Notes On The Louvre
At places in the museum, there are a series of notes, giving details of the museum itself.
Notes On The Louvre
It is a good idea, that some museums in the UK could copy.
A Good Way To Show Small Paintings
I’ve never seen this done before, but it showed the small painting well.
A Good Way To Show Small Paintings
I’m sure many art galleries have lots of small paintings that are never shown and could benefit from a version of this technique.
Queues At The Louvre
There were long queues at the Louvre.
You can buy advance tickets and the details are here.
I queued for about an hour and a half to get in. But it was worth it!
A Day In Paris
As I wasn’t sure how long it would take to get home, before I left, I booked a ticket on the 21:10 Eurostar from Paris to London.
This effectively gave me nine hours in Paris, so I decided to go to the Louvre and then do some exploration.
Unfortunately, my camera ran out of juice, so there isn’t many pictures.
But I enjoyed myself otherwise!
I did even find a gluten-free creperie in Montmartre, but unfortunately it shuts on Mondays.
This wouldn’t have been a disaster, as I knew I’d get a good supper on Eurostar.
But unfortunately, I’d somehow mixed up getting my gluten-free meal.
The staff however, rustled me up some very acceptable chicken with chick-peas.
I was in my bed in Hackney by just after eleven, after eight trains in seven days.
Being close to St. Pancras means that trains are a very good option, as I can always get a bus home if the train is a very late one.
The
From Geneva To Paris
Four words sum up the TGV Duplex trip from Geneva to Paris; fast, frequent, comfortable and boring. This bridge was the only interesting thing I was able to photograph.
From Geneva To Paris
To describe the trip as boring is actually a complement and I arrived in Paris just over three hours after I left Geneva.
If only all travel was as simple.
Customer Support From Eurostar
On Saturday, I felt I got exceptional service from Eurostar on the last leg home from Budapest. So I told them!
I recently travelled back from Paris after arriving in the city on Saturday the 13th on the sleeper from Munich.
I hadn’t eaten for about 36 hours, as I couldn’t find any gluten-free food, in the Munich area of Germany.
However, once on the train to London, your gluten free light lunch that I had ordered filled part of the hole.I hope in my hungry state, I didn’t get on your excellent staffs’ nerves.
Ninety minutes after sending the e-mail, I got a reply.
Deepest condolences regarding your losses and the health issues you had, we are happy that you still found the strength to enjoy life. We at Eurostar are pleased that you enjoy this with us and we want to thank you for choosing us. I am sure that our on board staff were happy to help.
I am extremely disappointed to hear that gluten free meals are not obtainable with Deutsche Bahn as this is not an uncommon food request.
I hope your nest trip to Palermo will be a relaxing journey and without the need of being hungry.
You can’t fault the speed of reply and the message.
The Sleeper From Munich To Paris
It takes over ten hours, but as I wanted to be back in London in time to get to Ipswich for the Hull game on Saturday, it was the only way I could do it.
I had booked the sleeper on Deutsche Bahn’s excellent web site at bahn.de. I had a self-printed paper ticket, that worked well. These are some of the pictures I took on the journey.
We arrived in Paris on time at 09:30. I had slept reasonably well.
Not So Gay Paris!
This story is the most shared this morning on the BBC’s web site. here’s the first paragraph.
Hundreds of thousands of protesters have taken to the streets of Paris over plans to give gay couples in France the right to marry and adopt children.
France seems to be getting in more and more messes, what with the taxes, jobs and the economy in general. Will they come to regret their incursion into Mali.
Cambridge to Nice by Train
I was dropped at Cambridge early, as since my stroke I get almost paranoid about missing anything. It’s probably that I’m insecure. But then I always was a bit! I’m just moreso now. But I really had no worries as my credit card and the reference number from Eurostar got the tickets issues without any fuss.
The outcome was that I got the 7:15 out of Cambridge instead of the 7:45 and sat comfortably in First Class. I should say that the extra two single tickets from Kings Cross to Cambridge cost me just £15 for the pair. And as I’m travelling First all the way to Nice, I get First to London. First Capital Connect are not always praised for their service and punctuality, but I had no problems and arrived in London on time.
But of course it was into the main station at Kings Cross, rather than the old surburban one which is just a short walk from St. Pancras International.
Kings Cross Station
As I knew I had a fully flexible ticket, was thirty minutes early and I had to pick my tickets up from the station, I decided to see if I could catch an earlier train. It’s the paranoia again, as I was rather worried that I might miss the connection in Paris, so a few extra minutes might be welcome.
Let’s say the flexible ticket worked and instead of being on the 9:32, I was on the 8:55. But I was told there might be a problem with my gluten-free meal, so would I mention it at the gate. I think the paranoia ruled the stomach and I preferred to be early and hungry, rather than full and late. It was just as well.
The guy on the gate made a note and said that he’d try to get it sorted.
