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Date: 22 November
Subject: The Ideal Voyage of pol_montreal
Good morning to all,
It can't be, my last message to conclude this trip. Surely, I am going
to work on my textes, edit the video, and make all sorts of things to
immortalize this adventure, but this is the end of the direct transmission
of e-mail messages. I am writing to you from the house where I am still
in shock at the time change. It is presently 4:00 in the morning, 10 o'clock
in Paris, and I am still not able to close my eyes. Even so, it's the
same for Marie-Andrée, I hear her doing the dishes in the background.
Wednesday, 18 November
I found a nice little hotel yesterday evening in the very center of Reims
on the pedestrian walkway, situated two steps from the center of interest.
It was not complicated this morning, I went to the cathedral of Notre
Dame after breakfast and I was able to see the angel with a smile in front
of the left door and in the interior the great rose window, imposing nave
with a very high ceiling, and the superb stained-lass windows designed
by Chagall. Next I continued toward the Palace du Tau situated just next
to where the king of France stayed when he was consecrated. Finally, I
walked up to the Door of Mars, the greatest Gallo-roman Triumphal Arch
in existence.
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For this trip, I decided to skip the castle at Fontainebleau which was a personal
interest of mine since Napoleon used it. Situated near Paris, it was logical
that I should go there. Faithful to my custom, I chose the provincial roads
to cut across the countryside and chose the most direct route. As at Versailles,
the castle is situated in the middle of the town and behind a discrete wall
there is an imposing structure.
I did not regret my detour because the richly ornamented apartements are truly
marvelous and have an opulence out of the ordinary. It is most of all the ballroom
that drew my attention with its richness and its decoration and the beautiful
of its woodwork. Contrary to Versailles, which puts the emphasis on its paintings,
Fontainebleau has the privilege of furnishings and the decor is sumptuous. The
small apartments, the Trinity chapel, the Gallery of François I, and
the room containing the table where Napoleon signed his abdication are some
of the many places that are remarkable. In its prime, the chateau was empty
because there were very few visitors. I still met a man whose grandfather was
born in the castle, and his father worked there as a gardener. I will not describe
here the royal rooms, but there are many interesting secondary buildings. To
wind up, I went to look around to the interior courtyard to examine closely
the iron staircase for horses and I continued toward the rear to see the gardens
and the golden door.
When I ended my visit, I called Guy from a telephone booth in front of the
castle to tell him of my early return in the region of Paris. In keeping with
their kindness, Guy and Yolande welcomes me with open arms and took care of
their little onions by inviting me to a restaurant. For this end of my trip
in France, I chose typical dishes that I did not normally eat in Quebec. There
was a puff-pastry filled with snails with a mushroom sauce as an appetizer,
with duck as the main course. It was quite a change from bread and sausage!
We ended the evening at their house, and I acted like a true visitor, not leaving
until nearly midnight.
Thursday the 20th of November:
I decided to spend my last day in Paris visiting the sites that I had missed
before, or simply ones I wanted to see again. After having parked my car near
the Bois de Boulogne, I bought a metrobus pass for the day and headed in the
direction of Montmartre. I took the funiculaire to get to the top to the Basilica
of Sacré Coeur on the cliff and to see the artists in the Place du Tertre.
Afterward I strolled along the boulevard de Clichy to see the Moulin Rouge,
and I learned at my expense that it was better to take the main road rather
than the sidewalk along the front of the sex shops. The people who stand out
in front of the shops to tempt you to come in have all kinds of tricks to entice
the passers-by to come inside their honorable enterprises. Without a joke, I
found myself squarely taken by the arm a couple of times by some of these.
Taking full advantage of my all-day ticket, I took the Métro to the
Arc de Triomphe and got on a bus that went along the Champs Elysée. I
got off at the Place de la Concorde, crossed the bridge and took the RER line
of the Métro to see the Eiffel Tower and the Champ de Mars again. In
all, a day composed of outings in a bus interspersed with fine walks.
To close the day, I went back again to see Guy and Yolande for supper at their
house, truly typical fare with a menu of Alsacian sauerkraut. You might say
I tried everything! The significance of this disk comes from the saying that
I use for my daughter Viviane which is "my little sauerkraut". Don't
ask me where I picked up that expression, but when Yolande heard it the first
time it stuck in her memory and she could not resist making me taste it. This
famous sauerkraut was doused with Beaujolais Nouveau wine, from the country
where I had picked it up on my passage through the region, some goat-cheese
and some cheese that smelled like dirty feet. It was all crowned with a wonderful
dessert. In keeping with my custom, I stayed until they threw me out after midnight.
Friday the 21st of November:
It's almost done, after my last breakfast on French soil, I took my faithful
Clio back and took my place in line to check in at the airport. The flight that
was to leave at 12:50 finally took off at 3:15. I arrived at last 1 hour late
at Mirabel airport at Montreal at 4:15 local time. Pour those who are interested,
the flight takes 7 hours 10 minutes, I saw 2 films and had a hot meal consisting
of pasta in tomato sauce accompanied by dry rolls in little individual plastic
packages. Quite a change from snails in puff-pastry!
Happily, Marie-Andrée was faithfully waiting for me at Mirabel with
Viviane and her friend Jason who carried the suitcases. After the distribution
of the souvenirs, I went to lie down with my giant screen TV to decompress and
we watched "Finding Nemo". I couldn't finish the film because I was
too tired, and I withdrew my presence at 9:00. After all, it was already 3:00
in the morning according to my biological clock.
Til the next time,
Paul
Reply from Gilles:
Hi everybody.
Paul is home again and I am also home, under the sun of La Réunion.
Lyon was great too, and it was the week of the arrival of the Beaujolais Nouveau.
On Thursday there was a festival in the streets of the city and there was
a crazy crowd in old Lyon. I did more than taste the wine!
Paul, you missed something great by only four days!
til soon, time to take up the rhythm again...
Gilles
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