April 7 Traveling day - Going home.

I packed last night and finally had to use the zippered extension on my back pak to get everything in. This morning I carried my pack for the last time on this trip as I trucked over to the airport train about 10 blocks or so. The train comes right to the airport which is handy but I walked another few miles to my terminal all the way at the other end, past terminals B, C, D, E and F all the way to A which is this little pod thing in the picture.

As I'm writing this I am sitting on the floor in Montreal's airport waiting for my connection to Calgary.

I thought I might as well stop at the meditation retreat in the Rocky Mountains near Calgary before I dive back in.

What a great trip it has been. I am so blessed.

It will be hard to change gears and go to work for the summer but that is what I said I would do.

Blogging every night on the road has been good for me. It has helped clarify details which would otherwise have been forgotten and my pictures are all organized too.

I think I will try and keep up the practice while I am home even if I only post a picture each day. I wouldn't feel right without a camera in my pocket.

So that's it for this trip. I will keep in touch.

Last Day in Paris April 6

I knew the Louvre took a long time to see so I was there when it opened at 9 AM. That was a good idea as the line to get in was short and the crowds didn't show up for a couple of hours. I got off at the Metro on the other side this time and went to Saint Germain's Cathedral first.

All the churches are so beautiful and amazing and each is unique and worth a look.

There was enough light to take this with no flash. I was the only one there. Awesome!

I was just there a few minuets and then crossed to the Louvre.

A fountain in the square where the entrance pyramid is.

The pyramid, I still don't like it.

I didn't have a clue how to approach this mamoth so I just went into the first wing and discovered how easily you can get lost while walking and looking at stuff. I am crazy about the Louvre though and would go again tomorrow if I wasn't leaving.

Here is a view from a window.

I liked Rafael. This is one of his.

I did see her but from behind a crowd. Then I read in the Globe and Mail that people are digging up graves in Italy to get a body that will prove the identity of who is in the painting. That is taking the need to know a bit too far I think.

I would have taken a picture of this scene had I been there. It is awesome that someone actually painted it.

There was a woman in one of the galleries making a copy of a portrait.

I had the electronic guide and it was useful in many ways aside from the commentaries on the individual pieces. It contained a locater which showed you where you were on the map if you keyed in a nearby number and it had tours grouped under specific subjects.

After wandering for a couple of hours I decided to start a tour on the history of the museum. That took me to the basement first to see the only original stones of the building.

The tour lead me from place to place pointing out how the museum changed and developed. I was liking it very much and must have been over half done when the battery died. It was complicated to find my way back to the front and get a new battery and then I couldn't get back to where I left off - the map guide isn't very user friendly.

While I was looking for my tour spot I saw lots of other stuff so it didn't matter. This is in Napoleon III's apartment. The Louvre was a palace once way back. They had a nicer display here than there was at the Palace of Versailes.

I spent six hours there and decided to make a run over to the Opera House before it closed.

What a grand place this is. Here I am taking my picture in the mirror of the grand entrance of the Opera house.

The grand staircase.

The archway to the theater which tourists aren't allowed into. Next time I will go to see the opera.

Then I decided to look at an area called St. Denis. The Metro stop is called Strasbourg-St. Denis. I came out of the Metro and there was this large arch in the middle of the square. I knew there was another one in the city but didn't know where.

It would be worth a walk around the neighbourhood but I opted for coffee and a strawberry crepe.

St.Denis should have been where I got the Metro to take me home but it was under repair so I decided to take a short trip back down the way I came to a stop called the Boulevards. There is a well-known, glitzy shopping center here called Galeries Lafayette.

It is a nice looking area with wide streets and lots of trees.

The Metro is great because they name the stations after the well known stuff that is there, making it easy to find.

The next stop I went to on this line was Inveladies. Here we have a former hospital and military retirement home as well as other military buildings and a private Royal chapel called Eglise du Dome.

Cannons in the courtyard. It was also where the armorments were kept.

Main gate.

One wing.

The windows on the roof are kind of cool.

This is the Royal chapel which I was too late to get into. It looks like a small cathedral.

This building called the Cavalerie was nearby.

You could see the Eiffel tower from there so I decided to walk over there since the closest I have been is on the river beside it. It was a good hike but through a nice park. All the attractions are so big you can see them from a long ways away.

Paris is clever enough not to try to grow grass in heavy traffic areas and just have nice clean sand.

Flower interlude.

OK here we go. The line was short enough that I could have gone up but I am satisfied on the ground.

Looking underneath.

Well, I do have to stop at some point so I looked for a Metro to get me home. I got as far as St. Michel's where I had to change trains and since it is my very favourite place I came up for one more look around.

Now I know why they call Saskatoon the Paris of the prairies. We live outside in the summer like they do in Paris.

It was starting to get dark and there was music being played at some of the Bistros

I have to eat supper anyway so I went to a little place on one of the side streets here so I could stay a little longer. Then I did some last minuet shopping before I caught the Metro home to pack. All I can say is, one week wasn't enough but I am glad I came.

