Plumbing!

September 25 2012

We had a quiet day today, though that wasn’t the plan!  April was going to stay around the apartment and I was going to head to the Musee D’Orsay and maybe the Musee de Moyen Age.  At least that was the plan.

I mentioned in our previous blog that water had started to drip by the toilet. The owner’s son-in-law was here when we discovered it and he called a plumber. We put a pot under the drip, but had to empty it every two hours, all night long. 

We waited for the plumber and he showed up about 10 AM.  He spoke no English, but the tsks, and ohs that he uttered, told me it wasn’t very good. He called the owner and she then told me that he needed a special part that he didn’t have. He would have to go out and see if he could buy it.

We waited around all day as the plumber couldn’t get in if we weren’t there. Finally around 5 PM the owner called and told us that the plumber had gone to 7 stores and couldn’t find the part he needed, It was special ordered and wouldn’t be in until Thursday! I asked her whether there was a way we could turn the water off when we left for the day, but it seems the water tap would turn off all the water in the entire building rather than just this apartment.

The owner knew we had planned to go to Versailles on Wednesday, but I told her we couldn’t leave the water dripping.  The owner told us not to worry, just put the pot under the drip. I told her the pot would fill in 2 hours and so we couldn’t leave the house for the full day.

She told me to go and buy a pail to catch the water.  We walked down the boulevard and found a store with cheap household goods.  We found a plastic waste basket that looked like it might do the job, though it would probably need to be cut down where the pipe was. 

We got it home and I cut a chunk out of the pail and put it under the pipes. The cut is not deep enough but I’m nervous that it might split if I keep on cutting.  While I was fiddling with the pail, the owner’s son-in-law called and I explained the situation,

He will come over tonight and get one set of keys. We will head out to Versailles in the morning and he will drop by around 1:30 and will dump the water that would have accumulated all morning.

Hopefully the plumber will be here early Thursday and will be able to fix the problem quickly.

Well, we said we wanted adventures!

The Louvre

September 24

We took it easy this morning, sleeping late and having a petite dejeuner of pain au choclat and tea.  It had rained overnight and in the morning, but had stopped when we went out. When we eventually headed out, we took the Metro to the Louvre. When we got into the square outside I.M. Pei’s triangle, we could see a line-up that stretched the full length of the courtyard.

As we approached, we saw there was a cordoned off area for ticket holders. As we had museum passes, we asked if this is where we went, and alleluia, it was!  Merrily skipping ahead of thousands of people, we entered through the escalators in the triangle.

The entry level of the Louvre was teeming with people. April likened us all to ants in the most fabulous ant farm!   We headed off to see George de la Tour’s Card-Sharper.  Walking miles and miles to get to the room, it wasn’t there!  I then headed off to see the Vermeers, hoping they weren’t out on tour!

On my way, I saw hundreds of paintings that I would love to spend hours examining.  It was a shame to run through the Rembrandt rooms, paying little attention to his wonderful paintings.  I saw wonderful Van Dycks and then found the Vermeers – both right where they were supposed to be.

Obviously I’m not the only one interested in Vermeers – no one was around most of the Rembrandts but there was always a crowd around the Vermeers.  The two owned by the Louvre are the Astronomer and the Lacemaker.

I saw lovely Fra Angelicos, and Cimabue’s Maesta. We then headed over to see the Italian paintings. We didn’t think we’d push our way through to the Mona Lisa, but I wanted to see the other Leonardos.

The crowds were stifling- and no matter which way I went, it seemed I was always going upstream!  We finally did get to Leondardo’s Virgin and Saint Anne, Virgin of the Rocks, Saint John the Baptist and others. We peeked into the Mona Lisa room and got three quarters of the way up, but didn’t press any further.

We saw the Rubens’ Catherine of Medici series. The scale of these paintings is amazing.

We headed into a cafeteria in the Louvre for lunch and got there about 1:30. I sat and April got in line. She was almost 30 minutes in line (and $30 in cost) for two salads!

After leaving the Louvre we went down to the Tuilleries and then crossed Rue Rivoli and went into a café. It was very windy, but refreshing after the crowds. April had an apple tart and I had a crepe sucre. April ordered un Americano et lait and I ordered a café latte, but we both got lattes.

Now around 4 PM, we decided to head to Notre Dame. Using our transit passes, we got on at the Tuilleries’ station and out at le Cite. We went into Notre Dame and asked where we took the tour as our Museum pass provided for that.  We ended up just walking around as I suspected the “tour” was just an audio guide.  If I felt I was going upstream in the Louvre, I was a real salmon in Notre Dame as we did go clockwise and everyone else went counter-clockwise.

