From Aix in Provence, we had a two-hour drive to Nice. Dave and I were both looking forward to a shorter trip than we had the day before. I was quite tired and my balance was a bit off. Dave took to driving and I navigated. The drive from Aix was quite nice. The most exciting part was when we finally saw the Mediterranean Sea! Even from about 20 km away, we could see how lovely the blue was. Finally, we had reached the sea!

Beach in Nice, France

Our first order of business was to find our hotel and check in. It’s an adorable boutique hotel we had read about in Frommer’s, the Hotel Windsor. The hotel is a very artsy hotel (right up my alley!) and they had art installations in the lobby! Each room has its own theme and we had requested a room that does not face the street and has a balcony. We got the “Taste of the Orient” room. It was all white and wicker with a lovely teal and silver wallpaper. It included a queen sized bed, which was very comfortable, and, best of all, air conditioning! The staff was very helpful and the room was comfortable. The elevator was small, but has a surprise in it that I won’t spoil for anyone who might be interested in staying here. It’s a great place, and we highly recommend it.

On the streets of Nice, France

After we checked in, Dave went to park the car while I unpacked. He returned and we went for a walk in search of lunch. Now, the one thing we didn’t even expect to do in France was to eat Chinese food, but some of the restaurants within short distance from the hotel were already closed for lunch and only open as cafes or pizzerias, so we stopped by the Chinese restaurant and were pleasantly surprised. The food was good; the owner spoke great English (he has 3 brothers who live in the US!), and the atmosphere was quite nice. We were hungry and tired, and it was a nice respite.

After lunch, we decided to walk to the boardwalk, where the Mediterranean is within view. We went for our afternoon espresso. I was suddenly very tired and a bit out of sorts. The driving from the past two days had finally gotten to me. Dave took me back to the hotel and put me into bed for a nap. He went out exploring. I think he was gone for 3 hours, but I’m not sure. I slept most of that time. And by the time he got back, I was feeling much better and I had refreshed my make-up. We had 8 pm reservations at Le Petit Maison, a short walk from our hotel. Dave showered and dressed and we headed out for our evening.

The restaurant was pretty empty at 8 pm, but quickly started filling up. The food, the waiters, the ambiance, and the other patrons provided us with a lovely evening. We got to watch the “dance” the waiters do in a crowded restaurant. They all knew their menus well, and when we showed my allergy card, the waiter could tell me immediately whether they could alter something so it tasted good and met my needs. We watched the patrons and gave them back-stories as we sat and enjoyed a fabulous 2 1/2 hour meal of several courses.

Lighthouse at Cap Ferrat, Cap St. Jacques, France

The next morning we went to breakfast and watched as the stores around us opened up and set up the “outside market” parts of their shops. After breakfast, we did some walking in the market and bought a few things. We each got a hat and I stopped at a small souvenir stop that had books and postcards. I picked up a paperback that I can use for French text in my artwork. We went back to the hotel to get changed into our bathing suits.

Our view from the lounge chairs at The Grand Hotel, Cap St. Jacques, France

We had plans to spend lunch and the afternoon with two of Dave’s partners and their spouses – yes, in the South of France! They go each year and they stay at the lovely Cap Ferrat at the fabulous Grand Hotel, which is situated along the coastline on top of a cliff. We met for lunch and then sat along the edge of the cliff in lounge chairs.

Drawing of shoreline in Cap Ferrat

Sailboats on the Mediterranean in Cap Ferrat, France

After about a half hour, we walked down to the edge of the cliff to swim in the Mediterranean! Unlike along the rocky beaches of Nice, the hotel’s location on a cliff had been turned into an entry into the water, with a ladder that allowed us to step into the water. We swam in the Mediterranean. I don’t know if I can explain the excitement I felt along with the weightlessness. There is so much salt in the Mediterranean that you automatically float. And the water is so clear. I wish I had brought goggles to see underneath, but we didn’t stay in too long. Soon after we got in, I felt a pinch on my leg, but I figured it was nothing. About five minutes later, I saw a Portuguese Man o’ War betwen me and one of our friends. I mentioned it and the next thing I knew, we were all being hailed in. Soon after we got out of the water, I started feeling a burn in the area where I had felt the pinch. I had been stung by the Man o’ War. We went to the lifeguard and he gave me an ointment to put on it and soon it was a distant memory.

