Travels

Reluctantly dragging ourselves away from St. Denis Cathedral, we made our way south to the Seine and the Jardin des Plantes, Paris’ botanical gardens.  The Natural History Museum and zoo are here, so the obligatory carousel was appropriately themed. The gardens were a bit disappointing – especially after the glories of the Chantilly Flower Show. … Read more

We hopped the RER train again on Monday morning, this time headed for one of Paris’ northern suburbs, St. Denis, home to the very first Gothic cathedral. Our arrival station had something I’d never seen before: glass barricades separating the platform from the track. And, since we were in France, a carousel greeted us on … Read more

On Sunday, we took the RER train to Gare du Nord, then transferred to the Grande Ligne en route to the Domain de Chantilly, one of the grand estates outside Paris.  The Conde family, who owned the estate for most of the last 400 years, was a branch of the royal Bourbon clan and closely … Read more

Bright and early Saturday morning, we were on line waiting for entry to the Louvre. The Louvre Museum was cobbled together from 3 royal palaces, making it the most ornate museum one is likely to visit and a royal pain in the whatsis to navigate. Some people visit the Louvre to see well known pieces … Read more

On Friday we traveled from Avignon to Paris by train – after a bit of train-ticket-bouncing to ensure that the train we booked was actually going to run.  The journey north took us past tidy vineyards, orderly orchards and well-groomed countryside. The French do like to ensure that nature is managed. I’m sure it’s another … Read more