Posted on May 2, 2015 in Paris |
Even on a rainy day, you can still take your wedding photos along the Seine with the Notre Dame cathedral as a back drop. I did it slightly differently, Jeff and I got married in a 70-seat British Columbia pioneer church in a Salmon Arm outdoor museum, the RJ Haney Heritage Village & Museum.
The famous cathedral, it’s rather quiet around it on this day.
This photo of R.J. Haney Heritage Village & Museum is courtesy of TripAdvisor. This is where Jeff and I got married.
On Saturday, May 2, I had a late breakfast in small bistro near the Marché d’Aligre. It was so late that they were out of croissants, I had to make do with a chunk of baguette. That’s the problem with my Paris schedule, I work from about 6 pm to 2 am, go to bed around 3 am, and get up around 10 am. It’s not a schedule conducive to catching the freshly baked batches of morning croissants. But luckily, many bakeries continue baking them all morning until noon or even later. So one can often find them, even with a night shift schedule.
I then walked for five hours, almost to the Eiffel Tower and back. It was a rainy, drizzly, chilly, but somehow lovely day. I had the bank of the Seine almost to myself. I stopped for pastries at Eric Kayser behind the Musée d’Orsay and had beyond a doubt the best chocolate éclair of my life. (Did I mention I came to Paris in large part to eat?). I also popped into the Louvre (I love saying that) to apply for an annual professional pass to the Louvre, but no success. They said that my VCC faculty card with my photo had no validity date, which is true. So I will request a letter from human resources. Being an instructor in a fine arts field, I get the opportunity at a reduced rate pass.
I picked up more food at Marché d’Aligre on the way back, and after a day of eating and looking at great food, made myself an anti-climactic sandwich for dinner.
Still no drawing this day… but the banner at the top shows a view of the Seine on a later, much sunnier day.
Now walk with me through rainy Paris:
On a day like this, you can have Paris all to yourself.
There are boats moored along the Seine, some are tour boats, some are available for events, some house restaurants or bars. I found a good one later, when I went out with some Paris urban sketchers: Rosa Bonheur, near Pont Alexandre III. A casual floating bar to have some food and drink, with benches inside and no table service; you just walk up to the bar and get what you want.
Even groceries can look picturesque in Paris.
Narrow side walks, Parisian poodles, women wearing foulards.
A lot of people still smoke here, and this shop woman’s behaviour is clearly in direct contravention of the Vancouver Health By-Law restrictions that say “smoking is prohibited within 6 metres of an entryway, opening window or air intake of a building or within 6 metres of the perimeter of a customer service area.” Not in Paris.
You’d think this would be a shop window for a shoe-maker, right? Well, I’m not sure it was. That is the mystery of some Paris shops.
Taking a break at one of the excellent Eric Kayser bakeries that dot Paris. Did I mention how great the chocolate éclair was? I’ve never had anything like it. But then I’ve probably eaten less than ten chocolate éclairs in my whole life. It’s not really a thing with me. But this one was.
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