An evening in Paris

Our visit to Rome is still fresh in my mind. The backpacks were still partially unpacked, and photos were still being viewed. This did not stop us from exploring another jewel of Europe – Paris. The journey to Paris was made by train. We took the Eurostar from London to Paris and zipped into the Gare du Nord station in under two and a half hours. Apart from the fact that we had to go through passport and security checks, it was like any other local train journey. People were busy on their laptops, headphones, books or simply dozing. I did not realize when the landscape from England merged into that of France. The same green meadows, distant houses, rows of trees and fog – nothing to differentiate the two land masses.

The Gare du Nord train station has an impressive façade and opens its doors to let you abruptly into the hustle and bustle of urban Paris. We were welcomed by a Burger King, a Chinese restaurant and a Mc Donald’s outlet. Nestled in between all these big shops was a tiny French restaurant boasting of the best meats being available on the menu. Fascinated by the noisy streets we made our way to our accommodation on foot.  

Having rested well we started day 1 with a plan to visit the Versailles palace. We seem to have a knack for choosing to travel during unusual times – this time, there was a train strike ongoing in France. Luckily for us, unlike other countries, the French do not bring the entire service to a standstill while striking. It is always a partial disruption of services. With a little bit of difficulty, we managed to convey to the ticket officer where we were headed to and got our tickets. Unlike Rome, the ticket machines are not very intuitive in Paris. One needs a bit of coaching to understand the ticketing system. This lack of knowledge led us to an uncomfortable situation. Read along to know what it was! By the way, the tickets themselves are also very different. They are very tiny; just about 1.5x3 cm. It is very easy to lose them in the melee of your pockets.

Due to the strikes, instead of two trains, we ended up taking 3 trains to reach Pont du Servais and then an hour-long bus trip to finally reach Chateau de Versailles. Although we were pressed against the glass window in the bus, it did not stop me from enjoying the sights of the city of Versailles. The streets were dotted with beautifully decorated patisseries and boulangeries. Even in bright daylight they were lit by innumerable bulbs making them look exquisite. There were several apartments decorating the undulating landscape; a mix of old and new. The people themselves are very interesting; although French, they are mixed race. Unless they speak, it is very difficult to determine if they are French or not. Finally, we arrived at the gold gilded gates of the Versailles palace. Expecting to see a huge queue we were surprised to find ourselves in the ticketing office in no time. After swiftly purchasing our tickets we made our way to the Ore restaurant to line our tummies. The lentil velute was to die for the pasta with truffle was well worth the money. All set, we first walked through the main palace building. The residence that had housed Louis XIV, Napoleon and many more distinguished French monarchs, was a museum of expensive paintings, sculptures and uncomfortable looking four posters. The cots themselves were so high that definitely mini ladders would have been required to board them. The curtains around the four posters are made of such rich materials that the king could be suffocated and nobody would guess the cause of death. Finally, the size – they did not even look like double beds. Certainly not comfortable by any measure.

After a quick tour, we ended up in the vast gardens. Versailles is not known much for its palace but for its groves and fountains. There are more than 15 large fountains that are individually crafted and spread over acres. The path to each fountain is covered with beautifully manicured gardens, well-tended plants and trees and innumerable stone sculptures. The sculptures are lifelike and beautifully maintained. We walked around all these fountains until we reached the pinnacle which represents Apollo. Interestingly we had walked about 15000 steps by then. All the fountains were to be turned on to music at 3.30 PM and we still had an hour to spend. We took shelter in a barn converted restaurant which looked very chic and well done. We enjoyed a delicious starter of mozzarella and tomato and a main of garden veg spaghetti.  Although a bit early for tea, the dishes very light and tasty. With our batteries recharged, we were now ready to watch the splendid fountains. They did not disappoint us. Each fountain had its own specific murals and theme. There was the Ballroom, the obelisk and many more unique pieces of art. I certainly term these fountains as pieces of art as they seem to have taken a lot of creativity, time and energy.