We left around 5:30 after a relaxing afternoon of drawing for me and reading for Dave. It was a lovely resort day and exactly what we needed after all the hubub of the driving. But we were hungry, so we figured we’d find a bistro close-by the hotel and grab an early dinner. We turned on the GPS to get us back out of the area and this is where we were completley on our own. The GPS could not find satellites. Next thing we knew, we were in Monaco. Yep, you read that right. We ended up in the Principality of Monaco. We had thought we’d go there at some point the next day, but here we were. We drove around, I took photos, and we, somehow, ended up near the Monte Carlo. People were very nicely dressed, there were some high end stores, and, lots of buildings. There was little to no coastline left undeveloped. So commercial. We didn’t feel a need to stop there and have dinner. We drove on following the signs and hoping we’d find our way back to Nice.

Drawing of Lighthouse at Cap St. Jacques, France

After about an hour of driving (which should have taken about 20 minutes), we ended up back in Nice. We parked the car and went to find a restaurant. There was a lovely Greek restaurant not far from our hotel and we had dinner there. I’m sorry I don’t remember the name of it. We sat outside and it was interesting to have dinner with street vendors walking by trying to sell things to us and people smoking and talking loudly as they walked through the outdoor part of the restaurant to their next destination. But the food was good and we retired to the hotel not much later.

The next morning we wanted to head to the Chagall museum. After the night before’s GPS mess, we asked the hotel to show us on the map. Let’s just say that it did not go well. Again, the GPS did not work for us. And there was little parking near the actual museum, so we went searching for parking. Well, we ended up more than a kilometer from the museum when we finally found parking. I was already tired, but determined. After a while, I had to stop. The entire walk was up hill, and it was a very hot and humid day. We had left before lunch, so we were tired and hungry. We headed back to the car and then to the hotel (again, after the GPS did lost us!).

Garden Restaurant at Hotel Windsor, Nice, France

We did, however, have a lovely lunch at an Italian restaurant and then we walked around Nice some more. We picked up some chocolates for Dave to have along with some gifts for people, as it was our final day in France. We went back to the hotel and made reservations in their restaurant for dinner and then we went up to the room and packed. I wanted to make sure we had everything and that our early morning flight the next day would not be stressful. We also wanted to take the car back so we didn’t have to worry about that the next morning. So we did that, took a taxi back to the hotel, and had dinner. The restaurant is in the gardens at the hotel. Unfortunately, it was not the best meal we had. It was, perhaps the worst meal we had in France. However, it was relaxing and the setting was lovely and relaxing.

We made it home safely, but our luggage was a day late. Really, that was the only thing that went wrong. At least we were headed home!

On Monday, we checked out of our hotel and got a taxi to the Charles De Gaul Airport. We had reserved a car with Avis, since they are nice enough to have automatic transmissions on some of their rentals (DH doesn’t drive a stick!) and we didn’t want to drive in Paris. (An aside – driving in Paris is truly taking your life in your own hands. Those crazy scenes in the movies? They don’t hold a candle to it! I’ve included this video I found on YouTube, because it’s the closest I could get to the feeling of being there.

Another thing in France: they like their mopeds and bicycles. And they like riding bikes and mopeds by weaving in and out of the car traffic. Seriously, folks, it’s nuts! But I guess if you’re smoking 3 packs of cigarettes a day, risking your life for your daily commute is nothing. Something cool that is coming to the US, I hear, is a rental bike program. In Paris they even had this cool Velib system where people could rent bikes for a nominal fee. We ate at one restaurant twice because it was right next to a Velib “station” and we were fascinated by people renting and returning the bikes. I know, we’re lame.

OK. Back to the trip. We rented a Citroën C4 Picasso (a Picasso!), a French-made car. It was comfortable to sit in, large enough for our luggage, and it was compact enough to fit in with all the other compact French vehicles. It was easy to drive, once we figured out that it had different controls than our cars here in the US. But again, it was fairly easy. We had a portable GPS with us throughout our trip, but especially for this part.

Painted door at Cote St. Jacques

It was a very rainy day (as were most of them in the north of France!), but we got on the road with smiles on our faces, ready for some time in the country. We drove to Joigny in Burgundy. It was about two hours from the airport and it was easy highway driving. We had reservations at a Chateau called Le Cote St. Jacques. Upon entering the street where the Chateau was located, we were a bit surprised. We expected more of a castle-like appearance; however it was on a street. Our concerns quickly were allayed when we walked into the reception area. We were in the “old” part of the hotel, on the side away from the river, since the rooms were significantly less expensive on that side. Our room was astounding! After being in a small box in Paris, moving to a hotel room where we had a king-sized bed, a TV with British and American news channels, a huge closet (with hand-painted doors – see right), a real shower and tub and even a bidet was amazing. The decor was lovely and relaxing in yellow and green – nice French Country decor.

