Byddi Lee's Blog, page 14

Chateau de Beaugency

 
Right on the banks of the Loire River, Beaugency is a bustling little town on a Sunday afternoon, or at least, it was on the Sunday afternoon we arrived to view the Chateau de Beaugency. There was a town-wide jumble sale.


Everyone must have cleared out their attics (Maybe it was laundry day and they needed room to dry the laundry) and put it out for sale - The flea market easily covered four or five streets of the little town. If you love flea markets this is the place to be...

 
Unfortunately I abhor them. The thought of holding on to my own junk, never mind buying someone else's, makes me shudder!

Fortunately, I love castles and this place had a massive one right in the center of town. This was another of my heroine, Joan of Arc's hangouts. You go girl!


This castle was all teched up - with your entrance ticket you received a tablet that guided you through the castle.
 
Again, here's another castle where you could walk around in all by yourself due to the lack of tourists...always a great thing!


The solitude made the suits of armour that little bit more real, more creepy, and the one of the horse was particularly good.


The mock up of the various rooms was really interesting.


Everything had that "Game of Thrones" feel to it.



We explored all the way to the top of the highest tower.


Enjoying the view of this medieval town from the window.


We had to return the hire car to Orly Airport by 7pm so it was time to head northwards. I spotted another couple of castles along the route in google maps (swinging a little west of the direct route but do-able) so we decided to max-out our castle experience and try to see those too.

The first one was Chateau de Chateaudun, but upon arrival we discovered that the castle was closed because they were having a theatre production in the grounds (which we had neither the time nor the inclination for.) But the nice lady at the gate let me take a couple of pictures


 And I helped myself to one over the wall too


The zoom lens came in handy.


We were back on the road again, leaving Chateaudun as Chateau-not-dun!


By this stage, we were really off the beaten track - usually a place we like to be, but for being within fifty miles of Paris, this area felt incredibly remote. It was as if the big city had sucked all commerce up and left a vaccum. There was nothing open in any of the tiny villages and no petrol stations at all - more a problem due to my needing to pee than us needing petrol. Still, we were fairly sure that we could remedy that at our next stop - Chateau de Baronville.

As we followed the route on google maps, the roads became smaller at every intersection until were were driving along something that you'd find in a Grimms fairytale!


There were signposts for Castle Baronville, but as we closed in very confusing signs told us we were on private property. It felt like such a contradiction to have both, and we pressed on, not least because my bladder was pressing on too!

But the gates to the castle had a massive private sign - one that could not be argued with. So I as talked my urge to pee off the ledge, we turned the car but decided to continue up the tiny lane in the hopes that I'd find a suitable gap...

Suddenly, My Husband swore and said, "I'm not going to be able to stop now, there's a guy right up my arse."

I turned to look and sure enough the car behind seemed in a huge hurry. I could almost see the driver's nose-hair, he was that close.

"Maybe we should pull over to let him past," I said, forgetting the bladder situation for the moment.

"There's a junction ahead. Maybe he'll go a different way, maybe the road's bigger and he can pass us."

We turned right onto a main road, and the car behind us... it did a U-turn!!

Then the penny dropped - they had been "escorting" us off their private land. We were completely freaked out by this and decided to head straight back to Orly and get our asses back to Paris ASAP!

In all my travels I can't remember being so creeped out in a remote area (except maybe for the time in Northern India when we wandered into an area that had old land mines in it. Although we didn't know there was land mines until afterwards and thankfully hadn't set any off. Everyone was okay but thoroughly spooked out!)The whole feel of these wee towns was weird and unwelcoming.

It was with great relief that we arrived in Orly and handed back the car. No relief, however, when we got home to a city baking in 35°C. Back to putting the towels in the freezer. Oh, the joys of living in Paris in the summer!

Byddi Lee

Chateau Meung-sur-Loire

It's enough to strike fear into the heart of even the most stalwart Parisian, never mind softie Paris dwellers such as us...

...A polite notice in the hallway of our apartment building telling us that there is going to be a party in the apartment above us on a weekend when the temperatures are set to soar above 30°C. Sure we were invited, but we don't know anyone, can barely speak the language and are about 20 years too old for this sort of shenanigans!

I'm pretty sure this is karma getting me back for all the parties I had back in the Holy Lands of Belfast. Ironically, my neighbor was French! I remember finding her during one party at 2 am, plonked on my sofa with a glass of wine in one hand and a plate of food in the other as one of my drunken buddies pressed her to eat, drink and stay a while. The poor woman had just come in to ask us to turn down the music so her 1-year-old and 3-year-old could sleep. Oh, Lord, I'm so going to hell - or maybe I'm there already! Still, our French neighbor in Belfast often got her own back when she let her kids scream for hours and hours often at 7 am on a Sunday morning...people in our street didn't get much sleep back then. But back then I was young and fit for it ...not so now!

