Singapore redux

We are back in Singapore after an uneventful flight from Paris.  It is nice to have air-conditioning again, something we really missed in Paris during an unseasonable heat wave.  Having arrived, we went to sleep, waking long enough for a sandwich and then another nap.  Although our flight left Paris at noon and the arrival time in Singapore is 6:00 AM, our body clocks tell us that it was about 2:00 AM when we reached the hotel.

Enough said.  Tomorrow we go on to Melbourne.

Our last day in Paris

This is the last day in Paris so we are going to do a bit of a “Remembrance of Things Past.”  We walked to the other are of Montmartre where we have spent so many months and had the best coffee in Paris at the cafe, le Nord-Sud adjacent to Jules Joffrin Metro station. The price of the coffee is less than half of what we paid on the Champs des Elysees.

Le NordSud

The warm weather has brought out flowers all over the city and many windows are redolent with flowers reminding one of the Indian summer which is coming to an end.

Flowers

This is a very non-tourist, working-class area, which we know very well and where we  feel comfortable and at home.  We walked on to Monoprix, a large grocery store, the equivalent of Publix  or Food Fair in the United States and Woolworths or Coles in Australia.  Only here can we buy marvellous zip-lock bags with slide closures.  What a funny thing to buy to take back to Australia, but it does make for an interesting answer to the question, “what did you buy while you were in Paris?”

We wandered around old haunts, shops we knew and we chatted to acquaintances before going to the Butte to meet our French friend from Australia for a long, late, leisurely lunch at one of our favourite restaurants, Chez Plumeau.

Chez Plumeau is on the Butte but not in the centre of the tourist area.  We got up to the Butte on the funicular and waited there for our friend.  Just above us loomed the dome of Sacre Coeur and just below us were the peddlers selling outrageous junk for equally outrageous prices to tourists.

Sacre Coeur

Bag and Souvenir Sellers below Save Coeur

Later, in the early evening, we walked through the sleazy sex district of Pigalle.  Furtive middle-aged men were trying to make themselves invisible as they wandered in and out of the sex shows and sex shops.
After an early supper (baguette, pear, Roquefort and wine) we completed our packing for an early departure on the morrow.

End of Holiday Blues

A Street in Montmartre

The weather seems to have turned a bit cooler and after a slowish start, we went and had coffee and did a fair bit of people watching until Virginia had her appointment with the podiatrist - well known to her from previous visits.

Artist at work in Place du Tertre

Tourists in the Place du Tertre

After her treatment we went to a nearby cafe for a very nice lunch and then wasted most of the afternoon.  Well, that seemed reasonable after a bottle of wine with lunch.  I think the "end of holiday" blues has begun to set in. Getting our boarding passes for the Paris to Singapore flight just brought home how little time we have left here.

In the later afternoon we went for a drink on the Butte and met our friend, the silhouette cutter.  A long chat on life, the universe and just about everything else followed when he introduced us to his female friend.  We asked him whether a licence was necessary in his work and he said, "no," but the police did tend to harass those who work the Butte.  "Anyway, I tell them to take me and put me in jail where it will be warm in the winter and I will be well fed."

Walking back we passed the last remaining vineyard in Montmartre.   In 1929, the painter Francisque Poulbot and some friends saved a municipal ground from property developers planting some vines there. In 1933, three thousand seedling of Thomery and three seedling of Morgon were planted. The Grape-Harvest’s Party  was celebrated for the first time the following year. It is still celebrated today. Many important people are invited including stars, delegations and Les Chevaliers du Taste-Vin   (the knights of Wine Tasting) from different provinces. All profits from the sale of this wine goes to help local charities. Sadly, the celebration which lasts for four days, begins on the day we leave Paris.