We had made reservations for dinner at a little restaurant in Auxerre, called Le Jardin Gourmand. We had read about it in Frommer’s and we were absolutely thrilled with the dinner. Our meal was fabulous, and really, considering that we had five and six courses and Dave’s were paired with French wines, it was not that expensive at all. The service was impeccable. They worked with my allergies, and the food was still tasty and elegant and gourmet. Olivier Laplaine, the co-owner and manager, served our meal and told us why each thing was on the plate (I felt like we were judges on Top Chef!). All the vegetables were grown in their organic garden on the property there around the restaurant. And Pierre Boussereau, the chef/co-owner even came out to say hello and to make sure we enjoyed our meal. Before we left, Oliver wanted to be sure we knew of the sites in Burgundy, so he brought out a map for us and showed us what our route for the next day should be. It was a lovely way to end our first day in Burgundy.

Abbey in Auxere, France

We slept a bit late, since Dave had five glasses of wine with his dinner (don’t worry – I drove back to the hotel!) and we were just glad to have slept somewhere out in the country. The Burgundy region is filled with Medieval castles, abbeys and cathedrals. We were excited to be able to see them and to wander the streets. As we drove, I took photographs of the countryside and some of the buildings so I would have them as inspiration later. We got a late start, but headed out to Auxerre again to see the Abbey and the Cathedral. There was a lot of walking and it was a Tuesday. Why is that relevant? All museums and paid attractions are closed on Tuesdays. So, bummer. We didn’t get to see some of the original 15th Century frescoes. I guess we’ll have to go back some time!

Basicica Mary Magdaline, Vezelay, France

We then went to Vezelay, a Medieval town that has the Basilica of Mary Magdeline and is a spot for many pilgrimages. It is located at the top of the mountain, and I was determined to make it to the top to get some photos. We had lunch and then made our way up. We stopped in some of the shops along the way, picked up a few souvenirs and some great tourist information. It was a lovely day, really. We headed home after visiting the Basilica.

Joigny, France

We were quite tired upon our return to Joigny and we were not in the mood for a big dinner again – one six-course meal per week is more than our share! And so we checked with the staff at Le Côte St. Jacques, and they were able to make up a room service dinner for us from their critically acclaimed restaurant. We enjoyed the quiet evening and unwound. The next morning we were to drive to Provence, so we had a big day of driving ahead of us and we wanted an early start.

The next morning we ate petit dejuner (breakfast) at the hotel. It was a lovely setting – a beautiful view of the river and the gardens behind the chateau. Dave had an omelette, and I had the most amazing samun fume (smoked salmon) that they made right there in the hotel. I will never be able to eat the packaged smoked salmon from my local grocery store again! It was quiet in this part of the chateau and we were glad to have a quiet breakfast after a week of crazy loudness in the Paris petit dejuner room!

We headed out on our long trip to Aix in Provence. We had reservations at a Latin Bistro at 7 pm that we hoped to make. We set off on the road, ready with lots to talk about and our GPS to guide us – or so we thought. The GPS was not always able to find satellites, which was quite frustrating, as she’d lose satellites for the rest of the trip when we needed her most! But that’s travel and technology for you! We stopped several times and switched drivers.

One interesting thing about France is their rest stops. They are either really nice or not nice. Let’s start with the quick stops, where they just have a spot to walk, and bathrooms. The women’s bathrooms were, um, interesting. They were literally a hole in the ground with two porcelain “foot spots” for you to lean over the hole. Let’s just say that trying to squat with a balance problem is more problematic than it is for others. Thank goodness the French have handicapped bathrooms I could use. Sheesh! Now for the nice: The rest stops often have spots for coffee (they even advertise them with a coffee cup on the road’s “services” signs, along with gas and food!). We figured it was like a Starbucks kind of thing – paper cups to leave with. Not so. In France, they truly do take their cafe seriously! We were surprised to see real cups and saucers with our espressos! It made for a good way to take a break and get the energy to get back in the car for a while.