So I decided we needed a trip to a place that was quiet and that had air-conditioning. I fancied the Loire Valley, the nearest town being Orleans. For 50 Euros I could get us a nice room overlooking an empty parking lot and some disused land (who needs a view when you have a lovely one all year round?) The building was new and characterless - exactly what we needed after our quirky Paris pad and the AC...so cool!

We took the train to Orly airport and picked up a car for 30 Euro and hit the road - a night away for under 100 Euro and no rave music to listen too - heaven!

We checked in then headed for the nearest Chateau.

To be honest, I expected to be able to drive along the Loire Valley and see the castles looking down upon me, but you kind of have to search them out down winding country roads and potter through picturesque (and seemingly deserted) country villages.

The first one we found was Chateau Meung-Sur-Loire. It felt very off the beaten track since we were the only ones there. It's unheard of in Paris to have anything to yourself never mind an entire castle, and it was wonderful. Oh, and it was pink! How perfect for me - I'll take two...


Joan of Arc - a saint I admire so much I took her name for my confirmation name - hung out in these parts. It was where she kicked English butt before the church turned on her and decided that a girl couldn't wear trousers! At least they made her a saint but not before burning her at the stake.

It weird to think she may have worn these suits of armor or talked to someone wearing them. I think this one looks like C-3PO


This scene held such a fairly tale magic about it.

And the best thing about this place was you didn't have to wonder where these stairs went - you could go everywhere in the castle. It was time to explore.

I enjoyed how the rooms were staged - medieval style.



I did wonder about the headless cook though...

The bedrooms looked luxurious.


We even got to go to the attic, which had old toys stored in it - what else! It reminded me of the attic in my parents home with all our old toys in it - except ours were smaller and less castley!


In this interesting sign about the attic, I was appalled to learn that they only did laundry twice a year! That must have stank...


Then they hung it to dry in the attic - hardly lenor freshness!


Thankfully this castle did have a bathroom, complete with sunken bath.



or not sunken - if you prefered. I mean if you own a whole castle, why not have a few different baths to choose from?


Not to mention comodes and potties!


And of course you'd have your very own church.


With an altar to none other than Joan of Arc.


The village was adorable - though somewhat empty. Where are all the people?


Why do all the cute shops always seem to be closed?


We never seem to get the rhythms of France quite right. We're usually too late for lunch and too early for dinner!
But it all makes for pretty pictures.

That night we put on the AC, pulled the shutters and slept like babies  - Refreshed and ready to view more castles the next day.

Byddi Lee

Le Terminus du Chatelet - An Authentic Parisian Resturant

In today's world of big name franchises and amid the pressures of recessions, rising food prices and increasing competition, it's really quite an achievement to have kept a business in the family for four generations.


Le Terminus du Châtelet is once such business. Run by father and son, Robert and Thomas Sucheyre, this quaint little restaurant with Parisian panache was started in 1929 by Thomas' great-grandfather.

 
It is named after the end of the Châtelet tram-line, which no longer runs here. Transport here now is served by the world's biggest underground station, according to Wikipedia, Châtelet Les Halles where one can get onto one of five different metro lines and 3 different RER routes. There are also a tonne of bus stops in this area too. Suffice it to say, Le Terminus du Châtelet is easy to get to, and it's a good thing too - if you visit Paris, you really should stop by, if even just to have a little bottle of wine!


Or a beer!

 
Thomas and Robert are super-friendly, speaking English (or French, if like me, you want to practice) and happy to talk you through their delicious menu - written in French, but that's not a problem!



I went first for lunch and was immediately impressed - by the decor...

 ... by the friendly staff... here Thomas is showing me that the old meat slicing machine still works. It was lovely to see the pride that Thomas has in the business, great to see a new generation valuing the merits of the past...



...and above all, by the food. I just had to come back and have dinner here too. Robert took the time to discuss my companion's dietary needs - no dairy, no red meat, no sauce (to mention a few!).

As for me, my only dietary need is that I have to eat!

This was the most delicious swordfish (the fish with the "pointy nose" as Robert described it) I've ever had.


They excel at serving up fresh and tasty food.


The cod was amazing and "fall apart" tender too. The mushrooms were to die for - full of flavor and the perfect compliment to the fish.



Here's their mushroom delivery showing the range of mushrooms they use.


They do seem to really like mushrooms and this giant one is part of the interesting decor... not for eating!


Apparently this old coffee machine works too, though they use a modern one, you can just see it in the background.


Thomas' grandfather was very interested in seed collecting and here are some envelopes he used - there might even be seeds in them. Thomas showed me pictures of his vegetable garden. It sparked some nostalgia in me for my own lost veggie beds.