After leaving Notre Dame, we decided to go up to Les Halles and to try and find a kitchen store called Dehillerin.  We decided to get a cab rather than walk back to the Metro.  Instead of just giving the address to the driver, we just said “Les Halles”. He let us out at the corner and said to go up and right.  I don’t know if he meant the area or the shopping centre but we walked quite a way before finding the place we were looking for.

Along the route, we passed the Church of St. Eustache, which reminded me of Quebec. 

The Dehallerin store was something else. Opened in 1820, they specialize in high end baking and cooking items. Everything is jammed in and goes up and up and up. There are ladders for the staff to pull out that copper pot, or mandolin. When you decide what you want, you stand in line.  A clerk writes down what you have.  You then fill in your name and address on the sheet.  You then wait in line and hand over that sheet.  That woman gives the sheet to a second woman who types the information into a computer and prints off an invoice. The first woman then tells you what you owe, takes your money and gives you your change. You then take the computer generated invoice over to another staff member who now wraps your items!

After that adventure, we needed a glass of wine.  We found a corner café and sat for a few minutes.  I then saw a pharmacy and went over to see if I could get something for the congestion I still had from my cold.  Mon dieu! The pharmacist was talking with a woman about her medication. I am sure we were standing for 15 minutes and they were still chatting.  I then saw the other line had emptied, so moved over and told the other pharmacist how I had a rheume and un mal du gorge.  I brought out a box that looked like Sudafed or Advil cold.  He then asked me if I had an addict.  Addict? Oui, Madam, an addict.  “Je ne comprends pas, monsieur” I said, thinking if he thought I was an addict, did he expect me to acknowledge it? On the third attempt, he pointed to his forehead – addict.   Oh, headache.  Non monsieur, no addict.

We then scooted across the street to a little grocery store to pick up baguette, cheese, pate, water, and some small items for while we were here. Well, the bags were pretty full and the plastic was pretty flimsy.  My baguette was crushed before I got very far. 

We looked at the map and were going to walk home as it looked like it was only two Metro stops.  However, as I read the map, I thought we should go one way but April said we were going back to the river and we needed to go the other. I was pretty sure and suggested we go a few blocks.  After passing the Bourse (stock exchange) I saw two police and asked for directions. Station Sentier – en haut, pointing the direction I was walking.  Non, madam, they smiled, en bas!

At that point we decided to take the Metro.  Les Halles at rush hour.  If my baguette hadn’t already been crushed and mangled, it would have had no hope in this crowd.  A couple of stops later we were walking up the stairs of Bonne Nouvelle, “our” Metro station.

We got home and were enjoying our mangled baguette and pate (with April lamenting, we should have bought a bottle of wine).  The owner’s son-in-law called and said he’s be over to pick up the rest of the rent and to look at the toilet seat, as it was broken.

Madame Galperine’s son-in-law, Robert Earhart, dropped in. He’s originally from California and has been to Calgary and has skied in Banff.  When looking at the toilet, we noticed the pipe was dripping.  When I had spoken to him on the phone, I asked if there was something I needed to do to get warm water and we discovered that the breaker was off. I turned it back on and I think that’s what caused the leak to show. He said they had a plumber in to put in a meter and it looks like it was not done correctly.  Thanks goodness he was here when it happened. He called immediately and they will be sending a plumber to fix it tomorrow.  He also brought over a bottle of red wine for us from the owner, so April did get her glass of wine.

The plan for tomorrow is for April to stay around the apartment and I will head to the Musee D’Orsay. She is museumed out and wants to save her energy for Versailles on Wednesday.

Our first weekend in Paris

September 22 – 23

We left the Radisson around 10:30 on Saturday morning. We had a great ride in a black cab.  As we were passing the Albert Memorial and the Albert Hall, he noticed and then talked non-stop until we got to the train station.

It was very interesting to hear how the cabbies suffered during the Olympics.  It seems everyone who bought a ticket to an event was given an Oyster card for the tube and there were 25,000 BMWs driven by volunteers to escort athletes and dignitaries around. He said even the hotels suffered as, while they were full, people weren’t eating and drinking at the hotels.  He said, then Ramadan came and the Arabs (the ones with the real money) stopped eating and drinking during the day, so the hotels were just getting back to normal.

