk the stairs to the upper levels of this tower. I'd been atop the Arc de Triomp so I felt no need to wait in a long line just to test my acrophobia. Besides, our museum pass did not cover the 8 euro cost. As we threaded our way through the crowd, we were stopped by vendors trying to sell us miniature Eiffel Towers and beggars wanting to know if we spoke English. If you answer in the affirmative, the beggar, usually a little girl, gives you a note written in English asking for money. We've just learned to hold up our hand and shake our head, no. They move on. I forgot. Sheila witnessed a man get his pocket picked on the crowded subway. He just reached into the man's inside jacket pocket, took his wallet, and disappeared into the crowd as the doors opened. Apparently pickpockets are most apt to steal something just before the doors of the train open so they can get away. They have it worked out. Sheila an I ran the gauntlet and walked down to the River Seine. We found a comfortable spot on the steps, opened our wine, had wonderful bread and cheese, and watched the river traffic. It was a gorgeous day. We lingered there passing time in a relaxed way, talking, laughing while Parisian life passed around us. We walked to Napoleon's Tomb and the Army Museum both worth seeing and both covered by our passes. I was very interested in the Military Museum. It has extensive exhibits covering both world wars. Following that, we went to the August Rodin Museum. That too was good especially "The Kiss" and "The Gates of Hell" It was interesting to see a group of school children I estimated to be about ten getting art instruction in front of a statue that was anatomically explicit. Would I, as a teacher in the US, take a group of pre adolesents to sit and stare at someone's privates? Answer: No! We wouldn't be allowed. Someone would complain. All the same the statuary was great. I've heard that Rodin was the greatest sculptor since Michelangelo. I don't know, but it's impressive all the same. We walked back to the river and sat beside some barges that are clearly peoples homes and finished our bread, cheese and wine while watching the sun go down back lighting the Eiffel Tower. It was very picturesque and romantic. We walked some distance back to a place where we could catch the #7 to Gare Est and make our ferry to Dover reservations. From there, we caught the train back to the Cadet, our stop, went to the market, then walked back to the hotel on tired even sore feet. We'd walked a long way, seen a lot and enjoyed a nice day indeed. More later. Love to all.