I'd highly recommend a visit here to savor old Paris with the new Paris. If you want something different from the cafe menu's, where you feel valued as a customer and not just another tourist, this is the place to eat, drink and generally be merry! You'll be guaranteed an authentic Parisian experience in a piece of history, and you'll be glad you stopped by. I know I was.

Byddi Lee

How to Beat the Heat in Paris

Paris might be heavenly in the spring time, but this week it's been hotter than hell! At 9 am the outside temperature already matched the inside temperature - a blistering 28 °C (86 °F). 

I've lived in hotter, much hotter, but in a house with air conditioning in a region that cooled down at night. You could open your windows without having to listen to the full-on roar of city traffic going past a dozen feet from your bed (albeit 4 stories down!)

Today it is forecast to max out at 37 °C (104 °F) and hopefully by tomorrow, we will see a decrease in temperature.

So what can I do about it?

Well, I've read the article about 11 ways to cool down in Paris. It's grand - full of good advice like ... hang out in the hotels and drink G+Ts (can't afford the hangovers), go shopping in the big stores (can't afford the cash) or eat ice cream (can't afford the calories!) 

I did like the idea of jumping into a fountain and we do have a nice one beside us. 



But the only one actually in the fountain was a toddler, and I thought I might look a bit out of place lying there all day!

Other suggestions included finding a shady place in the park or a shady terrace, but we are way past "shady" on the thermometer!


I did embrace the suggestion to go swimming in an outdoor pool. I've tried this twice. It would be lovely if most of Paris hadn't had the exact same idea! 

The Piscine Josephine Baker is right on the banks of the Seine. It was two metros away and has a 25m pool - which is fairly standard, but I've been spoiled using the 50m pool under Les Halles, a 6-minute walk from the apartment. 

The Josephine Baker pool was crazy full when I went there a couple of weeks ago - before the heat wave, and it was hard to enjoy doing dedicated laps. It was probably fine to flop about in with your friends though I cannot imagine what it must be like now. I'm using the photo from their website. Even with a fisheye lens, it looks pokey, and it had at least 5 times as many people in it.


And there really is no view of the Seine as you swim. I'm not going back.

The other pool I tried was La Piscine Georges Vallerey de Paris. One shot on the metro but pretty much all the way to the end of the line (second last stop) and so a round trip of an hour.  The opening hours are funky too. Some days it's open in the afternoons and others it not. And the real hours don't correspond to what's posted online. For example, on Tuesdays, it was supposed to be open from 11.45 to 13.30 but they closed it at 13.00. Good job, I was there for 11.45 and hadn't landed any later. 

The two big attractions for me were that the pool was open air and 50 m long. The picture from their website looks amazing... 



The swimming here can only be described as vicious. Each lane has at least 18 people in it - I counted. People shoved, kicked and even shouted at each other. It was worst than the melee at the beginning of any open water race I've ever done. I battled my way through a kilometre swim then sat out in the sun for a bit. Out of the water, the atmosphere was a bit nicer - people made eye contact (and I don't mean with heels or elbows like in the lanes!) and a couple of women even chatted with me. So that was nice, and it distracted me from the 30+ heat that was brewing in the real world.

The other suggestions - go to a church, the catacombs, a movie, hire a boat - all good, BUT at the end of the day, I still needed somewhere cool to sleep and I didn't fancy kipping in the Catacombs or Notre Dame. We did escape last Saturday night to a low priced but very new and air-conditioned hotel just north of Orléans - more about that in a later blog post...

During this heat wave, my days revolve around watching the inside and outside temperatures so that I know when it's time to open shutters and window or close them. I spend my afternoons writing in an over-warm, darkened room - not a great place for the psyche to hang out. But it's only for a short time, I tell myself. It will cool down by the weekend and then I'll have my "lovely" Paris back again.

We have a little fan that we brought from San Jose (and never used there!) If you set it up with a block of ice behind it, you have a mini air conditioner. 



I freeze bottles of water and have a constant supply - when the ice is half melted, the air is at its coolest. It's basically GCSE Chemistry. I could write a whole piece on why this works, but it's all down to the frozen water molecules taking heat energy from the air to break the little bonds holding the ice together. It's cool - literally! And if you don't believe me, you can look it up here.

My Uncle Liam taught me how to make a swamp cooler with a damp towel and a fan many years ago. It was a lesson I never forgot and have even improved upon. I thought, if evaporating water absorbs heat energy then melting it would use even more - so I rinsed a few bath towels in the washing machine, folded them up still wet and put them in the freezer. 


It's important to use the washing machine first to spin the towels because if they are too damp you'll have trouble getting them out of the freezer and unfolding them. Unfolding them is key - you want a large surface area. 


Hang the towels around your room and you will immediately feel the drop in temperature. It's not a lot, and not for long... but better than a kick in the head (for that, you can go to Piscine Georges Vallerey de Paris!)