The Vineyard

Advertisement for the Grape Harvest's Party

L'avenue des Champs-Élysées

L'avenue des Champs-Élysées

Today the weather seemed a little bit cooler so we decided that a pleasant walk along L'avenue des Champs-Élysées was in order. We noticed that it was especially quiet this morning and the French talking heads on the television attributed this to the success of  Nuit Blanche and the warm weather which contributed to the all-nighter.  We caught the Number 80 bus down to the Rond Point and walked up to the Arc de Triomphe with a short stop for coffee on the way.

On L'avenue des Champs-Élysées

Despite this being perhaps the most elegant avenue in Paris, there are still beggars and street people to be found. We have never been able to figure it out although we are sure that some are Romany who may not be entitled to French benefits.

 

Walking along such elegant boulevards always makes me think of the term "flâneur," a stroller. Charles Baudelaire developed a derived meaning of flâneur—that of "a person who walks the city in order to experience it." I think Baudelaire would agree that we are flâneurs.

Near the Arc de Triomphe we went into the "Drugstore" which bears no resemblance whatsoever to any drugstore we may have visited. It sells books, food, magazines and has several restaurants, including the two Michelin star Atelier Etoile de Joël Robuchon. Very posh and very pricey. We walked on.

Of course, one must stroll in and out of shops and for some inexplicable reason we seem to stroll in and out of children's clothing shops and while there to look at clothes for little girls approaching two years of age. Ah well, that is a grandparenting privilege. One of the nicest children's shops is Petit Bateau and we seemed to be drawn to it. Funny that!!

For the fashionistas who may be reading this, the shoes this year are pretty much the same as last year although heels are blockier and the colour for the new season is "coral." And a very lovely colour it is too.

Back to the apartment to drop off a few items and then to lunch. We went back up the Butte to one of our favourite restaurants,1900 La Cremaillere where Bruce enjoyed Moules Mariniere served with a side of frites. For those unacquainted with this popular dish it is mussels steamed in white wine with onions and a few other goodies and a serve of French fries on the side. Bruce insists that you can eat as much of the Moules as you want since the work involved in removing them from the shell and getting them to the mouth actually takes more calories than are in the mussels. No comment on the frites!

1900 La Cremaillere

A quiet afternoon, laundry and a glass of wine at one of the local cafes rounded out the day. Along one of the streets we noticed an interesting shop which made wedding dresses in very old fashioned styles.  But what we thought was interesting was the "tape measure" by the front door.

Wedding Dresses and Tape Measure

Later we will have some pear,baguette and Roquefort before calling it a day.

La Nuit Blanche is coming...

Even though it is the first day of October and we are well into Autumn, the temperature remains high and it was over thirty degrees today.  Nonetheless we ventured forth on one of our favourite Paris outings.  We walked to the Place de Clichy and took the number 95 bus to the Palais Royal.  This short but magnificent bus ride takes one past the Opera Garnier and then onwards to the Palais Royal.

We walked eastwards along the rue de Rivoli for some while, did some shopping and then turned back to Place Colette.  This wonderful little square is situated between the Louvre and the Palais Royal and includes the  Comédie-Française. This is one of the few state theatres in France and is the only one with its own troupe of actors and a current repertoire of 3,000 works.

Comédie-Française

We had coffee at Cafe Nemours, one of Virginia's favourite watering holes and where Angelina Jolie appeared in the opening scenes of The Tourist.  Unfortunately, she wasn't there today!

Cafe Nemours

Even in the heat, walking along the rue de Rivoli is quite pleasant since much of it is colonnaded. Certainly the first part of our walk was through a less crowded area, but when we left the Cafe Nemours to continue our walk the pavements were very crowded.

Colonnades

 We walked westward stopping for a browse at the W. H. Smith bookstore.  Although not the actual founder of the company that bears his name, W. H. Smith is probably best known as "the ruler of the Queen's Navy." He was to enter politics in 1868 and to be made First Lord of the Admiralty in 1877 despite his total lack of Navy experience. Gilbert and Sullivan picked up on this and he was satirised in their H.M.S. Pinafore.  Not surprisingly he became known as Pinafore Smith.