We arrived at the train station by 11 and our train only left at 12:25.  We had a late breakfast and people watched before heading to the Eurostar.  We were really caught off guard as we had to go through security just like at the airport. The difference, however, was that we had our suitcases and they had to lifted up onto the conveyor belt to go through screening just like purses!  I am way too short and old to be hefting a 22 kg suitcase up a metre!  We then had to wait to board as they only board 20 minutes before departure.

We lucked out, however, as we were in coach 4 and there was a ramp to coaches 1-4 and so we were the first ones on. We had reserved seats, but had to put the suitcases in racks in the vestibule – more lifting. We figured out by then that we should work together when lifting and that made it easier.

The train ride was very enjoyable, but went so fast that our ears kept popping.  We were 16 minutes travelling under the English Channel, 300 metres below the seabed!  April was a little verkempt  about being under the Channel, so I took a picture of her putting on a brave face!

We arrived at Gare du Nord and got our welcome to Paris traffic. Ooh la la!  Cars going every which way, no apparent order of operations, cyclists pulling out in front of the cars and then sauntering along (no helmets) just knowing no one would hit them!

We found the apartment without too much trouble. The owner wasn’t able to meet us as she had to mind her grand-daughters as her daughter, a doctor, had to make a trip to Libya.  Her housekeeper met us and showed us in. The elevator was typical – can barely hold one person and one suitcase!

The building is old, 18^th century, and has exposed beam ceilings (and walls on the landings and stairs). It’s tres petite. The “kitchen” is actually in a closet, about .5 metre wide and 1 metre deep.  The coffee maker is an espresso one which we can’t make head or tail of.

We are right on a main boulevard, which is good and bad. There are cafes below and beside and across from us, and the metro station is a block away. However, Saturday night in Paris means the party starts around 10 PM and keeps going until 6 AM! Boom boom boom goes the bass of the dance music.  The windows are good and keep out most of it, but you know it’s there!

After scouting around the apartment, we walked to the tourist and convention centre and picked up out Paris passes for the museums and the metro.  We were going to have a quick bite at the Café de la Paix in front of the Opera House, but it was unbelievably noisy.  Something was up, though we never learned what, as there were police everywhere, some in riot gear with shields, sirens blaring, and probably a dozen paddy wagons parked along Blvd. des Capuchins! All looking very nonchalant with Kevlar, shields, cigarettes and cellphones!

After looking at the menu at Café de la Paix and seeing they wanted 25€ for a hamburger (~$35), we decided to head down Blvd. des Capuchins and find something quieter and less expensive.  We went down a side street and found the George VII square, with a bar called Bertie’s.  We carried on and went into Le Creperie des Artistes, a little hole in the wall with pictures of French actors, none of whom we recognized.  We ordered crepes and a half bottle of wine and then slowly walked all the way back to the apartment.

We eased into the day on Sunday, going down to the café next door for an “English” breakfast around 11. For breakfast, we were given a wineglass of orange juice and half a toasted baguette with lots of butter and jam. This was followed by a delicious omelet and coffee.

Afterwards we headed back to the apartment to plan the day.  Our goal was to take the metro to Montmartre.  As we headed toward the metro station, we could hear what seemed to be a parade. We kept walking until we saw them.  There was a Brazilian festival going on and there were hundreds of drummers and dancers parading down the street.  We watched the entire parade and the people who joined in on the dancing, though I couldn’t convince April to dance down the street.

We then made it to the metro and headed to Montmartre.  Leaving Abbesses metro station, there is a warning that there are lots of stairs to climb – 115 in fact! We made it, but had to rest a few times on the way up, though we weren’t the only ones to stop and catch our breath!  When we got to the top, there was an elevator, disgorging crowds of much smarter travelers!

We walked through the side streets and then took the funicular up to the Basilica of Sacre Coeur. We strolled around and looked at the paintings in Place de Tetre.  April wanted to get a picture for their new place and settled on a small pen and ink sketch.  Here she is with the artist.

We went back down the funicular, had a drink and pommes frites at a corner café. April (who can never pass up a trip to a toilet), ran into her first (and hopefully last) squat toilet.  Back to the metro station (going down 115 stairs is so much easier than going up), and back home for a rest.  We’ll probably head down toward Notre Dame this evening.

Tomorrow – the Louvre!

