Paris in the Rain

Recently I had to travel to Basel, Switzerland for a business meeting. My original itinerary had me spending just one full day in Europe before flying back to the US. Since my new goal is to look for the silver lining in all situations, I decided to make a weekend of it and visit Paris.

This wasn't my first trip to Paris (which was circa 1986), but it was the first time I was on my own - old enough to (legally) drink lots of wine, take the Metro (unchaperoned), and skip Notre Dame (woo!).

I narrowly escaped Switzerland at the crack on Saturday morning. I almost missed my flight because I was in the wrong country. When I checked in, the attendant said, "Air France? That's in France!" (Who new that the Basel airport straddled the Swiss and French borders? And that my flight was leaving from the French side?)

It was raining my I arrived at Charles de Gaulle, pouring actually. I know this because since the aforementioned Air France flight landed well away from the gates at CDG, we emerged from the aircraft into the open air, tramped down a set of very rickety, very slippery metal stairs, and took the airport shuttle to the real airport.

Soon, all was right with the world, because the taxi pulled up to the Hotel Lutetia.

Hotel Lutetia

It's a gorgeous hotel near the Boulevard St. Germain. Since I had no idea wha the conversion from dollars to Euros was, I wasn't even panicked about the amount of money I spent there! (That came later.) My room wasn't quite ready, and I wasn't quite ready to go back out into the rain, so I rested a while in the hotel with a cup of coffee.

Coffee in the hotel lobby (9 Euros, $13!)

My room was adorable, but the view was the real treat:

First view from my room

Center: Eiffel Tower, Right: Les Invalides

I finally ventured out into the neighborhood and found a cute cafe near the metro. It was called Cafe Metro. I sat there for over an hour, soaking up the scene, and watching the Parisians get soaked.

When the rain finally stopped, I lurked around Paris for the rest of the afternoon. I took the metro to the Eiffel Tower (a very kind French woman helped me figure out the ticket machine). The rain had stopped so I decided to go up the tower. Note: never take the shortest line. It's short because there's no elevator.

First views of the Eiffel Tower

I admit, I'm a little out of shape, but I think I could have made it to the top under normal circumstances. However, about 5 minutes after I started climbing the stairs, the rain came back with a vengeance. Accompanied by gale force winds. I made it to the first of the three viewing platforms (the 3rd was closed anyway) where I cowered in a corner, clutching desperately at the girders lest I get swept over the side. But, what a way to go, right?

Paris from the Tower

The Seine River

Bridges over the Seine

Almost as soon as I left the Tower, the clouds cleared and it was walking weather again. I visited the gardens of the Tuileries, walked around outside the Louvre (too crowded to go inside), and took the long way back to the Left Bank.

Bateau on the Seine

One of the many art/booksellers along the Seine

Later, after dinner, I had a drink in the hotel lounge. There was a singer there backed up by two guys who looked disturbingly like Larry David.

Saturday night in the Hotel Lounge

The Two "Larrys"

I woke up early on Sunday and made my way over to the Louvre. Even though I got lost along the way, I managed to get there before the crowds descended.

The Louvre on Saturday Afternoon

No escape from the CODE!

She had the right idea.

Le Jardins des Tuileries

The maze garden of the Tuileries

Brunch at Cafe Beaubourg, which has a nice mix of tourists and locals. It's just next door to the Centre de Georges Pompidou, a fabulous modern art museum with a great view of Paris. I strolled around the top floor of the Pompidou, then took in a couple of the exhibits there. One was a retrospective of art from Los Angeles, 1955-85. Wacky. The highlight was video of a guy who had himself nailed to the hood of a Volkswagen Bug.

Cafe Beaubourg

Centre de Georges Pompidou, from Cafe Beaubourg

Paris through a dirty window, the view from Pompidou Center

Last major tourist stop: The Arc de Triomphe. You can actually go to the top. But this time, I read the fine print: No elevator. I settled for the view from below. I walked back to my hotel via the famous avenue, the Champs Elysee.

L'Arc de Triomphe

The Champs Elysees

I had a full day of travel ahead of me on Monday, so I ordered room service, wrapped myself in a blanket and sat on the terrace watching the lights of Paris. Good stuff.

I obsessively photographed this view from my room

My favorite

A few parting shots:

Top: Paris - even the restroom signs are chic!
Bottom: Basel, Switzerland, not so chic.

Me, mortified in Basel
(I've just seen the restroom signs, above)