Well readers, it's time for Mari to say good-bye to a most excellent adventure.
Today Mike and I are packing, making lists for each other. Mike is teaching me how to log on to Google Hangout for our weekly meeting with the kids. I'm making sure he knows how to operate the appliances and which cleaners to use. Directions are in Croatian and several other foreign languages not including English. My mother brushed her teeth with Bryl Cream once because she didn't bother to put her glasses on. There is no Bryl Cream here fortunately.,,,But I digress.
Mike and I have the same flight tomorrow at 6:40 AM to Zagreb. Then we are each on our own. We make a fairly good team when we travel together. This should be an interesting trip home.
This afternoon we took a slow walk around town, climbed up to Fort Lawrence and snapped a few more pictures. The sea was a little rough today making beautiful variations in the blue of the Adriatic. We stopped for cappucino at one of the Irish bars and sat outside. It is still in the 60s here and there are a few outdoor tables at the restaurants which haven't closed. Streets are quiet, most of the vendors have left for the season. Only a few tourists come now. Dubrovnik takes this time to repair streets and perform regular maintenance. The city is continuing work it started last season filling in the moat near the Pile Gate, making more gardens and walkways. The orchestra season is also about over with only a few holiday concerts scheduled around St. Nicholas Day and Christmas time for the town people.
We have reservations for dinner at the Hilton Imperial to mark our last evening together here. Then home to rest up for our early trip.
It's been a great experience. We have made many new friends. The Croatian people are gracious and getting to know them has been the highlight of our trip. Mike is already talking about returning to Croatia. Start saving up. You are all invited.
Sunday, November 16, 2014
Wednesday, November 12, 2014
Paris 7-10 November 2014
I suppose everyone has a story about Paris. Ours started Friday A.M. flying to Zagreb and then on to Charles de Gaulle Airport. Mike and I have been switching from euros to Croatian kunas with each trip. Mike stopped at the first ATM at the airport and picked up 150 euros.
The nice lady at the airport gave us train and metro directions. She seemed very pleased with our quickly understanding how to take the train into the city. She insisted we review it with her several times to make sure we knew which train to take, in which direction the train should be going and at which stop to get off on our 3 hop trip. Mike was sure he had it down and so off we went confident that saving the 60 euro taxi trip would be a breeze.
It was a fairly long walk to the train and there were lots of steps to the different levels in the subway. Mike was hauling the suitcase. He pointed out that not all the up escalators were running that day. The subways are well labeled and are packed with friendly French people who know what they are doing. Several asked us if we needed help.
I asked Mike where his wallet was even though we seemed safe. Mike wisely reassured me that I didn't need to know where he kept his wallet and he wasn't going to advertise its location by checking for it. Somewhere along the middle of our trip, Mike reported his wallet was gone along with his Croatian ID, credit union debit card and all the newly acquired euros. Not to panic, his passport was safe around his neck.
We made it to the Holiday Inn Grand Boulevard Hotel and told the receptionist our predicament. After checking in and canceling the debit card we set off to the local police station to report the crime. We were told it would be a one hour wait for our turn. The Champs Elysees was calling our names so we left. Maybe we would report the theft tomorrow. Yes, we got back on the Metro and found our way to Avenue des Champs Elysees. Ooh la la!
We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening strolling up and down the Avenue as well as the area around the Alexander III bridge, the Grand Palais and Petit Palais. Everything about Paris is grand including wide streets, tree lined promenades, buildings that stretch for blocks. There are massive squares that meet at the juncture of a dozen streets. Everywhere were splendid statues, columns and arches some decorated with real gold. We snapped pictures of the famous stores, statues, buildings from the Arc de Triomphe to the Place de la Concorde. Awestruck, we walked all the way back to our hotel and looked for a place to eat. O'Sullivan's Irish Pub was the site of our first Paris meal simply because it was right outside of the hotel and our feet were mush.