Sculpture of Cezanne, Aix en Provence, France

And we were in the car for a while. Over 5 hours of driving and we made it to our hotel, a Novotel. The service was quite nice there and the rooms were air conditioned. We brought in our luggage and headed out to our reservations. Dave was driving, since the long day on the road got to me and my energy was waning. Our GPS was somewhat helpful, but parking in Aix is not easy, and we didn’t know they had parking garages. We drove around for a long while, and ended up in the midst of a shopping area, where, upon cobblestone streets, people were walking without a care of the car coming to them. Now we weren’t the only ones on this road, but we were in the lead of at least two other cars and it was, well, an adventure! All the time, we were on the lookout for a parking space. We ended up parking about .75 km from our restaurant. By the time we parked, though, I was exhausted and we decided to head back to the hotel for an early night. No Le Bistro Latin for us.

Le Marche, Aix en Provence, France

The next morning we went back into town and there was a street marche (market) which was a ton of fun. It was on what Frommer’s calls the prettiest street in Europe. I had fun at the market. They had some things for 5Є each and I found a few tops that I had to have. Dave looked, but was unsuccessful. They had lovely French textiles and fun hats and some crafts.

We stopped in a cafe for a quick cup of espresso and then headed back to the car where we embarked upon the final part of our trip – the drive to Nice. And I will tell you about that in the next installment of the France Travel Journal!

Illustration of the view from our hotel, Paris, France

drawing of iron work in Paris France

One more post about Paris. While there, I did take care to relax a lot between activities. It’s a walking city, so I was glad to have my cane. But I needed to be very mindful about my energy. And so I spent a lot of time in our hotel room. There was not much of a view from our window, but I did draw what I could see from the window. And that’s to the right. And while I would sit on the couch (which unfolded to be our bed, by the way!), I could see the ironwork on the window. I really liked all the ironwork in Paris, as it was a great contrast to all of the cement and brick on the buildings.

The buildings were also quite interesting to me. I decided to draw one during one of our last days in Paris. We were sitting a Cafe Monceau, near the Villers Metro station. It was a Sunday, so it was quite crowded. The only seat was behind this group of five or six 20-somethings who were all chain smoking and having a mixture of wine and coffee. But we needed our coffee fix! So, we sat and just lived with the smoke while I drew. I was fascinated by the buildings that opened at the corners. They were ornate and not something I see in Phoenix. I think, mostly, that Paris reminded me of a mixture between Brookside, MA and the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The busy pace, the buildings with the tiny apartments…

Drawing of a corner building in Paris, France

I have to say, I was disappointed by how much cement there was in Paris. I expected more gardens and less rain. But, really, I did try to find some beauty in it. I was also a bit more surprised than I should have been at the amount of people and the “city” feeling about it. I guess I expected more of a relaxed atmosphere, but I should have known better. The second half of the trip was much more relaxing, and I will start to describe that tomorrow!

So, after we got rained on – again – and headed to our hotel, we were very tired and I was starting to feel weary. Neither of us really wanted to do much of anything at that point, so we ended up ordering room service. For me, that meant a green salad. For Dave, it meant a salmon and pasta with the obligatory basket of bread. We watched a movie on our portable iLuv player, since there was no English-language tv or newspapers available. It was a fairly early night, but after a lot of walking, it was fine. Dave had his conference the next day and we didn’t want him to be too tired for that!

Drawing of Paris Lamp post on Champs Elysses

On Friday morning, Dave and I had some time together before his conference. We decided to walk down the Champs-Elysees, where all the designer shops, fancy cafes and five-star restaurants are. We aren’t really into the designer fashion scene, but it was a pretty street to walk down. And, unlike much of the rest of Paris, it had a wide sidewalk that made it easier for us to walk together. It was quite hot and humid that day, but we found a newsstand that had an English version of a world newspaper and Dave purchased it immediately. I was still fairly tired from the day before, so we found a cafe and sat down. I pulled out my sketchbook and drew. Now, this is what I expected to see in Paris!

Drawing of store window in Paris, France

Of course, I was not prepared for the crazy chain-smoking Parisians. OMG! The chain smoking along with the espresso… No wonder they are all so thin – nicotine and caffeine! And they sit for hours, alternating between smoking, ordering an “encore” (another) of cafe, and talking on their phones. In that way, they’re much like New Yorkers… obsessed with multitasking! I guess, really, that was me, when I was playing executive – minus the smoking, the multitasking, the coffee… all me!

Drawing of a cafe scene in Paris, France

And so, after a coffee and a Metro ride home, we grabbed some lunch at a cafe near the metro. Dave had to change into his suit for his meeting and headed to the other side of Paris.