When the temperatures drop at night - It only got down to about 25 °C (80 °F) last night - we open the windows. That's a whole different world of pain! We live on a really busy road with a vibrant pub and bar scene. The traffic - poor man's ocean- we can kind of get used to, except for the motorcycles who take joy in revving their engines. Then the drunks come out and sing - usually between 1 am and 4 am. I've gotten used to them too. But the thing that gets me riled is the street cleaners at 5.30am. Their little trucks are the noisiest out there and hell bells, can't they clean at 10 am? I have seen them during the day too so it's not that they are off the roads and not obstructing traffic 9 to 5.
Then yesterday morning there was a new annoyance. At 5.30am the bottle bank right under our bedroom window was being emptied. As you can imagine it's not a quiet procedure - lots of smashing and crashing of glass. But again, another thing my brain has learned to filter out in the middle of the night unless it gets obnoxious and wonders why these things need to be done at that time of the morning. But no, that wasn't the thing that kept me awake fantasising about taking pot shots from the balcony (thank God, I don't have a gun because sometimes with those motocyclists.. I'd be like, "Aim once, aim twice, aim bike!") Oh no, it was the wee beep beep beep you hear when a truck is reversing, going on for 15 mins. Eventually, I got up and looked out the window. It was now 6 am and there was a man in a crane with a brush sweeping leaves off the top of the public toilet cubicle across the street. FFS! It took him 45 minutes to do this!

The view from our balcony complete with bottle bank and toilet - and no, that's not my washing machine!
I wouldn't mind all this cleaning if the streets of Paris actually got clean but... well, that's a whole other post and one best written when I'm not all sleep deprived and hot and bothered!

And just when the air temperature dropped to a comfortable 25 °C (80 °F), the traffic noise abated to a gentle purr, the drunks had all passed out and the cleaners had clocked off, just then, well that was the moment the alarm went off and it was time to get up a face another day sweltering in Paris!

Sometimes it's just hot and there's nothing more you can do about it other than stick some more towels in the freezer. Them's the breaks - let's just hope the weather breaks and soon...before I start throwing washing machines off the balcony!

Keep cool folks!

Byddi Lee
  [image error]

A Weekend in Brussels

Brussels is a relaxing 90-minute train ride from Paris. We bought our tickets through Thalys and left Paris Gard du Nord at 10.25am arriving into Brussels Midi at 11.47am. From here, we hooked into the Metro and made it to our hotel just after noon, where we met with our Californian friends who were travelling in Europe. We stayed in the Mas Residence and were delighted to find that our hotel "room" was, in fact, a mini-suite complete with living room area, kitchenette, giant bed and air-conditioning. Not only was the hotel room nearly as big as our Paris apartment, it was much quieter, overlooking a grassy back yard.

We began our explorations of Brussels at the Grand Place and it was pretty grand!


I was expecting Brussels to be very similar to Paris and pleasantly surprised by the fact that it differed. For a start, the people speak back in French, even when you are stumbling along they seem happy to decipher what you are attempting to say.

Grand PlaceThere are lot of modern buildings throughout the city. The area with beautiful old buildings feels quite small, but the buildings are very ornate, with lots of gold.


I love this guy's moustache. I wasn't sure what his cart was all about, but the Belgians love this wee statue - the Manneken Pis - a statue of a little boy peeing into a basin.


There were chocolate versions of the statue - though I was a little put off eating the waffles he seemed to be peeing upon!


Some shops had multicolored versions of him.


We went on a mission to find the original statue. When we found him, the street was full of tourists taking pictures of him. He was tiny compared to what we'd been expecting and he was dressed up! Apparently they have loads of little outfits for him and dress him up all the time. I found the whole thing charming, though bizarre!


Belgium is famous for its chocolate and its beer. There are plenty of places to sample both in Brussels.


 Delirium Cafe has over 2000 types of beers - it even has a chocolate flavored beer.


I especially love the cherry flavored beer, pictured here beside the chocolate - It's like a beer Black Forest Gateau! This picture makes my mouth water...

Delirium Cafe is up a little side street. You know you're close when you see this cafe with the tree growing through the terrace!

A very strange thing (apart from the Manekin Pis) that we came across was the fact that you cannot get free water in Brussels in a cafe, bar or restaurant. No such thing as ordering tap water or a carafe de l'eau. All water must be bought and paid for - which I wouldn't mind if you got a big bottle. I was shocked at the tiny wee bottle of Perrier I got. The glass was mini too but have a look at the standard-sized teaspoon beside it for comparison.


So stock up on your own water because Brussels is a city where you will walk the legs of yourself looking at all the amazing buildings.


We started our full day there with brunch at the Wild Geese not realising it was an Irish Bar because neither its name nor its decor was particularly Irish - but the most important thing was - the breakfast! Full Irish with black pudding too. Highly recommended...