Next morning, we had a great breakfast at the hotel including croissants and brie and set off for the day. About 100 steps past the hotel a middle eastern women and I noticed a gold ring on the pavement at the same time. She picked it up ahead of me. I told her it was her lucky day. She handed me the ring and asked if it was real gold. I was pretty sure "10K" was stamped on the inside. She offered it to me because she said it was against her religion to wear gold. I was beginning to feel like lucky Pete Isgrigg. I put it on and it was a perfect fit . Off we went thinking the subway ordeal had somehow been repaid. She called after us and requested "perhaps some coffee money" so Mike gave her a couple of euros. When she asked if maybe we had more to give her, we told her that's all we had because of the pickpocket incident and off we went to buy 2-day unlimited hop-on hop-off Big Bus passes which included a boat ride on the Seine. We made the entire 2 hour audio-guided loop of Paris from the open top deck of the bus to get oriented. Then it was time to decide what to see up close and personal.
But first we needed a rest stop. We notice a modern sidewalk glorified port-o-potty. There were about a dozen people in line for this one seated structure. This toilet had an automated door and requested one person at a time. There was a mandatory, closed-door cleaning cycle between each visit. Mike waited and I went to get Eiffel Tower tickets.
Initial plans for the day were to go up the Eiffel Tower. The 1/2 mile lines did not appear to be moving and our time in Paris was limited. I went back to the port-o-potty to collect Mike who had been waiting 30 minutes. He was next in line and we planned to use the facility together to save time. How did it know there were 2 of us scofflaws in there? I don't know but it would not allow us to lock the door. Instead the door reopened, leaving me slightly exposed, with unfinished business, staring back at the dozen or so waitees. We left quickly hoping there were no security cameras around and still needing a rest stop.
We took the guided boat trip up and down the Seine and saw Paris from a different angle.
(There were facilities on board.) Now it was off to Notre Dame. It was about this time that I noticed the inside of my ring was turning black.
The long line at Notre Dame moved quickly. Once inside we joined an excellent tour in English by a US expat and were able to go behind the altar to the choir area which was only accessible on guided tours. We were pleased to hear that 10:00 Mass the next day would fit nicely into our schedule. Here I will skip ahead to Sunday.
Back at Notre Dame, the thousands of pipes on the organ were all working and the cathedral was full of music. Five priests concelebrated the Mass. Incense was burned and dispersed liberally and filled the air throughout the Mass. Several parts of the Mass were in Latin sung by a young persons choir in Gregorian chant. We had additional time to take in the interior of the cathedral especially admiring the rose windows.
Later we visited the Louvre and again were impressed with the volume of art and the size of the Louvre which had started out as a fort before becoming the king's palace. It is very easy to find your way around inside. There is no way to see all of the Louvre in less than a month so we checked off the must sees. Then we did a quick tour through the paintings and sculptures just to be able to say we saw original works by Raphael, Giotto, Cimabue, David, etc.
Dinner at a street side boulangerie was delicious. I had grilled swordfish on a delicious tomato based sauce with rice, green beans and carrots and Mike had, of course, steak and fries. We enjoyed the French wine but sorry Kevin and Mary Jo, we can't tell you what they were. After dinner we stopped for a lemon and an almond crepe at an outdoor stand.
Monday was our last day in Paris and we still had not gone up the Eiffel Tower. We got an early start, arrived 30 minutes before opening and still cued up in a very long line. Finally inside, we took the 2 elevators to the top and stood in a cloud. Gustave Eiffel had a personal apartment at the top of the tower. Peering through the window of his apartment we saw excellent wax sculptures of Eiffel and his daughter hosting Thomas Edison. After an hour, we realized that the clouds were going to hang around for a long time. We descended to the level of the second platform and took in the great view from there.