At Concorde Metro we caught the number 12 back to Abbesses station.  From there we walked back to the apartment stopping nearby for a very pleasant lunch.  The restaurant is just off the square where the lovely Theatre de L'Atelier is located.

Theatre De L'Atelier

Now, in previous trips to Paris we have talked about the parking.  In fact we have included photographs showing how close to one another Parisians park.  Well, here is the challenge.  Tell us how in the world you would get your car out of this one.

Ouch!!!

After a bit of a rest in the afternoon we headed back up to the Sabot Rouge for our afternoon libations. From where we are staying this time, on the other side of the Butte de Montmartre, we go through an area with dozens of fabric shops where one can see hundreds of women picking over the various bits of cloth.

Buying Cloth

Tonight is La Nuit Blanche in Paris.  It is the tenth anniversary of the founding of this all-night festival of arts.  There will be much noise and excitement.  The good news from our point of view is that the windows to the flat are double-glazed.

La Nuit Blanche

Our First Full Day in Paris, Friday

Another hot night followed by a hot day.  We did more laundry.  We are becoming quite expert on the use of laundromats around the world.  We are thinking of writing a book, "You and Your European Laundromat: A User's Guide."

Early Morning View from our Window

We caught the number 85 bus to St Michel and walked down the boulevard to Virginia's favourite bookshop, Gibert.  Now this is a bookshop, one of the great ones!  It has five different stores all within a compact area and services the Sorbonne.  It has more books in English than most book stores in Australia.  The problem, of course, is weight.  If we bought all the books we wanted we wouldn't be able to pay for the excess baggage and shipping them is quite expensive.  So, it becomes a process of painful elimination deciding just which books one must have but Virginia bought several books to help her with her ongoing French language acquisition.

Fountain at St Michel

 To recover from  the psychological and emotional strain, we went to a cafe for coffee.  That and a "Pain au Chocolat" helped us back on track.  Of course the view from the cafe was pretty spectacular.  To our left were the booksellers on the banks of the Seine and to our right Notre Dame.

Book Stalls along the Seine

View of Notre Dame

We then headed over to Shakespeare and Co., one of the English language book stores and an institution in its own right.

By this time we were ready to have some lunch and went to the bus stop in order to return to our "quartier." Most Paris bus stops are quite good in that they display the amount of time until the next bus of a particular number will arrive.  So, there we were waiting for the number 85 and watching the display.  When we arrived it told us we had 17 minutes to wait.  Then 14 minutes.  Then 8 minutes.  Then 34 minutes.  Huh?  It actually makes sense since if there is a delay it will let you know.  Unfortunately previous experience had taught us that the 85 is often delayed so we decided to take the Metro.

We got off in one of the seedier sections of Paris and walked back to our flat.  Lunch was a bit of a disappointment but immediately following our meal Virginia went off to her hairdresser.  Yes, Virginia has a French hairdresser and whenever we are in Paris she goes to get her hair cut.  At least that is her story.  One of the teachers at his children's school did an exchange to Australia and has interested the children in the flora and fauna down under.  To keep the children's interest, Virginia sends them postcards with pictures of our native plants and animals.

Later we went back up to Sabot Rouge for a drink, going up to the Place du Tertre via the funicular and looking out over the wonderful view of Paris.

The Funicular looking down from Sacre Coeur

The View over Paris

We returned to our flat and  finished the day with our supper of baguette, pear, Roquefort and wine.  On the way to get the various things we needed for supper we passed one of my favourite houses.  It always reminds me of Ludwig Bemelman's wonderful poem which begins:

In an old house in Paris that was covered with vines, lived twelve little girls in two straight lines.

 We bought our baguette at the officially selected baker of the best baguettes in Paris.  This is no small honour as the winner of the competition receives both a financial reward and is selected to provide the baguettes to the Elysee Palace, the official residence of the President of the Republic.

The Winner!!