After Brunch, we got down to the serious business of sight-seeing and there are tonnes of sights to see in Brussels - massive churches...

St Michael and St Gudula Cathedral, Brussels ...With amazing interiors. Each statue is holding something different - I wish I knew what it represented.


You can see cutesy wee churches...


 ...With amazing wood-carving detail!



The Musical Instrument Museum had sheet music on it's exterior along with gorgeous metal work.


And across the street you could sit and listen to nice music for free.


We took a wander around what we think was the European Parliament - there were plenty of flags and so I presumed we were in the right place.


They even had a chunk of the Berlin Wall.


We walked all day and even managed to have a quick look at "the city beneath the city" the Coudenberg where there was a museum and archaeological site on medieval palace foundations underneath/beside the site of the Royal Palace.

Royal Palace of Brussels

As day gave way to evening, we were treated to a beautiful sunset at the quais near St Catherine's Square.



We had dinner in The Rugbyman1 - a great lobster place overlooking the quais.

 After dinner we explored the alleyways and found quaint little bars such as this one down "Diagon Alley" - our nickname for obvious reasons!



The full moon came out and vied with the street lights for our our attention!

We had a great weekend with our friends exploring Brussels, drinking beer, and eating chocolate and waffles! It's a top spot for a relaxing weekend.

Byddi Lee

Armagh Visitor Centre - A Lovely Welcome!

Once upon a time, back when I was in my twenties, an Australian friend came to visit Armagh. I was surprised at how impressed he was with our little city. He thought the buildings and the architecture beautiful, admired the quaint little streets, loved the lush landscape and the rolling orchards, and of course, thought our Cathedrals magnificent. A few years later, he married an Armagh lass, one of my best friends - so perhaps, I felt he was just a tad biased!

Despite my friend's enthusiasm for the city, my eyes were closed to Armagh's possibilities as a tourist destination even though we had the two amazing Cathedrals.




On a recent trip back to Armagh, My Husband and I had "messages" to do in town. We scored a really handy parking spot beside the Armagh Visitor Information Centre and after we had our business done, we decided to pop into, what I dubbed in my head as, the Armagh Tourist Office.


It's a strange concept to go to a visitor centre/tourist office in your own town, weirder still to play tourist-at-home, but in a place like Armagh, I discovered that it is utterly delightful.


The building that houses the Armagh Visitor Centre is beautiful. In fact, this photo could pass for one I'd take in Paris. Inside, the decor, in calming tones of duck-egg blues and greys, complemented the period of the architecture.

Right away, we were greeted with a friendly welcome and an offer of help. Marion was enthusiastic about the charms of my hometown and not one bit phased when I told her I'd grown up here. Of course, we quickly found some relatives and friends in common since she too was an Armagh native. She immediately put us at our ease and erased my strange sense of being a fraud since we weren't tourists as such. It didn't matter to her - her mission is to promote Armagh, and she made it look so easy!

She began by taking out a Map of the City, and right away I was struck by how many things there were to do in Armagh! There were plenty of attractions close enough together for Marion to suggest sending us on a walking tour. She circled places of interest and described, with a wealth of knowledge, what there was to see at each one.


If you're in Armagh and have a bit of time to spare, local or visitor, pop in to see Marion and the team in The Armagh Visitor Centre and ask them about these guys - you'll see them secreted in nooks and crannies about the city.


Even if historical monuments are not quite your thing, there are a plethora of great places to eat in Armagh such as the award-winning Mulberry Bistro beside the Catholic Cathedral... every seat guarantees a stunning view, and the food is amazing.
 

4 Vicars on Vicars Hill beside the Church of Ireland Cathedral also has won awards and you can get a seat overlooking the "old" Cathedral, as it is often referred to in Armagh. They also have a lovely seating area out back with a view over lovely gardens.

If it's pampering you are after, look no further than Armagh.

Coco Lane is the place to go to relax and unwind with a massage or a beauty treatment. They were finalists in the Ulster Tattler 2016 Awards for the great work they do in their beautifully decorated haven of tranquillity situated near the Shambles.

If your locks need some TCL - Petra and her crew are just back from collecting awards in London for her hairdressing salon, Petra's House of Color.


Venture outside the city - you are in for a treat with lush landscapes and pretty villages. Tassagh Viaducts are very beautiful, and if you go that way, pop into Basil Sheils for a lovely lunch.


If you enjoy good photography have at look at Patrick Hughes Photography on Facebook - some stunning shots of the city here - very inspiring. I keep wondering how could I incorporate one of his pictures into a book cover someday!


Also, if you're after culture there's the Market Place Theatre.

So there's plenty to see and do in Armagh whether you live there or are just exploring. Either way, do consider popping into The Armagh Visitor Centre where Marion and her colleagues will be happy to answer your questions, and do take a moment to browse the lovely Craftswirl gift store - ah go on - treat yourself!