He did and the first thing the steward said when I boarded was that they had the gluten-free breakfast.
That in itself felt that at least someone was looking after me!
The trip was uneventful and I tried yet again to take a picture of the Dartford Bridge from the train. At least this time I was ready for it, not like when I took the journey a couple of months ago on a Javelin.
Dartford Bridge from Eurostar
The only other new feature of note on the English side of the Channel is the station at Stratford. For my liking it is too stark and nothing but concrete at the moment. Surely not something for the entrance point to the London 2012 Olympics. But then, I suspect it hasn’t been properly finished and a good bit of colour helps most things.
On the other side of the Channel the train rolled along as it should across the flat open countryside of Northern France.
Flat France
You can understand why they didn’t have much trouble building this high speed line, as except for Lille, it missed out all the towns and villages. But then France has a lot more space than we do.
Gare du Nord, Paris
I arrived on time into Gare du Nord or Gare Nord, as they call it now, and had ninety minutes or get to the Gare de Lyon. I had been intending to take a taxi, but as I had the extra time I took the RER D from under the station.
It was a wise choice.
A young lad about eighteen or so was by the ticket machines, dressed in a vest which said that he was there to help. He showed me how to use the machines and told me that I needed track 44. Paris is certainly trying to make sure that they welcome visitors! But then tourism is a cut-throat business these days and personal service is something that always works.
Paris RER
Note the double deck! Will Crossrail be that way? I doubt it.
Gare de Lyon, Paris
But then I had an hour to spend in the Gare de Lyon.
Le Train Bleu, Gare de Lyon, Paris
Le Train Bleu Restaurant, that evokes pre-war travel and glamour, is still there, although it does have an Express version as well. Perhaps, we don’t have as much time as we used to.
The station is being upgraded and probably not before time, as such as St. Pancras, Milan, Berlin and even dear old Liverpool Street show that a good station creates the right experience.
The train left on time for the long haul to Nice. To say it is a large train would be an understatement. It is two TGV Duplex or double-deck units coupled together. Short of a boat, it must be one of the largest people carriers around. According to Wikipedia each set carries 545 people.
You do wonder about trains though!
A friend is joining me at Nice for a few days and they have just phoned me from Lyon. Their plane has diverted there because is on the ground there because of mist at Nice! Do I hear herds of thundering tortoises?
Now I’m the tortoise, as the train threads its slow way through Toulon and all stations to Nice. Not the best.
Neither was the snack I got. Despite asking several times in my worst French, I ended up with a fish thing clearly labelled gluten. So I picked out a few bits of fish and potatoes and left the rest. I hope I’m OK. Why didn’t the silly woman show me the packet and I could have read it?
We’re barely walking pace at the moment and my friend has just arrived in Nice. Perhaps this train is always late, as it was the last time I caught it. That was between Antibes and Nice in 2007 on one of the last holidays with my late wife. It seemed strange to use it as a local train then, but everybody does.
Still the countryside is all green and it’s sunny.
TGV Duplex Arrives at Nice
Finally we arrived in Nice about a quarter of an hour late.
And then I got ripped off by the taxi driver.
Who cares? There are worse things in life! But it’s probably why I avoid them like the plague.
Café de la Paix, Paris
The Cafe de la Paix is one of the most famous cafes in Paris. So much so, that the French declared it to be an historic site in 1975.
Cafe de la Paix, Paris
My late wife and I went there by accident. It was the only time we did too, but then it was also on the only day, that one of the horses we had bred, Diamond White, had won The Prix de l’Opera at the Arc meeting at Longchamp. We had hurried away from the racecourse and the crowds made it difficult to get anywhere, but by reason of some luck, we were able to get a bus to the Place de l’Opera.
So we just stumbled into this famous cafe and as we had little time to catch the Eurostar back to Ashford, we asked the waiter what could be served quickly.
Everybody in the cafe surpassed themselves and within an hour, we were on the Metro towards the Gare du Nord.
If there is a postscript to this trip it happened on the train home. The day had been disastrous for English punters and come the last race, The Prix de l’Opera, most had lost heavily. So they put what they had left on Diamond White at 12-1. And the rest as they say is history.
On the trip back, my late wife had needed a coffee and went to the buffet. When she interrupted the party and told them that she had bred the horse that had got them out of trouble, everybody wanted to buy her champagne.
But she didn’t drink bubbles!
So on this trip to Paris, when the guy I was to meet on business suggested that we meet in the Cafe de la Paix, I accepted.
I had a very good gluten meal too!
Smoked Salmon and Poached Egg
The picture shows the first course!
Incidentally, the wife of one of the waiters was a coeliac, so this made them even more careful.
Would I go again?
Yes!
Even if it is very expensive, but then the decor, the ambience, the food and the wine are worth it.
Ceiling of the Cafe de La Paix, Paris
The Anonymous Widower 