Marge in Paris Part 2

   

Arc de Triomphe

   My good friend Marge Bradley went to Paris this spring. I asked her if I could interview her about her trip and she graciously said yes. She gave me so many photos that I could not have possibly have posted them in one post. I did my first post about her trip before I left for North Carolina in June. I planned on doing Part 2 when I got home but am just getting to it now. Below is the transcript of our "interview" I posted this in Part 1 also, but it is all great info so it deserves to go along with these photos. 

   Marge sent me close to one hundred photos. She worked harder on this project than I did. This post is long overdue by at least two months. Yet Marge never once asked me if/when I would do Part 2. I want to thank her for that. Looking at all of her photos and itinerary, I learned a lot. There are a few things I wouldn't do that she did. On the other hand, she gave me so much info on the places I want to go that my experience will be much easier due to her knowledge.  Thank you again Marge. 

 1. What was your itinerary for each day you were there. This can obviously be short answers because it is the longest answer.

1.  Itinerary:  Friday  Day 1 ---  airport to hotel, naps, food.  Take Batobus (water taxi) on Seine down to Eiffel Tower (8:00) admission tickets - wander around tower - take kids to buy souvenirs and ride carousel across the street.  McDonald's for supper at 11pm
2. 
   
3. Day 2 -- I spent 2 hours at Montparness cemetery, birding.  breakfast at 1:00 (our systems didn't  know what time it was) ... shopped local little places for picnic - cheese, bread, fruit, pastry, wine.  Subway to Jardinne des Plants - walk about, eat.  Walking tour Marais neighborhood, stop in very old church - Museum Pompidou (modern art), late dinner, back to hotel
4. 
   
5. Day 3 -- Early breakfast with Em & Greg, walk to St. Suplice for mass, took subway to Atelier des Lumiere's (an interactive, laser art show .  another subway to Muse Montmarte for Easter egg hunt for kids - walk around outside of Sacre Couer (too crowded to go in), walking tour of neighborhood, found tiny French restaurant for dinner, back to hotel
6. 
   

7. 

   Joan of Arc statue

   
   Day 4 -- Breakfast in hotel - subway to Louvre (very crowded) only stayed about 3 hours - quick shopping at mall attached to Louvre.  Walk through Tulliereis - park with statues and giant trees --- another Batobus ride down to Notre Dame - dinner
8. 
   
9. Day 5 -- Versailles - subway to train then 1/2 mile walk to palace.  Toured palace, grounds, leisurely lunch, bike rides and kids took rowboats out -- train back dinner at Gladines (very French)
10. 
    
11. Day 6 -- Covid tests (took too much time) shop local shops for souverniers  Museum d'Orsay - 4 hours ( my favorite museum.  Galleria Lafayette and Printemps (giant stores), subway to Arc d"Triumph - back to hotel - take out dinner, pack
12. 
    
Day 7 -- 5:30 check out - Uber to airport -- home

2.Where did you fly out of?

 

   Flew out of Boston 

3. Was there a layover?

 No layover

4. How long was the flight from leaving home to landing at Paris?

    6 hours (time change messes with you though..... left around 8pm got there at 8am!

5. How did you get from airport to Paris, bus, subway, taxi, etc? How much did it cost?

   Uber from airport to hotel -- $80 for regular car - $100 for van - 4+ passengers

6. Did you stay in downtown? Where did you stay, a motel, airbnb, etc?

    Stayed in neighborhood called Montparnesse outside downtown area - small Hotel Raspail

7. Did you use public transportation to get around the city?

2. Public transportion only,.  Subway, bus, boat & train to Versailles

 

8. If yes, was it easy, what issues did you have? Was it overwhelming?

    Easy to manage - app for phone - maps in all the subway stops - not overwhelming. 

9. Was signage in English ar all or just French?

 

   Some signage in English - especially at the vending machines to buy tickets...   all major attractions clearly marked at appropriate stops.

10. How long were you gone for? 

       in Paris Friday - Thurs - 6 days

11. What was the weather like? Did it rain often?

2. no rain - sunny, 50 to 70....  very nice

12. What did you bring for outer layers? Did you need a winter coat?

2. work denim jacket, others fleece --- guys wore shorts and shirts 2 days

Question Part 2 

. 

1. Did you eat at any of the extravagant restaurants? If so, what did you eat?

 we didn't do any really fancy restaurants.  Small, local spots only.   I had a shepherd's pie type dish with duck, coq and vin (chicken with wine sauce and 3rd French restaurant i had escargot in a creamy sauce and a casserole with white beans, chicken and sausage.  Other meals,  2 Italian and McDonald's 

2. I looked at your itinerary, you didn't go to Rodin Museum?

   no, sadly, didn't get to Ridin.  just not enough time

3. Did you use cash or credit card to use subway?

credit card

4. Could you use card at most attractions or did you use Euros?

   mostly used cards, euros for small meals and misc small stuff, tops

5. Did you ever see any pick pocket crime? 

   saw no crime.  always felt safe

6. What was your favorite food that wasn't sweet? 

   Bread was unbelievable 

7. What was your favorite food that was sweet?

   toss.... best strawberries ever or a small slice of cake called a Royal from local bakery.  almost flavored cake with strawberry cream

A couple paintings 
from the Orsay Museum
The top is a Van Goh
self portait

8. Did you ever feel unsafe?

 

never.  French military (heavily armed) outside all attractions  

9. How high up did you go in Eiffel Tower?

Eiffel, 2nd floor only.  none of us live heights

10. Did you buy tickets in advance?

bought tickets ahead

   

11. Cost of Eiffel ticket for level you went to? 

     17 Euros

12. If someone were to go to Eiffel Tower from getting there until leaving, how much time do you think is appropriate? 

     I think a minimum of two hours

13. Did you buy tickets in advance for Versailles?

     Bought Versailles tickets ahead also..  timed entry is great..

