Yes, it is already time to leave Paris. How quickly 5 weeks have gone by in this wonderful city.
We say goodby to Richard and Donna and off we go at 6:45 AM by airport shuttle to Charles de Galle. Terminal 2E is the huge international terminal but we have no trouble finding the Delta/Air France check-in and then pause at the duty-free shops on our way to the gate. The high-end clothiers and parfumiers are all here. So are Au Printemps and Galleries Lafayette.
The flight back was 10 hours and we both dozed intermittently. About 4 hours out, I opened my window curtain and was treated to an amazing sight. Huge snow-covered mountain peaks, glaciers, and fjords. Even from 30,000 feet they appeared huge. Most of what we saw was a blanket of white with no sign of human habitation. Jan pulled out the route map and we determined this must be the southern tip of Greenland and we continued to cross it for 20 minutes or so. I really never thought too much about Greenland but have come to learn that it is now an autonomous country still closely aligned with Denmark which provides an annual subsidy and for defense and security needs. There are 58,000 inhabitants, mostly clustered on the a narrow strip of the ice-free west coast. The capital is Nuuk and the majority of Greenlanders are Inuit or Inuit/Danish mix but 15,ooo are Danish only.
We landed in Salt Lake City 10 hours after take-off but it is now only 2 PM in the afternoon. After clearing customs and re checking our luggage for the flight to Phoenix, we get a chance to visit with Jerry for a while. He is still recovering from his upper respiratory infection that began 3 days before he and Donna left France. It had laid him pretty low to the point where he was unable to walk his dog, Sadie, up to the H-Rock above his house. But he is beginning to feel much better.
Our flight to Phoenix was uneventful and Melissa, our excellent housesitter was there to meet us and drive us back home. By now we figure it is 3 AM by our Paris time clocks and sure enough, we are ready for bed.
Now, with very little elapsed time for reflection about our trip, these are some things that readily come to mind about France.
The provinces were where the really friendly people were 30 years ago. Paris was then a bastion of snootery levelled even against those of us who could converse in basic French. The present generation of Parisians are much friendlier. If you begin by “Bonjour”. And follow with “Parley vous Anglais”?, they almost always say “un Peu” and if you then respond, “bon” you can then change the conversation to English and they will do their best to converse with you. And their best is usually good enough.
It is so nice to share travel with family and friends. This was a special trip for that reason alone.
Apartments are great if you are staying a while and have the right apartment in the right location. We did.
Everything in France is smaller- cars, bathrooms, washer/dryers, meal portions, sidewalks, people.
Driving in France is no problem providing you have a competent co-pilot who is good at map-reading and has good GPS skills. Yes, we did use a GPS that Jerry had researched and programmed with European mapware. The GPS was mainly helpful is getting in and out of the cities. We did not attempt to drive in Paris but had friends who did. They would not recommend it. So take the train to the province you wish to sightsee in and then rent the car. The cost of the car rental was about $70-80 per day for a standard shift diesel mid size car.
The provinces are where the moderately-pirced really good food is- this was true in Saint-Malo, Pontorson, Nancy, Dijon and others. Paris restaurants offer good food, but not good value. This is why in Paris it is best to stick with the neighborhood boulangerie, charcouterie and patisserie for most of the meals.
Every woman in Paris wears a scarf and has a signature scarf knot. Most men do as well. Even when we first arrived in warm weather we saw men walking around in short sleeves and a scarf. It seem to be a part of their personality.
Many younger Parisian women wear short shorts, boots and black stockings. This is true whether it is a warm day, a cold day or a rainy day. This is strange but it is not a complaint.
Sidewalks in Paris are too narrow even when they are wide which they are usually not. This is especially true Saturday afternoons and evenings when it seems all humanity is going somewhere and the metros are impossibly crowded.
The climb up the Notre Dame Cathedral de Paris is really worthwhile where you can mingle with the chmieras and the great Emmanuel bell. The views are wonderful, too. Of course the views from the Arc de Triomphe and the observation deck of the Montparnasse Skyscraper are nice as well, but the Notre Dame towers have greater cachet.
Dogs are king in Paris. After going into a couple of pet store and seeing the 1,300 euro price tag for a Chihuahua, I can see why. Dogs are accepted most everywhere, including restaurants. And Parisians are not good about cleaning up after their dogs, either. They rely on their street/sidewalk sweepers and cleaners to do that. Street/sidewalk cleaning is done almost daily and therefore gives the illusion that Parisians do not litter. I get the impression that it is just the opposite.
You can usually tell if a boulangerie/patisserie is open when you are walking down the street because there is a beggar with his dog sitting beside the doorway. homelessness seems less that American cities but is does exist, even on the Champs-Elysee.
That is about all I can think of to say about general trip impressions of France and Paris.
For Switzerland, I would say that the big cities are much less interesting than those in France and much more expensive because of the strength of the Swiss Franc. One of the best memories of our trip, though, will be the visit to the Phillipe-Patek Watch Museum in Geneva and our stay and meal at the L’Auberge de Hermance and the neighboring walled village of Yvoire.