London to Paris, Thursday

Not surprisingly we were up early since we had to get across the city to St Pancras station to catch the Eurostar for Paris Gare du Nord.  We checked out of the hotel, walked up to Paddington and caught a taxi to the train.  St Pancras has been completely remodelled but it has retained many of the original nineteenth century elements.

Modern St Pancras Station

It was originally opened in 1868 by the Midland Railway as the southern terminus of that company's Midland Main Line, which connected London with the East Midlands and Yorkshire. When it opened, the arched Barlow train shed was the largest single-span roof in the world.

The Barlow Train Shed in Victorian Times

The undercroft of the station was used to store beer barrels brought by train from Burton-upon-Trent, a major brewing town served by the Midland Railway.

Beer Storage under St Pancras Station

Beer traffic was handled in the centre of the station between platforms 4 and 5. A central third track ended with a wagon hoist lowering wagons 20 feet (6 m) below rail level. Beer continued to be stored there until the middle of the 1960s.

We left at 12:28 PM from St Pancras and were in Paris in less than two and one-half hours.  We were actually under the Channel for approximately twenty minutes.

A taxi took us to the apartment-hotel where we are staying and after unpacking we headed up to the Place du Tertre for a drink at the Sabot Rouge.

Le Sabot Rouge

On the way back to the apartment we stopped to buy some Roquefort cheese, a baguette and a pear.  A delightful supper was followed by an early night.

Oh, yes, one last thought from London.  Although now-a-days the double decker busses are all very modern and they carry no conductors, there are still a very few of the old fashioned ones (including conductors).  These are largely for tourists, but they are still fun although you no longer have the conductors issuing trip slips or, as I remember from the 1960s, cranking out a long paper ticket.  Neither can you ride on the back area where we used to jump on the moving bus to get on or jump off when the bus slowed down.  It is undoubtedly safer now, but not nearly as much fun!

An Old Style Bus

 

Around London, Wednesday

Today was one of those "domestic" days.  Washing of clothes and ironing.  Fortunately there is a laundromat nearby and we can get an iron and ironing board for the room. While the clothes were washing, we wandered around the area admiring the hanging baskets and the old pubs.

Hanging Baskets

The Cleveland Arms

 After completing the chores, we hopped on the 23 bus for one of our favourite rides around London.  It goes through most of the West End, Piccadilly Circus, Trafalgar Square and on to St Paul's.  It is a lovely ride and since we were not in a hurry, the horrendous traffic wasn't a bother. 

Eros in Piccadilly Circus

Trafalgar Square

St Paul's

What was a bother was something that has been creeping in to one of the great London traditions, the cabs.  No longer are they all black.  Now they seem to come in all colours of the rainbow and worse still, with advertising plastered over them.

Colourful Cabs

 At St Paul's we got off the bus and wandered through the Temple Bar gate into a lovely area, Paternoster Square.

Temple Bar

Some nice statues, places for coffee and restaurants.

"Paternoster" in Paternoster Square

Then it was back to the hotel for me whilst "guess who" hit the shops.  The smell of burning plastic was almost overwhelming.  When she finally came back we went out for a drink at the local pub and then for an early dinner.  Tomorrow it is on to Paris.

Goodbye to Israel, Tuesday

Up at some God forsaken hour to get our ride to the airport at 6.00 AM.  They say that the most dangerous part of travel is the trip to the airport and in Israel, considering the drivers, there is a degree of truth in that.  Our driver rarely, if ever, dropped below a speed of 140 kph and lane swapped as if that were a career option.

The airport was pure chaos.  The level of security at Ben Gurion may well be the highest in the world - and the delays, the longest.  Nonetheless, we finally got through.  Flying with El Al is a bit of a madhouse with passengers pushing, shouting and praying while children run up and down the aisles.  As we came in to land everyone seemed to ignore the instructions to be seated until one or two minutes before the plane actually touched down and as soon as it was on terra firma people were out of their seat belts and standing up to get their bags. 

Here are some pictures from Ben Gurion Airport.

Kosher McDonald's
So how do you make a Kosher Cheeseburger?

