plans for day 5 included a high-speed TGV train from Avignon to Paris in the
afternoon.... however,
this being a Tuesday in France, strike action canceled our train (we knew this
on Monday, the day before)...
so the new plan was to skip a free morning in Avignon (so much for shopping
or a visit to the Papal Palace)
and go directly to the TGV station and hope that we were let on a train, any
train.... (the alternative, a bus
trip, was too terrible to contemplate)
after 30 minutes of uncertainty (we're on; we're off; we're on again ...) we
rushed the train, only to find it half
empty
with time on our hands due to the early arrival in Paris, we were bused to
Giverny (the last home of Monet
and the inspiration for his Water Lilies series).... although nice (with much in
bloom), it did not deserve
2+ hours, but fortunately, the nearby American Museum of Art had interesting
exhibits....
another bus full of "hot" teenagers occupied others...
after checking to our hotel (across from Gare du Nord) and an uninspiring
dinner, we were bused
through the notorious Pigalle to Montmartre
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the countryside near Giverny |
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the countryside near Giverny |
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Eiffel Tower from Montmatre |
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view from my hotel room (Hotel Mercure across from Gare du Nord) |
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gardens at Giverny: weeping willow |
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Monet's house at Giverny....
sadly, it if filled only with Monet reproductions |
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Montmartre: Eglise St. Pierre |
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Montmartre: view of Paris at night |
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Montmartre: Place de Tertre, the outdoor dining scene |
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Montmartre: Place de Tertre, the outdoor dining scene |
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Montmartre: Place de Tertre, deserted by 11 pm |
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Montmartre: Sacre Coeur at night,
from the bottom of the stairs |
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Montmartre: Sacre Coeur at night,
from the bottom of the stairs
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Montmartre: Sacre Coeur at night,
closeup of front
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Montmartre: Sacre Coeur at night,
closeup of front |
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Montmartre: Sacre Coeur at night,
closeup of front |
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Montmartre: Sacre Coeur at night,
closeup of front |
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Pigalle: police and demonstrators |
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Pigalle: police and demonstrators |
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Pigalle: police guarding McDonalds |
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