As for me, I was going to rest for the afternoon – nap, draw, watch some French TV for the heck of it and then I was meeting Dave for dinner at the Senat building, where the conference was having a traditional French dinner. So, I napped, added some color to the sketches above, and watched some movie on TV in French. Yes, I watched a movie in French! I got the plot, for the most part. It was about a woman who discovers she has breast cancer, but is having trouble with her photographer husband and doesn’t tell him. Of course, it turns out fine, because the tumor is removed and she doesn’t seem to need chemo or radiation, and their marriage is healed by her disease… Yes, I got all this by watching and getting the gist of what they were saying in French. It was an entertaining hour and a half – mostly because I could figure it out and because it was so much like a US film wold be on Lifetime!

Drawing of Senat Building in Paris, France

Later that afternoon, I dressed for the dinner. I was all dressed up in my little black dress and shawl, and I brought my jacket with me, because it had cooled off. I was to take a taxi to the Luxembourg Palace, where we were to have dinner. It appeared to me that this was not really a palace, and I hoped that it was prettier from the other side! As it turns out, the building of the address was actually the Senat building (yes, Senate without the “e”), and it was not at all palatial! However, I got there, and I was 45 minutes early. This, of course, put the people in the reception area in a tizzy. I was far too early, and they were not prepared for anyone yet. I said I’d come back and went to try to find a cafe. No luck, as it was already dinner time and the cafes were now set for dinner. So, I plopped myself across from the Senat building entrance, waiting for Dave’s bus to arrive. I pulled out my journal and I drew! It was fun to watch people walk by me and look at my drawing, looking across the street to see what I could possibly be drawing! I guess I looked pretty comfortable there, since a few people asked me for directions.

Drawing of iron work at Senat building, Paris, France

Dinner was lovely. Dave went to the head waiter before service started and reminded him of my allergies. He handed him one of my allergy cards and he said it wasn’t going to be a problem. And, truly, it was not. We sat with the US contingency (very few of us flew in from the States) and I got to meet the delightful wives of some of Dave’s colleagues. I’ve known the colleagues for a while, since I tend to go to meetings with him. No, I don’t mind when he talks shop. All my years in health care administration helps me to keep up with the conversations. They served a lovely six-course dinner, all courses were adapted for my allergies, and the evening was a delight.

Dinner ended after 10:30 and we were on the other side of Paris from where our hotel was. So, we went in search of a taxi. Taxis in Paris are highly unionized. You can get a taxi only at taxi stands or through your hotel. It took a 20 minute walk and about 20 minutes more for the first taxi to decide to work. They were lined up chatting rather than driving… Anyhow, we got back to the hotel and went straight to sleep. The next morning, we went down to breakfast (aside here, I need to tell you about the breakfast room, but I’ll do that later in this post) and quickly ate. From there, Dave left for his meeting, where he was going to present his paper. I had plans to go to the Musee d’Orsay for the day. And, honestly, it was the best day I had there.

Musee d'Orsay clock, Paris, France

I rested a bit in the morning, making sure I had all the energy I could for the day at the museum. I walked to the Metro and then through the Tuileries in the drizzle and got to the Orsay. There was a huge line. And I took a look around and I saw a man selling his paintings along the Seine across the street from the museum (right). breath and decided I’d just bare it and get ready to stand for an hour before going in. No, I did not need to do that. My quad cane to the rescue again. I had the lovely advantage of a gentleman taking me to the front of the line and letting me in immediately. You know, I don’t get this kind of treatment when I’m here in the US!

Man selling his artwork along the Seinne across from the Musee d'Orsay, Paris, France

I took my time walking through the sculptures on the entry floor. So lovely and it was so amazing to be right there, next to these amazing sculptures. I took lots of photos. I was overwhelmed with the inspiration, so I was not ready to draw. I figured the photos would serve as memories and I could draw at a later time. I decided to go up to the top floor and work my way down. I saw every piece of art in that museum. I stopped at every picture, looked closely at the brush strokes of the Masters, and I studied them. I took photos of some of the parts of the paintings I wanted to remember – how they used shading on a certain face; how they used something I use in my work and I could find another place for it. I took photos of an amazing mixed-media sculpture made in bronze and fabric. The horse and man are in bronze, but then it appears to be a thin canvas painted in black (gesso?) that serves as his cloak. I was constantly surprised at how much of what we do now as artists has, in some ways, been done for centuries!