At Prayer in the Airport

A Serious Discussion

London airports seem to have the longest corridors in the world and for the first time we saw heavily armed guards there.  Once we finally got to immigration and customs we got through quickly and within an hour were in our hotel where we unpacked and collapsed (or was it the other way around)?

Windows to the World, Monday

Our guide asked us to be up for an early start in order to go to Hadassah Medical Centre. This is a medical organization that operates two University hospitals at Ein Kerem and Mount Scopus in Jerusalem, as well as schools of medicine, dentistry, nursing, and pharmacology affiliated with the Hebrew University.

The hospital was founded by Hadassah, the Women's Zionist Organization of America, which continues to underwrite a large part of its budget. In 2005, it was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in acknowledgement of its equal treatment of all patients, regardless of ethnic and religious differences as well as for its efforts to build bridges to peace.

In the synagogue at the hospital are the "Jerusalem Windows" created by Marc Chagall.  These twelve stained glass windows represent the twelve tribes of Israel. They were installed permanently during February 1962 and each is approximately ll feet high and 8 feet wide.  It is hard to describe them in words except to say that they are awe inspiring and magnificent.

Chagall's Dan Window

From the windows we went to Valley of Elah where David met Goliath.  Seeing it really brings home the geopolitical forces at work at the time.  We read from 1 Samuel 17, which describes the fight between the two, easily a metaphor for little Israel surrounded by the giant of the Arab states.

The Elah Valley

On the way back to Jerusalem we visited the Road to Emmaus where following his resurrection Jesus first appeared to his disciples. The story is told in Luke 24.

We stopped briefly for coffee in one of the New Israeli towns where few if any tourists go.  In fact, the staff at the coffee shop spoke no English and had never before served tourists. but with some help from Ahron, and his wife who joined us, we pretty much got what we wanted.

Then it was back to the hotel for farewell drinks before dinner, dinner and packing for tomorrow's departure.

A Walk and Some Thoughts in the Old City

Gates of Old Jerusalem

Today was a free day and we took the opportunity to enjoy a late breakfast before taking a Taxi to the Zion Gate. There are seven open gates into the old city and four gates which are closed.  The open gates, with their dates of construction are:  New Gate (1887),Damascus Gate (1537), Herod's Gate (unknown), Lion's Gate (1538-39), Dung Gate (1538-40), Zion Gate (1540) and Jaffa Gate (1530-40).  The first three are on the Northern side of the Old City, Lion's Gate is on the Eastern side, Dung and Zion Gates are on the Southern side and the Jaffa Gate is on the Western side.  The major closed gate is the Golden Gate, built in the sixth century and sealed in 1541.

We entered through the Zion Gate, making our leisurely way through the Jewish Quarter and into the Cardo.  This is a Roman era main street which runs North and South.  More to the point, in Jerusalem it is a shopping street with all sorts of interesting stalls.

In the Cardo

We followed this street until we found the Via Dolorosa leading from the Lion's Gate to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. 

After Jesus' arrest and conviction this was the route he walked to his crucifiction.  Five of the stations of the Cross are actually inside the Church, but the other seven are found on the Via Dolorosa itself. 

The Fifth Station of the Cross
Simon of Cyrene carries the Cross

We finished our walk by returning to the Cardo and continuing northward to the Damascus Gate.

The Cardo is fascinating.  Hundreds of small shops and stalls, the smells of food cooking, herbs, spices and others less easy to identify.  It is crowded with people buying, selling and bargaining.  Many of the shops have quite young children behind the counters or spruiking for trade.

A Spice Dealer in the Cardo

One of the things that we noticed was the freedom of the children.  No matter where we turned we saw them coming from school, going to the shops, or just playing, totally unaccompanied by adults.  It seemed as if the Cardo itself was watching out for them.


We exited through the Muslim Quarter via the Damascus Gate and  walked back to the hotel past the bustling Arab bus station.

The Damascus Gate

People Exiting the Muslim Quarter
through the Damascus Gate