Byddi Lee

Rooftop Drinks in Le Marais

It was a beautiful evening at the start of May. The night-time temperatures were now comfortable enough to sit outside without a coat.


I'd read about a roof-top bar, Le Perchoir, near us, but had heard that the lines were horrendous. On this particular Friday evening, My Husband and I decided to take a dander down to the BHV Marais to see for ourselves what the queue was like. The bar opens at 8.15pm, and the picture below shows the line at that time. I'd sussed out on a walk-by that the hold up to gain entry was the fact that the lift was only able to take 6-8 people at a time. Seemingly using the stairs was not an option.

We decided to get into the queue and see how far we'd get in thirty minutes - then we'd go home knowing the approximate rate of flow of the line. I wasn't really dressed for posh rooftop drinking and hadn't even put on any makeup. The other people in the line were mostly between 20 and 30 years old with a sprinkling of some older foggies such as us.

While we stood in the line, we had a nice view of a rather spectacular vertical garden across the street. The street art was quite good too.


It wasn't until my next visit, with a bunch of female friends, that we noticed these rather phallic balcony railings right next door - just thought it was worth mentioning at this juncture!

  After our imposed allocated time, (30 minutes) we were surprised to find ourselves at the top of the queue. Since we were there an all, sure what was the harm in going upstairs for a drink? Just the one mind!


After winding through some fairly utilitarian corridors between the elevators and the bar, the view from the rooftop hits you as soon as you enter the bar. The decor of the bar itself was quite eclectic with weird touches like sheep-stools (and I don't mean poop!)



The bar was fairly empty, but the regulars have it off to a tee. Most tables had just one person there, trying to make themselves as big and their belongings as spread out as possible. All seats seemed to be already reserved. I hoped that our (relatively) advanced age would spark some chivalry, and we'd be offered a seat, but nope, these foetuses where not for moving!

The Hotel de Ville - not really a hotel!The bar itself was fairly easy to get served at, despite looking three-people deep. It had more to do with the other patrons lining up before they knew what they wanted. As they hmmm-ed and haaaa-ed over the menus, I was able to catch the eye of the bartender and order. Sometimes being older has its perks - you know what you want!


As it turned out, we fell in with folk in our own age-group - an Irish-American and his wife and friends who were traveling through to Ireland. We had a great night's craic.


A few weeks later, I returned with a bunch of female friends, and again, we had a hoot.


Yes, I may have been old enough to be the mother of most of the other customers, but somehow as I admired their beauty (and young people are so beautiful, aren't they? That skin...) I could also read their anxiety... Am I pretty enough? ...dressed the right way? Does he/she like me enough? How will I pay for this?

And I realize how much effort being that young can be, and how much nicer it is to just roll with the flow and get over yourself. Age actually has it's perks if you look closely enough.

Byddi Lee

Day trip on the Eurostar to London

I'm such a sucker for trains. Perhaps that's because Armagh doesn't have it's own train station (a travesty in it's own right but that's another story) I love the sense of going "somewhere else" at a train station, the hustle and bustle, the high ceilings and airy caverns surrounding the platforms of the big city stations, the cutesy old fashioned look to tiny remote stations and the excitement when my train pulls in...yes excitement! The waiting is over, and I'm on my way.

When I first heard about plans to build a tunnel beneath the English Channel, I was a teenager. Construction began in 1988 and the idea of taking the train from London to France seemed like something from science fiction. Truth be told, I wasn't 100% onboard with the plan - what about rabies? Would mammals carry the disease from the continent? It's funny looking back on our fears and concerns over the Channel Tunnel now that is is established and accepted. This article from 2014 provides some nostalgic moments - Rabies and other early Channel Tunnel predictions

Interestingly, it brings up the curious notion we had of calling the tunnel the "Chunnel" - wierd to think it didn't catch on in a world that embraced  new verbs such as "googling "and "friending" and reassigned words like "tweeting" and "liking".

Regardless of what it's called, knowing I was in the a tunnel beneath the ocean still left me thinking about the obvious...what if it sprung a leak? It only took about 25 minutes to actually get through the tunnel.


The train had slowed down a little to go through the tunnel, but in the green fields of France we moved at a fair clip.


As I sat on the train from Paris to London, I had a strong sense of wonder that comes with reviewing the past, remembering concerns and dreams and knowing how it all unfolds. Not for the first time do I feel grateful for living the story.

Train travel evokes my muse too. As I watched the planet spin past, even faster on this Eurostar train, my brain whirred with prose that tried to capture the wonderment I felt. But it wasn't until we arrived in London that I saw an image that summed up the attraction and romance of trains.


