Monday, August 7
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The Grand Palais, which has been recently restored, and statues on the
Pont Alexandre III. The |
Yesterday we
went on a very long walk along the Tom wanted then
to walk to the Place Vendome, but when we reached the rue de Rivoli, he
wanted to see if the English bookstore, Gagliani’s, was open. Of course it was not, but this gave us a
walk down that bustling, busy commercial street that reminds me somehow of What I didn’t
know in 2001 and 2003 was that the famous French writer Corneille was
associated with this church after he moved to We explored the
market at Place du Marché Saint Honoré, which, we learned, is the site of the
Jacobin’s
monastery. (“Jacobin” is the Parisian name for Dominican, because
the monastery was near the Finally, we
reached the wide open Place Vendome.
Footsore and thirsty, we went in search of the Nicolas café that is at
17 avenue de l’Opéra, but it was closed for Sunday. So we arranged ourselves instead at the
Royal Café, at the corner of the avenue and rue des Pyramides. Tom wondered where the name Pyramides comes
from in that part of While sitting
at the café, we noticed a tourism office across the street (Pyramides). It was open, and people were going in and
out of it at a steady pace. So we
decided to check it out. We collected
some brochures about museums, etc., and stood around listening as one woman
in particular helped a young American man to make hotel reservations. They actually do the booking of the
reservations there in the tourism office.
The woman was extraordinarily helpful to the young man, finding him a
not-too-expensive hotel for the night and then recommending to him that he
check back with her in the morning, because it is in the mornings that the
hotels offer their better rates. By
the afternoon, the rooms with better rates are gone. While the young
man would have to pay about 80 euros for that first night, he will probably
only have to pay about 60 euros a night after that (if he follows her
advice). She spoke English slowly and
clearly, enunciating each and every syllable.
Tom saw her give a little book about We walked all
the way back home, skirting through the elegant Place du Palais Bourbon once
again. On the way, we made a
reservation for dinner at La Gauloise,
where the older waiter even knows our name now. Door near the
Champ de Mars at night. |