April 5, More tired than ga-ga now.

Well, I have a better handle on all the different train systems here as I used them all today. I was trying to go to Versailles again but the stop I went to was not the right one, so with the help of a friendly ticket agent I got a day pass for all trains/all zones and I got straightened around. I got through the Palace quickly because not that much of it is open to the public. Then I decided to take the surface train I had used to get over here and go to the Grande Arche which is at a stop called La Defense. When I got off the train I was surounded by tall buildings and I couldn't see the arch. Actually, I could see a bit of it but I didn't know that was it so I started walking. I came upon a giant thumb maybe 25 to 30 feet tall.

When I looked back from there I could see the arch. I was too close to see the opening at first.

The area is full of corporate buildings. There are no obvious retail outlets on the surface but later I found lots of shops underground.

Here is another view. You can see the size compared to the people on the steps. It is a least twice the size of the Arc de Triomphe.

Another view of the area. The Plaza is called the Esplanade du General De Gaulle. The Avenue of Charles De Gaulle runs between here and the Arc de Triomphe. You can see one from the other. I am standing on the steps of the Grande Arche looking toward the Arc de Triomphe.

Next I hoped a train again to go to the Opera House which closed at 4:30 and I missed it. I will try it again tomorrow because it looked pretty nice.

You can see people coming up from the Metro station across the street. This station is one of the main connecting stations for the different lines.

Around the corned from the opera house is the Opera Brasserie and Bar. It is so typical the way the tables are huddled together in two rows facing the street. None of these little places seem to have much space to spare inside or out and the patrons seem happy to squeeze in elbow to elbow.

I decided to head home early today because I am tired. I haven't been this tired since Australia. I can't say life was easier in Asia because things were difficult in a different way but I didn't seem to get so tired there.

I still had two more train rides to get home from here each on a different system but pretty straight forward.

I picked up some groceries to eat at the hostel tonight in case my doggie bag salad from last night is too dead to eat.

Tomorrow is my last full day in France and I must go to the Louvre. On the 7th I leave for Canada.

April 4 and still so much of Paris to see.

You can see the roof of the Sainte-Chapelle sticking up behind La Conciergerie, a former royal palace and prison. La Conciergerie is part of a larger complex known as the Palais de Justice, which is still used for judicial purposes. The beautiful church is built in the courtyard of La Conciergerie. To enter the church tourists go through the Palais du Justice.

This one was a good choice to visit, it is beautiful.

Notre Dame was nearby and since I hadn't been inside it yet I went there next. I could have gone up to the bell tower but there were a few too many stairs.

It was also nice but not so dramatic as the Sainte-Chapelle.

For a little extra cash you could get into the treasury where they keep all the really valuable stuff like these.

A lovely chalice.

The nave of this huge church is illuminated by daylight due to the many windows. There is a spot light on the statue though.

Walking around nearby I saw this amazing flowering shrub on the outside of a restaurant.

Here it is up close.

A double row of Nutella. They make beautiful crepes, smear some Nutella on them and fold them up. It seems to be a favourite. To me it is the equivalent of putting Cheeze Whiz on a baguette, but I really don't like Nutella.

Pont-Neuf park at the point of the island in the river.

You can see the Louvre from here.

This is the Citi Metro station which is also on the island. The walls of the underground were like a tank. I suppose the water table would be very high there.

I am back in Montmartre and we are just starting the Montmartre tour.

A view of the street.

And another.

A lovely house.

The Renaissance painters would have hung out at this resturant. There was a brothel upstairs at the time.

Paris is so photogenic.

Here's a view of the back of Sacre-Coeur.

You can see the Eiffel Tower from the Montmartre Hill.

We started the tour in an area known as Blanche, at least that is the Metro name. I was sitting in a Starbucks right across the street from Moulin Rouge, the most expensive cabaret in town at 80 Euros a pop.

There were a few other wind mills in the area. Moulin means wind mill.

Vincent Van Gogh's apartment is the second from the top, with the closed shutters.

This is an official Bocce Ball court.

Flowers....ah, Spring.

This Bistro on the Montmartre hill is the first Bistro in Paris .

By the end of the tour it was getting dark and the signs of the sex trade are becoming apparent. Pigalle is the name of the area. It was the former red-light district of Paris.

You think the sign is large enough? Four stories tall!

Well there is a lot more to Montmartre neighbourhood than meets the eye. My Metro stop is next to Pigalle called Anvers. It looks like we must be 50% African population here. There is also an Italian and Indian neighbourhood in Montmartre. I am just wiped out tonight. Touring here involves lots of travelling by Metro as well as walking to attractions and everything is so large it takes time to see it. I can rest in two days on the plane. Tomorrow, my plan is to go back to Versailles and go through the Palace and then see what else there is I can do.