In spite of covering close to 25000 steps on foot, we still yearned for more. We took a train back to Paris main. We then braved the metro to reach the most iconic structure of Paris; the Eiffel Tower. It is a large imposing metal beast that is visible from quite a distance. One has to make their way among scores of hawkers and stalls to reach the foot of the tower. We tasted the most delicious macaroons on the way. Reaching the foot of the tower was almost an anti-climax. As you get closer you realize that the tower is a raging and rusting iron edifice. It looks spectacular from afar and unkempt from near. But, this does not take away the charm and stop people from queueing for miles to get the stairs or the elevator that can take people to the top deck. Lucky are those who have reservations in the restaurant that is present on this top deck. They are swiftly whisked away not having to wait in the queue. I was somehow disillusioned and had no intention of climbing the tower. After enjoying a few more minutes in the gentle breeze under the mighty giant, we decided to brave the metro again to get back to our hotel.

Here comes the twist. After having successfully let through ticket barriers with the tickets we held, we were stopped by rail inspectors on the last leg of our journey. They checked our tickets and declared they were not valid. It was very irritating as we were let in at ticket barriers at two different metro stations. No amount of explaining convinced the inspector. He insisted that we pay the penalty. When we continued to argue, he threatened to call the police to resolve the issue. Not wanting any further trouble, we ended up paying €50 each and made our way back with very low spirits. It was not a very good way to end such a lovely day. To make things worse, we took a wrong turn on foot and ended up walking an additional 30 minutes to get back to the hotel. As we closed day 1 we certainly did not have a very good feeling about Paris as a city.

Not wanting to give up hope and set on having a good time we started day 2 with a late rise and a brisk walk in the crisp and cool morning air. We walked along the café dotted streets with their quaint tiny tables and chairs. One thing is clear; native Parisians may be very tine and chic. Hence a lot of things, from table and chairs to lifts are unusually small. It is difficult to manage for us, big bodied broad-shouldered people. We walked up to a popular patisserie. We feasted our eyes on the most luscious pastries and colourful macaroons. We loaded our bags with an assortment of French breakfast treats and made our way back to the hotel. On the way, we stopped at a quaint French restaurant to have some proper breakfast. Here, I realized another queer French practice – the bread. The bread is really hard and gives your jaws a good work out. A complimentary spread of bread is offered in every restaurant for breakfast, lunch, and dinner and they all have one thing in common – they are rock hard. It is not uncommon for people to nibble on the center portion and leave behind the crusts.

As we were finishing our breakfast, we saw an open tour bus pass by. We had never tried the open-air bus before as a means of watching the sights of a city. But this time it sounded appealing as we were still averse to using the metro. On checking with the hotel staff, we realized the pick-up point was very close to our hotel. So, thus started our tryst with the hop on hop off roofless bus and I will say that this is the best thing we did on this trip apart from the fountains of Versailles.

Sitting on top of the bus we saw that side of Paris which warrants it to be a jewel of Europe. An infinite number of colossal buildings beautifully architected, countless number of museums and exhibitions, an endless criss-cross of bridges across River Seine; words are not enough to describe the charm of this side of Paris. We chose to get off and spend more time at the Louvre museum, the church of Notre Dame and the Arc de Triumph. At the Louvre museum, we marveled at its external beauty, At the church of Notre Dame we felt very similar to visiting a traditional Indian temple. Like having multiple alcoves for various Alwars, this church had many alcoves dedicated to many saints. The crowd certainly matched Hindu devotees in number and in faith. Finally, when we got to the Arc de Triumph, we bought tickets to walk up its winding stairs to the top of the structure. From here we witnessed breathtaking views of the city. It is uniquely designed in a such a way that the Arc acts as the center around which the city radiates out in 12 different sectors and each sector is separated from the other by a wide street. It is truly a remarkable creation. After a satisfying stay at the top and a long trek back to terra firma, we walked along the promenade. On either side of the street were bustling shops and restaurants. We picked out one called Bistro Romana and got ourselves seated outside under the marquee. Once again, munching on rock hard seeded bread we enjoyed a very tasty mixed veg pizza. We finally hopped back on the open roof bus and made our way back to the train station.

If one had hoped that our adventure had almost come to an end, that would be a mistake! At Gare du Nord, we were welcomed by a sea of people and oodles of confusion. All trains back to London (there is one almost every 40 minutes) had been delayed. We endured the delay in a trance state as we had no energy left to even react. Getting back home was a slight blur and I only remember hitting the sack.

But, as I flipped through the pictures of our trip this morning, all the pain and all the frustration was forgotten and what remained were the good memories of our visit to the jewel of Europe!