Oct 17, Part 2 - Paris: Morning walk to the Seine

Just outside the door of our hotel, directly across the street was this pizzeria. We never are there, and most of the time it looked pretty empty. But this woman is enjoying a quiet breakfast off the beaten path.

You can go west or north leaving the hotel, and we chose north this morning, walking one short block to the River Seine.

From our street, Rue Maitre Albert, you reach the Seine at the Quai de Tournelle. Here's an ice cream shop, but it was still chilly morning, and we had other ideas. The sun was out for the second time on our visit. What were we going to do with such a beautiful day? Enjoy it, of course! The lighting does blow out the lights and darks in the photos, but what a wonderful sight for me - Paris in sunlight. Yesterday was sunny in the afternoon, but the morning had been dark. I'm more used to the overcast days. I tend to visit during the rainier seasons.

Here's our first glimpse of Notre Dame for the day, right at the foot of our street, one block from the hotel.

A kiosk, so typical of Paris. I like the shadows on the pavement.

The book- and print-sellers are already at work along the Quai de la Tournelle. Notre Dame is on the other side of the river, or rather on the Ile de la Cite, the big island.

"Just" another view of it. I can never get enough of this beautiful, peaceful spot. No matter the crowds or traffic, it always feels peaceful to me, although today there were not that many people, and the traffic was slow at this hour.

Fall colors along the banks of the Seine.

I was enchanted by the buildings here, looking south (inland) again up Rue de l'Hotel Colbert.

Crossing the street to the river, we encountered this plaque. Lee was pretty good at deciphering the French. I could only make out a few words here and there. It seems to be a history of boats at or near this location. Maybe. The bridge is Pont au Double, which crosses to the front of Notre Dame cathedral, which was on our route. I don't remember if it was our intention, but we were going to be ending up at a cafe we enjoyed on the Right Bank, Cafe Zimmer. I think we had decided we were headed that way for brunch, wandering a bit on the way. Or did it just turn out that way? Anyway, we had to pass Notre Dame and the river, and that's an advantage any day.

Go to Next Post

Oct 15 (Day 2), Part 1 - Place Maubert and breakfast (again)

I slept in. I hadn't wanted to do that on this too-short trip to Paris. I wanted to see things. I've never had a particular problem with jet lag, but I was having something like that now. I went to sleep early and exhausted from the long walk yesterday, then woke up around midnight or not much after, and couldn't go back to sleep. This trip, it was hard to shake off business, and it was probably harder because I was having fun with my new BlackBerry (Global Edition, with flat rate unlimited e-mail and Internet). I spent hours in the night glued to the small, bright screen, and only fell asleep toward morning. When I'd put it down, my mind was either filled with ideas (good in a way, but bad for sleeping), or it was completely blank and calm, but, unfortunately, wide awake. When I finally got up, the Rue Maitre-Albert outside our hotel door was a welcome sight. The narrow street (above) is the one we had arrived on from the direction of the river. Below is the direction of Place Maubert and breakfast.

One of the streets leading into Place Maubert is the Rue de la Montagne Sainte Genevieve (above). We didn't take that street, but instead headed into the square where we'd bought food before.

There was a lot to eat, and most of it looked pretty inviting.

OK, some of it looked pretty inviting. We were not into greasy chicken, but the quiche was a no-brainer, and so started my addiction.

More food in Place Maubert. It's worth clicking on the picture to read the notice . . . in English.

Go to Part 2

Oct 14, Part 5 - Hotel de Notre Dame Maitre Albert

Our hotel was about as picturesque as you can imagine, and it was very nice. I found it online after the hotel our travel agent found for us was about twice as expensive. The Hotel de Notre Dame was about two blocks from the river, but I don't know what we would have seen with a view room, because the street is curved. As it was, we had an inside room which opened onto a utility rooftop with a fire exit; it was completely quiet and private, and we could leave the window open.

The Rue Maitre Albert was tiny. This is looking back the way we came when we approached the hotel. The sidewalk on the right side where our hotel was, is even narrower than the one on the left in this photo. Our hotel was just at the curve in the street, which almost formed an "L," with one end opening onto a small square near the river, and the other opening almost onto Place Maubert (see below) where there was a convenient Metro stop. That is, it would have been convenient if we'd used it much.

Here's Lee standing in the lobby, which was much bigger and more elaborately decorated than any I can remember staying in in Paris. The hotel was comfortable, and the owners were friendly. You can see the decor in the more formal of the two sitting areas below. There was a computer with free Internet, which was extra nice.

It looks very French, doesn't it?

And here's Lee again, walking down the hallway. We were on the first floor, which is the one above the ground floor. The upstairs was as tiny as the downstairs was spacious. It was comfortable, though. The infrastructure in this area is ancient, and rooms and halls tend to be very, very small. I'll have more pix of the hotel in another post. If anyone's looking for a place to stay in Paris, I recommend the Hotel de Notre Dame on Rue Maitre Albert. You can find it online, and if you call, they can speak to you in English.

Go to Part 6