Mixed-media sculpture - clay, bronze and fabric

I took a break in the middle of the day for lunch at the museum’s restaurant. I thought it would be a good rest for me and they were, happily, undaunted by my allergies. So, I sat and ate and, as it turned out, at the table next to me, an artist sat down. Sheila Giles-Oddy sat and chatted with me. She is a pen and ink and watercolor artist. She’s from Toronto, Canada, and we had a lovely chat. She and her husband had been to the Orsay five times and they never tired of it. She and I exchanged cards and she invited me to call next time I am in Toronto. And I shall! Sheila, if you’re reading this, it was so lovely to meet you! I will definitely let you know when my husband and I come to Toronto.

Dave’s talk was received well, and at the end of his day he was exhausted. I was, too. I mean, I had been on my feet for 8 hours. So, we ordered room service again and decided to stay in and watch a movie on our iLuv. We watched Across the Universe. Or, rather, I watched, Dave slept. It was quite a cute movie. What a great way to use Beatles tunes!

The next day, we had breakfast (petit dejuner) in the hotel. Now, this little breakfast room was a source of entertainment each morning we were in Paris. Petit dejuner was included in our hotel rate, so we could get started each morning. To get there, we had to either take five flights of stairs down, or take the elevator to the basement. The room was filled with tiny chairs and breakfast tables that were pre-set with coffee cups, saucers, a napkin, and a small plate.  Everything else, except the coffee, was set up on an a table that was about 2 meters long (see, I got into the Metric System while there!). There was coffee American-style, brewed and available for us to just keep refilling our cup as much as we wanted. The room was stuffy, small, and hot; there was no air circulating in that room. They had a small fan running, but unless you were blessed to sit at the table right next to it, you didn’t feel it. And there were bad croissants and odd yogurts (granny smith apple yogurt?) and corn flakes available. They did have hard boiled eggs, which I was able to peel and make into an egg-white breakfast, so all was not lost!

The characters at the breakfast changed each morning. The first morning, we sat next to a couple that was from Australia. Like us, they were visiting Europe for the first time. She had a milk allergy and Celiac Disease and could not eat anything that was there. We chatted and told her we’d found the supermarket and where she could find soy milk. It was nice to speak English before the coffee kicked in! LOL Another day, it was all business people, rushing to get their food and coffee down and to head to a meeting. (It was amazing to me that with all those carbs Parisians and the French in general, appeared to be quite thin.) Another day, two German women sat near us, and were clearly as much in a fog as we were. Perhaps that’s why one of the last days there, we noticed the rather large man and his son. The . The language they spoke was either Italian or Spanish. Dave thought Spanish, I was convinced it was Italian. The man reminded me of Marlon Brando from The Godfather. He even had the scratchy authoritative voice! His wife put together a plate that was overflowing with lots of croissants and muffins. His son was sent to do the same soon after that. Both were gone almost immediately. We didn’t even see them eat them, just knew there was activity going on by the amount of food that seemed to disappear in moments.

Later that morning, we stopped at le marche (the market) and picked up some fruit. Then we sat at a Cafe for lunch. We were tired and looking forward to leaving Paris. We packed our clothes and prepared for a quiet afternoon. We went out to dinner and to sleep early. We were ready to leave Paris, really. We needed the quiet of the country, and the next day, that was to happen.

More tomorrow!

So, where was I? Oh, yes, we were soaking wet in our red touristy ponchos at the Eiffel Tower…

After the soaking wet fiasco at the Eiffel Tower, we made our way back to the hotel via Metro. We were poor travelers, as we had not read the hotel’s information notebook that told us where we could find the closest metro station. We went back to the Arc de Triomphe and walked over a kilometer (yes, folks, they do use the Metric system in Europe!) to our hotel. On our way back, we were really confused. A lovely French woman with her children in a stroller was kind enough to help us find our way to the hotel. We were simply three blocks away. If we’d not met her, we’d have given up, I’m sure, and tried to take a taxi the three measly blocks!

Double Expresso - a life-line during our trip!

After changing clothes and looking at a map of exactly where we are (duh!), we decided to find a cafe to sit in and to explore the area close by. It was still drizzling, but we switched our ponchos for the travel jackets we’d brought with us and the umbrellas. Much less touristy, and we fit in much better! We walked down the street that was an open-air market (marche) and I picked up some fruit; Dave picked up some pastry. We were dry and happy, finally. We found a cafe. I had my first cup of double expresso (double) with no soy milk. Over the week, I became much more accustomed to getting my caffeine in a quick shot, rather than slowly with a leisurely soy latte. Tastes less sweet and smooth, but I sure did cut down on the calories!