Warwick, Stratford and Oxford

September 21, 2012

We took a trip to Warwick Castle, Stratford-on-Avon, and Oxford today.  I booked the trip online through Viatour.  We needed to go to Victoria Coach Station on Buckingham Palace Road.  We took the Circle and District subway line to Victoria underground station.  This is different from the train station, which is different from the coach station.  People are very helpful when you ask directions, but “just turn left at the corner” means turn left and go for 5 or 6 blocks, which is hard when you don’t know that or know what the building looks like!  We gave ourselves plenty of time and after a couple of “can you help me?” requests, we arrived at the bus terminal.  Oodles of tour buses, probably 10 across and several deep, all ultimately filled.

Unbeknownst to us, Friday’s trips are bilingual – English and Spanish.  At first I couldn’t place the tour guide’s accent and thought she had a lisp, but when she went on to explain she would be telling each story in the two languages, I realized it was the Spanish lisp I was hearing.

Our first stop of the day was Warwick castle.  Originally built in 1068 by William the Conqueror,  Richard Neville played a key role in the War of the Roses, helping to depose two kings, Henry VI and Edward IV. There was significant reconstruction around 1700, with gardens done by Capability Brown.  Later on Daisy, Countess of Warwick was the long-time mistress of Edward VII. The Earldom is the only one which specifically includes the right of inheritance through the female line. The castle and its grounds were bought in 1978 by the Tussaud Foundation.

Next we went to Stratford-on-Avon. We toured Shakespeare’s home and garden.  There were actors there who explained life in 1575.  For example, children would sleep in a trundle bed beside their parent’s bed until they were old enough to be trusted to walk around the house with a lit candle, which was considered to be about 5. Due to fear of fires, all houses had to put their fires out at 8 PM, and the houses became very cold within a couple of hours. Children older than 5 slept in either the boys’ room or the girls’ room, with all siblings sharing a bed.  Servants slept on the floor in the parents’ room.

The beds were wood frames with ropes tied across, covered with rushing and then with a linen bag filled with wool.  As long as the ropes were tightly tied, it is a very comfortable sleep.  That’s why people still say “Good night, sleep tight.” 

These were plague years and people were sure plague and sickness were brought by evil spirits.  You could not sleep lying down – that suggested you were dead. The parents would sleep with pillows rising them up. Servants would put a log to hold up their bedding.  Babies were blanketed in red as everyone believed evil spirits avoided the colour red. Finally, it was thought that girls didn’t need protection as they usually survived sickness; therefore parents dressed their sons as girls when they went to bed!

Next we went to Oxford. It started to pour, but when we did the walking tour, the rains stopped.  We visited Christ Church College, one of the 38 colleges that make up Oxford University. Christ Church College was founded by Cardinal Wolsey and has 750 students, making it the largest of the colleges.  It is the inspiration for Harry Potter’s Hogwort’s school.  The only area of the school that was used in the films was the staircase, where Professor Mcgonagall (Maggie Smith) greets the new students.  Tuition is 9,000£ per year for students from the British Isles, 13,000£ for foreign students .

After a 10 hour day, we were dropped back at Victoria underground station.  Driving through the streets of London, the guide told us to always take black cabs as they are the official cabs of London.  The drivers still have to pass the “Knowledge”. They are tested on their knowledge of the 320 routes, 25,000 streets, and 10,000 landmarks within a six mile radius of Charing Cross. Seems a bit over the top in the day of GPS! We also learned that the reason black cabs’ roofs are so high is that they were designed at the beginning of the 20^th century when gentlemen still wore top hats, so they were made high to accommodate them. They’ve never seen reason to change the design.

We took the tube back to Gloucester Road and went looking for supper.  There were countless restaurants along the street, but I was not in the mood for something fast.  We then found the Wildwood restaurant.  It was an Italian restaurant, so we both ordered a glass of the house wine, and bruschetta to start. April had lasagna and I had spaghetti with oak roasted salmon.  The meal was fantastic, with April telling the waitress and owners that she had never had more delicious bruschetta or a better lasagna!  We ended the meal with a cappuccino  for me and an Americano for her, tired but very pleased with ourselves!

Tomorrow, we are off to Paris on the Eurostar.

We start our trip

Wednesday September 19 – Thursday September 20, 2012

In the early spring, April told me that Ray had given her the gift of a trip to Paris.  She was looking for a travel companion, and I would never say no to Paris!  When we got together to discuss the logistics, April mentioned that it would be lovely to go to England as well, given 2012 was the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. I am hardly the monarchist that April is, but who can say no to London?