A day trip to London from Paris (or vice versa) is so easy - though not exactly cheap on a Saturday and I suspect you can do better on a weekday with a lot of advance warning. We choose the 10.15am departure from Gare de Nord, giving us a civilized start for a Saturday morning.


We needed to be at the station 45 minutes prior to departure to check in and clear security and passport control. It took that time to do everything at a relaxed pace and there was actually very little sitting around or queing.



The trains were comfortable, though our seats on both legs of the journey had us sitting by the plastic wall between the windows. Not good for seeing the scenery, but on the way to London the train was relatively empty, and we just hoped into a more agreeable seat. On the way back, the train was packed, so we just had to put up with it.

When we arrived at St Pancreas International in London on time at 11.30am, we took the Thameslink train to City Thameslink and walked from there to St Paul's Cathedral to meet our friends from California who were holidaying in London.They had told us to print off a discount coupon which, when presented with the receipt for our train ticket, (not Eurostar nor Underground tickets apply though) got us a 2-for-1 deal into the Cathedral.

Here's the link for that if you are heading that way - http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/times_f...

So we had entrance to St Paul's and a head set audio guide for £9 each.


The dome on the inside is smaller than on the outside and the inside is painted with stories from the life of St Paul.

The cathedral itself seems to have had nine lives what with all the times it was destroyed and rebuilt or came under fire during the blitz.


Though the cathedral is now an Anglican cathedral, it still has a lot of the gilt ornamentation that the Catholic Church used in their art works. The gold is to symbolize the shining light of the divine God.


The crypt below contains lots of bodies of generals and memorials to the many wars in Britain's past. They also have a memorial for Florence Nightingale.


I believe the lady out front is Queen Anne.

After the Cathedral, we took a wee wander through the streets of London. I found it amusing that Scotland Yard is a place where they have their police head-quarters, but in Ireland Yard they had this!


Paris is turning me into a city snob. (Or perhaps it's Armagh that is doing it!) I found the Thames to be no match for the beautiful Seine.


London's architecture, though not as pretty as that of Paris, or even Armagh, does try to combine the old with the new. Here, the Millennium Bridge looks like it leads right up to St Paul's doorstep.


But maybe when London Bridge was falling down, they should have just let it go. And that dopey building in the background looks like its about to fall down too!


Tower Bridge opening to let river traffic through.



It was also great to also meet up with other friends who live in London. We had a very interesting tour of the building he works in, which seems strange, but it is really beneficial for the book I'm writing at the moment, not to mention its wow factor for biology and techy geeks. I'm mentioning here it as a thank-you to him.

We finished off with a lovely curry (aka traditional London cuisine!) and caught the 8pm train back to Paris, arriving home at 11.30pm.

A very straightforward and enjoyable day trip. Though apparently two days later that was not the case for these unlucky sods who had a 4 hour delay because of some drunken British passengers!

https://www.thelocal.fr/20170530/drunken-eurostar-passengers-trigger-travel-chaos-and-fury

You'd never see thon happening on the Belfast to Bangor line!

Byddi Lee

The Queen's Hamlet at Versailles

On our first visit to Versailles we didn't make it to the Queen's Hamlet, nor did we on the second visit, but third time was the charm!


The Queen's Hamlet was built by Marie-Antionette so that she could "...play at being a peasant," by some accounts. A disgusting idea when you consider the reality of life as a peasant in those days. As we all know things didn't end so well for Marie-Antionette, so I decided not to lose my head over her crassness and go see the place!

The pamphlet handed out at the site merely describes the Hamlet as a place where the Queen could "enjoy the pleasures of the countryside with her children." Because when you are that rich life can be burdensome!


We took the train and remembered to buy a return ticket in Chatelet - actually, we just bought four tickets preparing to chalk it up to experience if they weren't accepted by the machine in Versailles - but to our great joy (as we swanned past the 100 or so people in line to buy tickets at the machines - I kid you not - 100!) our tickets were accepted. We got first choice of the seats on the awaiting train homeward bound!

The queues were pretty brutal going into the Chateau of Versailles - we were glad we'd ticked that box already. We have bought the annual Duo ticket which allows us to skip the lines, but it would have been uncomfortable inside the house with those crowds.

To a soundtrack of classical music piped into the gardens, we made a beeline straight to the Girandole Grove aiming to have lunch first in Brasserie De La Girandole. The prices are reasonable here (considering where you are) and I had the best hot chocolate I've ever tasted! It was delightful sitting under the covered terrace listening to the light rain pinging off the canvas, with the gardens on all sides. The conversation came up again about Marie-Antoinette's motivations for building the hamlet. Sitting there under the canvas, being reminded of camping trips with the Girl Guides in my youth, I wondered were we emulating her crassness by going camping in a world where people were forced to live under canvas through war and poverty? I decided that camping was different. We go camping to reduce our costs and in some cases to get close to nature and have no other option - guilt trip avoided...for now...