After the cafe, we walked a bit more to find a spot to eat. Now, the thing about Paris is that all the cafes serve some food – at least pastry – but at a certain time, they become restaurants and you can’t just sit and have a coffee. The market area had quite a few different places that looked like restaurants, but they were lunch places or places to “take away” food like we do in the US. With our (at this point, at least) limited knowledge of French and the words used in signage, we had difficulty understanding that. We did find a place to eat.

Eating in Paris was fairly easy, even though I have a ton of allergies. I think I mentioned before I left that I had created an allergy card that translated my list of food allergies. We would spend some time looking at the menu, translating it with software in our Palm-based phones, and then the server would come. I’d hand him (usually a male) the card and say, with a smile, “Je suis allergic“. And, for the most part, they were able to look at the menu and tell me what would be easy to prepare. I urged them to go to the chef with the allergy card and make sure. I ate a lot of “bar” a sea-bass like fish that is locally caught and readily available. Only a few times did the chef have a different option for me, since some things were prepared in advance with something on my allergy list. What I found was that the allergy card was taken much more seriously than my comments to servers here in the US. So, I’ve printed out some in English to carry when I go to restaurants here. We’ll see how that goes!

The Louvre, Paris, France

The next day, Wednesday, we went to the Louvre. we took the Metro, which required several changes and many stairs. By the time we got done with the trip itself, I was already tired. But I perservered. It was the only museum Dave was willing to go to with me. (Though he’s supportive of my art, he says he can’t appreciate art or museums in the same way I do.) And so, we went. We went through an airport-like screening, with my bag and cane needing to be x-rayed, we took the escalator down, we stood in line for tickets. And we found out, after 20 minutes of waiting in line that, since I’m “handicapped” (their word), I get to see the Louvre for free, as does my “companion”. So we headed in.

Mona Lisa - From about 10 meters away and through 3 panes of glass

Upon entering the European art wing, I noticed an unwelcoming scent. It was a mixture of mildew and sulfur, best I could tell. I hoped that as we got to the floors with the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo that we’d find it dissipated. Not so. And, honestly, Mona and Venus were so crowded and kept so far from easy viewing (a rope was around the double layers of glass that surrounded her and kept us about 10 meters away from Mona, for example), that I could not enjoy it very much. I was disappointed, but also had a headache from the smells. We figured that since we saw the two main attractions and paid nothing, it wasn’t too bad to leave. I knew I would visit another musuem on my own later in the week on my own. We then went to a cafe to see if my headache would go away and to decide on our next step.

Illustration of Notre Dame Cathedral, Paris, France

The headache dissipated and we decided to head to the Notre Dame Cathedral on the Ile de le Cite, located in the midst of the Seine. We took the Metro to the “Citie” stop and then walked to Notre Dame. There we encountered our first Gypsy beggars and saw a lot of tourists. We took a seat along the outside front and I sat and drew. I started with a blind contour, so Notre Dame is a bit off-kilter, but I did take a lot of photos to look at and paint later. To the left is my rendering on-site. Not my greatest work, but oh, there was so much detail to capture… And, I had fun!

By the time I had done as much as I could with the drawing, Dave and I were getting hungry and ready to find a place to have lunch. We walked along the streets of and crossed over to the Ile de Saint-Louis. We found a bistro and sat down for lunch. From there, we walked down the cute cobblestone streets of Ile de Saint-Louis and headed back across the bridge to the Right Bank. We were headed to the Jewish Quarter of Paris, which we had been told was well-worth our time. We were going to spend about an hour there and then head back to the hotel.

Well, it started raining just as we crossed the Seine. We did, however, learn from our mistakes the day before, and I had to small umbrellas in my day pack. We had just passed a Metro station and ran into it for shelter. We decided that since I was tired and it quickly went from not raining to pouring, that we’d head back to the hotel. It wasn’t raining by the time we got to the hotel, but that was fine. We were tired and I was really trying to manage my energy. We went to the room and rested up for a while.

I think that’s enough of an update for the trip now. I’ll share more tomorrow.

So, without further ado, here is the first installment of our travel journal!

At the last minute I decided not to take the walker because the Metro in Paris is not very accessible, the car we were renting was going to be small, and I had a gut feeling that it would be more of a pain than a help. I’m glad I listened to that gut. I brought my quad cane instead, and that was perfect. The sidewalks were slim, there were not a lot of elevators around, and those that were around still required some stairs to get into the building or up to our room in Paris. The quad cane was perfect.

We flew business class on Air France. That was the smartest thing we did. Business class made our trip much more pleasant. We got to eat well, sleep pretty well, and arrived refreshed. They took great care of my need to be near a bathroom because of my balance and the flight was very smooth. I actually did not get very motion sick on the plane, which was a miracle in itself.

