My Second Paris Transport Day Ticket
This is the second ticket that I used to get a day’s travel in Paris.
My Second Paris Transport Day Ticket
The first one fell apart when it rained, so I had to exchange it for another.
Paris has a system called Navigo, which is very much the same as London’s Oyster. But Paris doesn’t seem to offer contactless payment with a bank debit or credit card and I can’t find any plans for them to do so.
Surely, every public transport system in the world should be moving towards contactless bank card ticketing.
Paper ticketing for transport is so nineteenth century.
I know I like the UK’s orange credit-sized rail tickets, but then they fit everybody’s wallet and are understandable by everyone and the newest ones are computer readable, by your standard scanner.
I suspect that Londoners planning a weekend away, will look at the ticketing in their possible destinations and might choose one where contactless bank cards can be use as tickets.
If I was a world dictator, one of the things I’d do is make all buses, trams and trains accept contactless bank cards as tickets. It must surely create lots of jobs in tourism, as people would travel more, if they knew that when they ended up in say Tokyo, Helsinki or Belgrade, all they needed was work out the map of the trains and not bother with the ticketing.
Searching For Food In Paris
I know quite a few good places to eat in Paris, but partly because it was Tuesday and my favourite creperie was closed for January, I ended up not finding anywhere to eat.
Searching the Internet I found this bakery and restaurant called NoGlu. But you’ve guessed it! It was closed, but I was able to take pictures.
Next time I go, I’ll give it a try. It’s certainly got good rcviews on Trip Advisor.
In the end I had a very nice steak and chips at a cafe near the Gare du Nord, called Paris Nord Cafe. They weren’t specifically gluten-free, but they knew how to make sure my meal was safe.
A Design Crime – How Not To Design Platform Edge Doors
I took these pictures on Metro Line 1, which has some stations with platform edge doors.
Unlike all others I’ve seen, they are only half height and the thick pillars partially obscure the view of the station from inside the train. As there is no station display inside the train, which can be seen from most seats, these doors meant that I missed my stop.
A Gallery I Wish I’d Missed
I regretted going to the Musee D’Orsay, as I was tired after my walk and it wasn’t a gallery that was easy to visit, if you were in your sixties and showing the odd sign of wear and tear.
Compared to the Louvre, it was very second rate, with no working lifts and no escalators, and steps everywhere, which would make it probably a no-go for many.
In some ways if your compare it to the Louvre, the four Tates, the Royal Academy and the Louvre, the layout is very 1980s and the Musee D’Orsay desperately needs an update to bring it up to modern standards.
It also annoyed me that photography is not allowed, so I was unable to take pictures of the building, which was one of my reasons for going.
I also felt that the Sade exhibition was rather pretentious, long winded, cramped into a too small exhibition space and badly presented.
It certainly wasn’t good value at I think eleven euros with no senior discount.
Walking Along The Seine
After Republique, I took the Metro to the Bir Hakeim, with the aim of having a river cruise. I didn’t see a boat running or anybody to ask, but a notice said there had been floods, so I just walked along the Seine to the Musee D’Orsay.
It was a pleasant walk for much of the route, but it was rather devoid of any information on nearby Metro stations, so I probably walked further than I intended.
Republique Remembers Charlie
One of the reasons I went to Paris was to go to the Place de la Republique to pay my respects after the Charlie Hebdo shooting.
Like my father, I am a great believer in free speech and agree totally with Voltaire.
I do not agree with what you have to say, but I’ll defend to the death your right to say it.
Unfortunately criticism is now seen in many countries and organisations as severe disloyalty and could even suffer the ultimate punishment,
Metro To Stalingrad
After Sacre Coeur I took Line 2 of the Metro to Stalingrad.
A lot of the line is an elevated railway on massive steel viaducts, something that isn’t very common in London, except for parts of the Docklands Light Railway and the Overground.
In a modern version, we tend to use massive bowspring or tied-arch bridges as at Haggerston and Shoreditch High Street rather than the heavy Victorian girders.
Both forms done correctly and with taste, add interest to the street-scape.
Up And Down To Sacre Coeur
I always go up to Sacre Coeur when I go to Paris.
I was lazy and went up and down on the funicular, which is covered by a standard one day pass on Paris Metro, RER and buses.
If I ever was to meet a French lady on a date in Paris, I would meet her here. The reasons are that the place is special to me, as I said in this post
Sunrise On A Eurostar to Paris
I took these pictures as the Eurostar sped to Paris through the countryside.
So try to book a ticket in a window seat on the left hand side of the train.
In fact always book on that side if you want the sun as coming home you’ll get the sunset.
An Awayday In Paris
I decided at the weekend, that after the terrible events in Paris and a day in London with a bus strike, that it would be an ideal day to take Eurostar to the French capital.
I caught the first train out at 05:40 and it was a mistake in one way. I couldn’t buy a paper to take with me on the journey. At least the taxi got me there in time and on the train, I got a double seat in Standard Class, which meant that I had plenty of space to spread out and it didn’t matter, if I made any mess with my sandwiches.
In the morning, I immediately went up the funicular to Sacre Coeur as I always do to and then I rode the Metro in the sun before exploring around Stalingrad.
I then went to the Place de la Republic to see the Charlie Hebdo tributes.
I then attempted to find an hour long river cruise, but no boat appeared to be running because of flooding of the Seine in the last few days.
So I walked to the Musee d’Orsay, which is one of the few attractions to open on a Tuesday.
Then it all stared to go pear-shaped with lots of heavy rain.
I also had trouble finding any of my favourite restaurants that was open, so ate a good steak and chips in a cafe by the Gare du Nord before catching the 21:13 back to London.
The Anonymous Widower 