After lunch, we wandered into the Colonade Grove, and discovered a circle of what looked like giant cake-stands, with a big statue in the center. As I was taking this photo...




...I heard a whistle blowing. Vaguely wondering what it was and hoping it wasn't a demonstration (the French would demonstrate at the drop of a hat) I refocused my efforts on photography, then all of a sudden the cake-stands turned into fountains - all of them at the same time!

What ensued was an orgy of splash photography!

 
I captured a heart in this fountain.



Eventually we dragged ourselves away, still hoping to accomplish our mission of actually getting to the Queen's Hamlet that day, yet stopping quickly at Appollo's Fountain to grab another few snaps.


The Queen's Hamlet is a good twenty minute walk through the gardens with lots to distract...



...but we were determined and eventually got there. We flashed our duo cards and gained admittance but weren't sure if you needed to pay or not! I think we just like showing off.

With significantly fewer tourists about, we just loved this area of Versailles. The day was overcast but the grass still vibrant green.

The Queen's Hamlet really was a fairy-tale village.


The largest building in the Hamlet was under renovations and all covered up, wrapped like a big present. I'm looking froward to coming back to see it another time. Not one to re-invent the wheel, I'm just going to include two links to great blog posts I found about the Queen's Hamlet:

This one has beautiful pictures and a nice round up of practical information at the end.

 I enjoyed this one, laden with historical information.

There was lot of wildlife too. I thought this was a beaver but have since learned it may be a thing called a ragondin.


These Coot chicks were really cute!


And a family of geese.


 I just adored the wee houses - all of them.






They even had an apiary.


You won't be able to see everything that Versailles has to offer in one day, but if you have to pick one thing and the weather is nice - do this. Yes, the house is spectacular - if the line is not long (which is usually never) run in and see the Hall of Mirrors then head down to the Queen's Hamlet. Hmmm... but then you'd miss the gardens, and the fountains and ...

Okay - Versailles - only one thing for it - come early and come often!

Byddi Lee

Paris Churches

Good Friday - a day for churches in a city peppered with beautiful churches.

A view of the back of Notre Dame Cathedral from Île Saint-Louis
Today is really just a photo journal of the gorgeous churches I simply cannot pass by as I walk through Paris.

Trinity Church
The first church I was ever inside in Paris was the Trinity Church in the 9th. When My Husband was at his interview back when we were hoping to come to Paris, I did my bit by lighting candles and praying that things would work out for us. I think they did!

This is the closest Church to us - St Merry with it's beautiful doors...


It often hosts funky art exhibits.


 And we've been to a music/light show there also.
 

And I love how the sun caught this statue... A mother losing her son - quite poignant, not only on Good Friday.


A similar statue can be found in Eglise (that means church) Saint-Nicolas-des-Champs.


She looks so sad.

This was another church I stumbled upon while out shopping for groceries. Okay, while getting lost on my way to the grocery store... And of course, I had to go in.


The sunlight was so strong that it projected the stain glass patterns onto the other wall.


 But when it comes to stained glass, Sainte Chapelle wins the prize.


I've been here 3 times and counting - its on my MUST DO list for Paris.


It must have felt magical to stand and look at these windows and the bible stories on them way back in the 12th century - these people had limited access to art, books and of course no TV - so the impact must have been tremendous.



Another close-by church is St Eustace - we happened to wander in during auditions for a new organ player. The sound was amazing - made my skin goose bump and threw a surge of emotion at the back of my eye lids! Unfortunately, I didn't record it but I do have a pretty picture of its rose window.


On my recent walking tour with Corey Frye, we took in the Saint Sulpice church.

Saint Sulpice seen from Montparnasse Tower
So much to see in this church, like where the french Revolutionaries tried to eradicate all references to religion from the church and turn it into a temple of reason. Obviously, this stain glass window was too high up for them.


Those vaulted ceilings were obviously not so high that they couldn't be sculpted - or perhaps it was done on the ground then fitted together like a giant 3D jigsaw - either way, its pretty impressive!



And then there's the frescos that proved so difficult for the painter Delacroix that working on them killed him!

Delacroix was quite obsessed with violence and angels!


Then of course there's my favorite - The Notre Dame Cathedral. Coming from Armagh, I guess I have a thing about Cathedrals. Even though the towers look like spires that haven't been finished, I just love this cathedral (but not as much as the Armagh Cathedral)

Notre Dame Cathedral from Mountparnasse Tower Inside it is like a double-decker version of the Armagh Cathedral.


And photogenic day or night.


The Sacre Coeur is a very different style, but equally impressive on its perch over the city.




So many churches, so many prayers!

Mine is that we all have a peaceful and violence free Easter and that tolerance and love flow freely in your hearts, homes and countries.

Byddi Lee