The Beauty of Paris - My Column - June 18, 2012

Day 12 of our transatlantic cruise docked in Le Havre, France, which is approximately 110 miles from Paris. This was the only port where we scheduled a group tour through the cruise line as they offered trips into Paris and we decided if we were going to be so close, we needed to do it. Arriving in Le Havre, we were greeted by dark skies and heavy downpours of rain. Even though the rain pelted the windows on the bus; we could see that we were driving by miles and miles of beautiful yellow fields of flowers in the French countryside. We also noticed that there were trees that were strangely bare with the exception of huge balls of greenery. I finally asked our guide about these and I was surprised to hear that the yellow fields were canola flowers (as in canola oil) and the balls were mistletoe. I also learned that mistletoe is a parasite and it kills the trees and that is why only the balls were left on the trees. As we neared Paris, the sun began to shine. In Paris, our guide took us on a bus tour which drove past all the major sites including the Louvre, the Arc de Triomphe, La Defense and the Champs Elysees, just to mention a few. The Eiffel Tower and the Seine River were very prominent from the moment we neared the city. Our bus parked in the Plaza de la Concorde which featured an obelisk and fountain and we had three and a half hours to tour on our own. My husband and I walked from the Plaza to Notre Dame Cathedral, a site I wanted to see. Our walk took us by the Louvre which seemed to occupy more city blocks than I could count. Unfortunately, by the time we arrived at the cathedral, the lines were too long for us to go in but just viewing the outside was spectacular. We took a lot of pictures and I picked up a rock from the ground to take home to a friend who collects them. After the cathedral, we took the subway system, which I regretted we did not take on the way to Notre Dame, to save time. We then shopped and stopped at a sidewalk café for a meal which included my husband ordering “la langue” or tongue that he enjoyed. I did take a taste as I knew that when in France, do as the French do! It had a good taste and was chewy. I ordered a pork dish that was very good and of course, we tried the French beer. Riding back to the ship on the bus, I was exhausted. I enjoyed the day in Paris and I was glad I went but frankly, I really have no desire to go back. I found the city extremely crowded and the locals very impatient with the tourists. I will tell you that I really enjoyed the architecture and history of the city. Maybe if I had several days to spend in Paris, I would have enjoyed it more. As we sailed away from Le Havre, the skies cleared and the sunset was beautiful but I felt overwhelmed with sadness. It was then that I realized that there would be just one more day on the Celebrity Eclipse before our cruise ended in Southampton, England. I didn’t want it to end, again, I was so relaxed and still pinching myself to make sure that this wonderful trip was not a dream. Oh the places I’ve seen. Next stop, England and a day of travel by ship, train, plane and automobile.