Over the next few months, we would read books, watch Teaching Company DVDs, and meet over dinner to plan our trip.  Four months after she had first mentioned it, April and I flew to London on Air Canada flight 850, which left Calgary at 6:40 PM and would arrive in London Heathrow around 10 AM, Greenwich time (which was 3 AM Mountain Daylight time).  When we got to the airport, there was a huge line-up for the London flight. We had already checked in on-line and printed out baggage tags, and it seemed ridiculous to wait so long just to drop off our bags.  We stopped an Air Canada agent who told us we were in the right lane, but then a couple minutes later he came back and said follow me. He took us to the domestic drop off where we walked right up to the agent.  Only after we had put the bags on the conveyer belt did we realize that she hadn’t given us the baggage tags.  We crossed our fingers that our bags would end up in London England and not London Ontario!

Before we boarded, April was sitting at the gate and I went in search of a snack.  Walking along, I noticed Lisa Elmore.  Lisa had worked with me more than ten years ago and I hadn’t seen her since.  She had sent me a note via Linked-In a few months previously, letting me know that she was going to go to law school in England in the fall.  As luck would have it, not only was she on the same flight, she was in the seat behind us. 

The flight to London was mostly smooth, though there were a few bumpy patches and April would state “oh, I don’t like this!”  I’ve never had much luck sleeping on planes, but I did rest for a couple of hours. April wasn’t able to rest at all, however.  We landed at 10 AM local time, got through immigration unscathed and picked up our luggage.  We had considered taking the tube into London as it would only be 5£ each, but as it now felt like 4 AM and we hadn’t slept, we decided to take a cab.  Traffic was very light, but the ride in still cost 56£ ($100).

Arriving at the Radisson Blu Edwardian Vanderbilt hotel on Cromwell Road (former residence of the Vanderbilts), we were too early to get into our room.  We checked-in and left our bags at reception and headed out. We walked down to the Victoria and Albert museum, just a few blocks from the hotel.  We wandered the museum for a couple of hours, looking at the sculpture, plaster casts, miniatures and costumes.  

Starting to flag, we headed back to the hotel and stopped for fish and chips in a restaurant called Billy’s.  We ordered the small portion of fish and chips, and I ordered tea and April ordered coffee and cream. The waiter replied “coffee and milk?” April said, “No, I want cream with my coffee.”  “Cream”, he asked, with an incredulous look on his face.  “Yes, cream” said April, wondering what the issue was.

A few minutes later, the waiter brought me my tea and then came back with April’s coffee and cream.  Clearly, he was unaware of adding liquid cream to coffee, and so she had a plate of whipped cream!  After a good laugh (and our fish and chips), we headed back to the hotel. We were able to get into our rooms and agreed we’d meet at 6 PM. 

After a welcome bath and change of clothes and rest, we met at 6 and decided to go to Harrods.  We went to the closest tube station (Gloucester Road) and each bought an Oyster pass. You prepay whatever amount you want and then record the card when you enter and leave each station, and the system deducts the amount of the trip from your balance.

We travelled 2 stops and got off at Knightsbridge to go to Harrods. The department store was filled with Louis Vuitton, and other designer accessories and clothes.  We went down to the Diana and Dodi memorial that is still attracting visitors. 

I was on a mission to get a Tottenham Hotspurs outfit for Archie.  My son-in-law, Mat, follows the Tottenham Hotspurs soccer (aka football) team.  After looking through children’s wear (where you could by children’s t-shirts for 100£), I went to the sporting area.

When I asked the clerk if they had any Tottenham Hotspurs children’s clothing, he looked at me as if I had something wrong with me.  “Tottenham, why would you want that?”  I explained my son-in-law followed the club and wanted me to get something from the team for my grandson.  “He mustn’t like his child very much” said the clerk. “Are you sure you don’t want an Arsenal shirt?”, he joked.  He did take me to a rack where there were a few Hotspurs shirts, far too large for Archie.  “You can look and these and consider re-thinking your position”, he joked.  When I told him that could lead to a divorce between my daughter and son-in-law, he smiled and said “she should be considering a divorce anyway!”

We ended up in the food section and picked up some croissants to eat in our rooms for breakfast the next day.  Back on the tube, we then grabbed a BLT baguette for a small supper before heading back to the hotel. The city is always bustling. It’s difficult to tell when you can cross the street.  At most corners there are walk and don’t walk signs, though people don’t seem to take them very seriously.  At other corners there are no signs and so we just go with the crowds, hoping they know what they are doing!

Well, that’s it for day one.  It’ll be a long day tomorrow as we take a bus tour of Oxford, Stratford, the Cotswolds and Warwick Castle!