Mike's Travel Snaps

--Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast

Ah, Paris!

Home of Hemingway's A Moveable Feast and the great American ex-patriates of the fabled "Lost Generation" of the '20s! One of the "three great cities" of the 19th and 20th Century (along with London and New York)!

My visit to Paris was (as my mother described it) a whirlwind tour, as the Paris stop was added to the itinerary as an afterthought. I was traveling with Mom and Dad to Normandy (on the tail-end of their own England trip) and then visiting London on my own, and we all agreed that a day-trip to Paris would be cool.

The plan was to stay overnight near Paris, and then hit the Arc de Triomphe, the Champs-Elysees, the Eiffel Tower (although only a viewing instead of a climbing, due to the typical long entry lines), and Notre Dame.

But a ride on the city's Metro subway system would prove to be the most memorable part of the trip, albeit not for happy reasons. An excursion from the Bir-Hakeim Metro stop (near the Eiffel Tower) to the Saint-Michel Notre Dame stop, resulted in not only transport of us, but a transport of all my cash from my wallet to a pickpocket's pocket. So much for the romantic image of the Metro from Berlin's song "The Metro".

Actually, viewed in a certain light, I have to give the pickpocket credit. He stripped me clean without me even knowing what was going on, leaving me feeling lucky that he tossed my wallet onto the Metro car floor right before the doors closed (with him safely back on the platform). Of course, I can appreciate his skill while still wanting to give him a knuckle sandwich.

Arc de Triomphe Here's the Arc de Triomphe seen from the southeast (I believe). That's my parents in the foreground. Sorry for the tilted horizon--I snapped the photo while walking.	Click on the above image to see a larger version.
Arc de Triomphe The Paris skyline as seen from the Arc de Triomphe. As memory serves, this is a southwest view.	Click on the above image to see a larger version.
Arc de Triomphe The view of the Eiffel Tower from the top of the Arc de Triomphe. Except for a cluster of skyscrapers on the eastern and western sides of the city, Paris is spread wide with a low skyline. The plan was to give the viewing of and viewing from the Eiffel Tower priority over office space, and as you can see here, the scheme works marvelously.	Click on the above image to see a larger version.
Eiffel Tower A shot of the Eiffel Tower, taken from the Pont D'iena across the Seine River. (see map)	Click on the above image to see a larger version.
Seine River The Seine, also from the Pont D'iena. I was amazed at how narrow a river the Seine is. The Hudson by New York City and the Thames in London (as I was soon to witness) are very wide rivers. It's also quite a winding river, which I believe is a sign of a river's advanced age. (see map)	Click on the above image to see a larger version.
Notre Dame Cathedral The architecture is certainly stunning on this landmark, but I must admit that it wasn't as breathtaking as I thought it would be. It was smaller than my grandiose mental picture, and the interior was dank, dim, and simply not as stunning as some of the great cathedrals of London. Of course, the fact that I had just been pickpocketed on the Metro might have colored my perception.	Click on the above image to see a larger version.
Notre Dame Cathedral In all of the photos of the cathedral I had seen previously, the flying buttresses seem impressive and noble like appendages sprouting forth from the great structure. In person, the buttresses looked more like crutches propping up the ancient walls.	Click on the above image to see a larger version.
Notre Dame Cathedral I don't mean to say that the structure is not impressive, or that it's not worth seeing. My perceptions or pre-conceived notions didn't match the reality, I suppose. This is another view, from closer to the rear of the cathedral.	Click on the above image to see a larger version.