Paris Highlights

We%26#39;ve just come back from a few days in Paris - we made use of various ideas gleaned here, so I thought I ought to report back on the highlights and the rest.

Best highlights were riding vélibs, the Théâtre des Automates and the rest of the Arts et Métiers Museum, the Pompidou centre (permanent collection and views from the escalators) and strolling along the Promenade Plantée.

We also enjoyed a couple of pre-booked events, a wine and cheese tasting lunch at O Chateau and the %26#39;How to become parisian in one hour%26#39; comedy show.

Not quite so highlights were the Paris-en-Scène river cruise, which should be good but doesn%26#39;t quite work yet; the Carnavalet; the Âge d%26#39;or Hollandais at the Pinacothèque, which was very crowded in dark rooms with odd lighting on some of the pictures.

There were nice serendipity moments - stopping to look at canal locks and staying to watch the trip boat coming down (the technical English term is gongoozling); spotting a shop window full of antique sewing machines; watching buses squeezing through narrow gaps ahead of us as we pedalled along; riding along the Rue de Rivoli looking at the lights in the windows, and managing to cycle round the Bastille without mishap; sitting in any cafe with a view of a busy traffic junction.

There was a personal disappointment! A lady with a gold ring ... and I missed her! I was tapping in the number for a vélib rental near the Louvre and heard conversation. When I%26#39;d finished I turned to M (travelling companion who was checking for a bike) and asked what had happened. Apparently an old woman had found a gold ring in front of M. M is a determined non-blogger, non-researcher, non-forum reader, so didn%26#39;t recognise the signs and did it all wrong - looked at her, engaged with her, spoke English. However, this was accompanied by a firm shake of the head and %26#39;nothing to do with me%26#39; , and she was on her way, in less time than it had taken me to hire a bike. Ah well, next time we go to Paris, perhaps I%26#39;ll do the bike checking ....

Final highlight, as ever, is Eurostar, and this time I actually sorted out the seat booking and got Seat 61 :-)

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Thanks Diz, it is those little moments in Paris that really stay with you. I thought the Eurostar was great and enjoyed #61 myself.

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Gongoozling.

Can I tell you how happy you have made me that now I know this word? How can you not love a word like this?

Glad you had such a good time.

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Ok, I%26#39;ll bite, whats the deal with seat 61 ??

Glad you had a nice visit,, and btw ,, I saw an exhibit(Xian Terra Cotta Warriors in 2008) at the Pinacotheque and also thought the set up and lighting were weird,, but wasn%26#39;t sure how much of that was due to subject matter or the venue itself.. I think now its probably not an ideal venue.

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Joan,

From the website www.seat61.com about the seating plan:

The plan shows which seats face forwards, which line up with a window, which are airline-style face-to-back and which are arranged in bays around a table. You might then understand why this website is called The Man in Seat Sixty-One!

You get a window and a partial table.

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ah, thats interesting . This past summer I was a bit choked when I booked my seats facing forward according to the Eurostar website diagram which shows %26quot;front of train%26quot;, BUT,, it did not explain that the front of the train does not mean it wll be actually travelling in that direction. So had a seat facing forward going,, but not returning,, and unlike other times I have taken the Eurostar,, it was packed so couldn%26#39;t even change to a front facing seat( which the conductor told me I was free to do as long as I stayed in 2nd class) .

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Thanks for sharing your highlights! I enjoyed hearing about them...

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Yes, seats 61/65 were good- we%26#39;ve always just taken the seats offered before, which is OK on a late train if it%26#39;s dark outside, but I appreciate a clear view out of the window when there%26#39;s something to see.

We went to the Golden Age exhibition without knowing much about it and it was a bit frustrating. We bought tickets and were offered a brochure (1€). I asked if they had it in English, and they didn%26#39;t, so I bought the French one. When we got inside, there were large groups of people in front of written info on the wall at the start of each section - exactly the same as was in the brochure, but as the lights were down, we couldn%26#39;t find a quiet, out of the way corner to read the brochure and had to join the horde. Annoyingly, going into the shop as we left, there was an exhibition catalogue (10€) with info in both English and French and pictures of most of the exhibits.

The spotlights were flaring off some pictures, particularly one which I remember being described as a Rembrandt, then the catalogue gives %26#39;atelier de Rembrandt%26#39;, whereas the Rijksmuseum%26#39;s own website shows it by Carel Fabritius www.rijksmuseum.nl/aria/aria_assets/SK-A-91…

If anyone is planning to go, I%26#39;d suggest getting a catalogue from the shop, settling in a nearby cafe to read it in advance, then getting tickets and visiting - I%26#39;d assume the crowds will be less of an issue once the newness passes.