14. How long was train ride?

      20 minutes

15. I assume you toured most of the grounds, did you rent bikes? 

      did tour grounds, rented bikes.  I don't know cost, Emily paid

 

16. How long did you stay there?

we stayed at Versailles almost 6 hours, including lunch at Cafe M

17. Any advice for Versailles or Eiffel Tower?

 

  Go to Eiffel Tower after dark or at sunset.  Tower lit up is pretty impressive and at the top of every hour the lights twinkle.  All the souvenir vendors sell the same stuff at about the same price, don't bother hunting for something for less or something different.   Versailles,  take a history refresher before you go.  Spend more time outside that indoors, gardens are amazing.  And lunch on the grounds was worth the price and the time.

Below are some more photos she sent me. I grouped them as best I could by attraction.

               

 

                                                Outdoors at Versailles 

                                                           Inside Versailles 

The photo below is of Napoleon Bonaparte being crowned Emperor. It is tradition for the pope to crown then Emperor. However, Napoleon was so arrogant he put the crown on his own head. You can even see the expression on the Pope's face that he isn't too happy about it. 

King Louis XIV the Sun King

Other Photos Marge sent me-

The Entrance to the Louvre

Cezannne painting

Statue of Liberty inside the Orsay Museum which
is a former train station

I would love these cheese shops

Seine River from Eiffel 

Marge did some birding. 
Mandarin Duck

A good way to end this post.
Good night

A Few Dollars More

   A few years ago, a guy I know from work went to see the Rolling Stones at Gillette. It just so happened that very same night I saw the Beach Boys at Bold Point. Obviously, both bands play oldies music. I know I had a great time at Bold Point and I sang along to all the Beach Boys songs.  I can only assume that the Stones put on a great show and the guy from work was equally pleased. 

  The differences of our two experiences was price. Laurie and I got the tickets for $25 each and we probably bought an over priced soda for seven bucks. For a grand total of $57 for a night out. On the other hand, my friend bought tix for himself and wife. After buying the tickets, parking, a few beers he told me we dropped about a GRAND!

   This guy is a hard working middle class guy. He is not rich or made of money. And here is the other thing, I don't think he made the wrong decision to spend a thousand dollars on a concert if it was worth it to him. He didn't just look at the Stones concert as a night out, he looked at it as a once in a lifetime experience. When you put something as once in a lifetime, whether the Stones, a trip to Disney, or a Super Bowl, then the money shouldn't matter. You only live once (YOLO). 

   Obviously, there is no way I would pay a grand to go to any concert. Paying hundreds of dollars for tickets to see millionaires, I just can't justify. I also find it hard to justify going to Gillette Stadium anyway, mostly because I hate it. The place is huge so unless you do pay the hundreds of dollars, you're watching the concert on the jumbo-tron anyway. Parking is $60. To top it all off, its going to take three hours to get out of the parking lot. To me, its just not an enjoyable experience. I haven't gone to a Patriots game or a concert there in years. 

    I seem to put a value on everything, because I have so many hobbies, I am interested in going to everything from most sporting events to Civil War battlefields. Also, many of my favorite things to do are free anyway. Hiking, birding, snorkeling, photography, fishing, and quahogging only cost me the gas to get to them. So if I want to spend money on anything else, I weigh if I actually want to take away the day doing those other things anyway. 

   This does not mean I won't spend money. Obviously, I do go to concerts and musicals. My one vice that costs me money is boats. I love going on whale watches and pelagic trips to see birds. Though a whale watch might cost me $75 while I'm on the boat I never think about the price. I just love being on the open sea. The irony is I do get seasick about half the time despite taking medicine and doing as much preventive maintenance as I can.

   The one place I am finding that spending the extra money is worth it is at small venues. I am finally getting to the point of this post. While the difference in price from the great seats to the nose bleeds at a Kenny Chesney concert at Gillette may be hundreds of dollars, at smaller venues it may only be ten to twenty dollars. 

I have realized I do enjoy going to a concert or musical more if I have good seats. When Laurie and I go to the Stadium Theater every year to see A Christmas Carol, we get the same seats. Third row Center, end seats on the left. This is standard for Stadium Theater for us if those seats are available for any show. These seats are about ten dollars more than the lowest price level but to me they are worth it and still a good value for a night out.

   Last month Laurie and I had a fun Saturday. We went on a whale watch out of Cape Ann. After the whale watch we went to see the Buddy Holly Story at the North Shore Music Theater (side note, my back is still killing me and it was an expensive day, so I self medicated to enjoy the day!) The tickets to the venue are pretty pricy ranging from $63-$78. We figured if we were going to pay that much anyway, we may as well get the good seats. We ended up with third row seats. They were great. When the musicians came to the edge of the stage, we were making eye contact with them. They were interacting with members of the audience. 

   Sitting where we did was much more fun than if we would have gotten the next price level down. I actually know this from seeing the Buddy Holly Story a few years back (2016) at the Hanover Theater. We had mid-priced seats and they weren't bad.  You could watch the action and listen to the music but even at mid level, you couldn't really see the expressions or the faces that well. Comparing the same musical up close, there is no comparison. So, so  much better.