To "prove" that we were in France, we took a self-portrait near the Arc d'Triomphe

Unfortunately, the same was not to be said for our first hotel. We had reservations at a Kyriad in the Latin Quarter, which the conference had recommended. It was close to the location of the meeting and we figured we could save a bit of money by staying there. That changed upon our arrival. We walked in and it was gross. The carpet was filthy, the room smelled of smoke, and the elevator was not working. We put our bags in the room and immediately decided to find an Internet connection and find another hotel. We did. We found a room with a kitchenette near at Pavillion Monceau Palais des Congres, which is near the Villers Metro and, though it was on the other side of Paris, it was well worth it. Poor Dave was in charge of bag-schlepping, since my balance was off from all the travel. We were much happier with the new hotel. We had only made two-nights’ reservation and figured we’d decide from there what to do. We ended up staying the full week.

The Arc d'Triomphe, Paris, France

It rains in Paris in July – almost every day. We did not know this. And when we set out the next day for a walk to the Arc de Triomphe, we looked at the skies and thought we had not a care in the world. By the time we had found our way to the Eiffel Tower, however, the heavens had opened up and we were soaked! We purchased very silly rain ponchos – bright red with simple drawings of the Eiffel Tower and “Paris” written all over them. We looked goofy and completely like tourists! But we were dry… And I am planning to turn those into something else, like totes for shopping or something else. I’ll keep you posted!

And now I must end this first installment, as the fatigue from my treatment has started to set in. I look forward to providing you with more pictures and more of our travelogue as the days go on!

Yesterday I spent the morning with Angie since I won’t see her for a while. She came over and worked on some beading while Max sat in the den and watched the Cartoon network. Max is now obsessed with arm wrestling, and tries really hard when we arm wrestle. I promised him that when I get back we’ll have a rematch!

After Angie left, I decided it was time to start organizing all my “stuff” for the trip. I packed most of the carry-on, making sure I had my quart-sized baggie with all tiny bottles that will fit in it. I packed a few small cases filled with the essentials for the flight. FIrst is an audio case for my audio adapter for the Baha and my iPod. I’m using my Palm Centro as an ebook reader, so I have plenty to read and no bulky books or magazines. I also packed some comfort stuff: special protein bars, tissues, some mints,  including all my medications in their original bottles (to prove I have prescriptions for them). I also had to make sure that I had a way of expressing my allergies to the chefs in France – they love their dairy and poultry there, and I’m severely allergic to both, among other things. So, I found a company online, Allergy Translation, that creates custom cards for you to carry in English and the language of your choice! I did this a few weeks ago, since I didn’t know how quickly the process would work. Well, it’s almost immediate! So, I printed out a bunch of cards (this way I won’t panic when I don’t get one back from the kitchen!) and laminated them and put them in my travel wallet. I also made sure that my MedicAlert account was up to date with all my medications and allergies. I’ll be wearing my MedicAlert bracelet on the trip, so if there is an emergency, there will be an easy way to get information.

All that’s really left is for me to pick up some soy protein packs and to finish packing, and to wait for Monday! My art supplies are packed in my day pack, along with my folding cane. I bought some hook and loop tape to make sure that my basket stays on my walker, and it appears to be working. I’ll test it today by adding something to the basket to see whether it holds. And, have the list of things I still need to add and later today, I’ll pack my clothes.

Once I got the carry-on all figured out, I decided to turn my attention to my small travel journal for the trip. It’s a green square handbook journal. The cover is made of canvas board, and the size is great. But it needed something to make it “mine”. I looked at my pile of collage crap somewhat organized ephemera and I found text about France, in French, maps of France, and some travel stickers. I had been hoarding saving these things for a special project (no, there was no particular project in mind when I came across these things!).

Well, there isn’t anything more special than our trip to France! So, I began by pasting in the map of France. Then I added some quad paper for some tables (what I did today, travel itinerary, etc.) and to add whatever I wanted to those pages. Then I added some ink to age the pages. It was the last thing I did before turning in for the evening. I was feeling excited, but I knew that there was something missing. The colors were too dull for all the energy I feel about this trip. So, this morning, I added some warm colors – yellows, oranges, reds. Now it looks a lot more like me! It’s all ready for the trip!

I’ll try to post more before I leave, but while I’m gone, my CreativeTherapy Catalyst responses will publish! Have an awesome weekend!