Our must see list was looking good. Now it was back on the Metro to the hotel to pick up our luggage and catch a taxi to the airport. Our cab driver had emigrated from Cambodia. He assured us that he often had visitors who were pickpocketed on the train into the city and chose a taxi ride back to the airport. Our advice to Paris visitors: 1. Do not take the Metro to or from the airport if you have luggage to carry or a wallet in your pocket. 2. All that glitters is not gold.
Au revoir, mes amis.
Check back in a day or two for pictures.
The nice lady at the airport gave us train and metro directions. She seemed very pleased with our quickly understanding how to take the train into the city. She insisted we review it with her several times to make sure we knew which train to take, in which direction the train should be going and at which stop to get off on our 3 hop trip. Mike was sure he had it down and so off we went confident that saving the 60 euro taxi trip would be a breeze.
It was a fairly long walk to the train and there were lots of steps to the different levels in the subway. Mike was hauling the suitcase. He pointed out that not all the up escalators were running that day. The subways are well labeled and are packed with friendly French people who know what they are doing. Several asked us if we needed help.
I asked Mike where his wallet was even though we seemed safe. Mike wisely reassured me that I didn't need to know where he kept his wallet and he wasn't going to advertise its location by checking for it. Somewhere along the middle of our trip, Mike reported his wallet was gone along with his Croatian ID, credit union debit card and all the newly acquired euros. Not to panic, his passport was safe around his neck.
We made it to the Holiday Inn Grand Boulevard Hotel and told the receptionist our predicament. After checking in and canceling the debit card we set off to the local police station to report the crime. We were told it would be a one hour wait for our turn. The Champs Elysees was calling our names so we left. Maybe we would report the theft tomorrow. Yes, we got back on the Metro and found our way to Avenue des Champs Elysees. Ooh la la!
We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening strolling up and down the Avenue as well as the area around the Alexander III bridge, the Grand Palais and Petit Palais. Everything about Paris is grand including wide streets, tree lined promenades, buildings that stretch for blocks. There are massive squares that meet at the juncture of a dozen streets. Everywhere were splendid statues, columns and arches some decorated with real gold. We snapped pictures of the famous stores, statues, buildings from the Arc de Triomphe to the Place de la Concorde. Awestruck, we walked all the way back to our hotel and looked for a place to eat. O'Sullivan's Irish Pub was the site of our first Paris meal simply because it was right outside of the hotel and our feet were mush.
Next morning, we had a great breakfast at the hotel including croissants and brie and set off for the day. About 100 steps past the hotel a middle eastern women and I noticed a gold ring on the pavement at the same time. She picked it up ahead of me. I told her it was her lucky day. She handed me the ring and asked if it was real gold. I was pretty sure "10K" was stamped on the inside. She offered it to me because she said it was against her religion to wear gold. I was beginning to feel like lucky Pete Isgrigg. I put it on and it was a perfect fit . Off we went thinking the subway ordeal had somehow been repaid. She called after us and requested "perhaps some coffee money" so Mike gave her a couple of euros. When she asked if maybe we had more to give her, we told her that's all we had because of the pickpocket incident and off we went to buy 2-day unlimited hop-on hop-off Big Bus passes which included a boat ride on the Seine. We made the entire 2 hour audio-guided loop of Paris from the open top deck of the bus to get oriented. Then it was time to decide what to see up close and personal.
But first we needed a rest stop. We notice a modern sidewalk glorified port-o-potty. There were about a dozen people in line for this one seated structure. This toilet had an automated door and requested one person at a time. There was a mandatory, closed-door cleaning cycle between each visit. Mike waited and I went to get Eiffel Tower tickets.
Initial plans for the day were to go up the Eiffel Tower. The 1/2 mile lines did not appear to be moving and our time in Paris was limited. I went back to the port-o-potty to collect Mike who had been waiting 30 minutes. He was next in line and we planned to use the facility together to save time. How did it know there were 2 of us scofflaws in there? I don't know but it would not allow us to lock the door. Instead the door reopened, leaving me slightly exposed, with unfinished business, staring back at the dozen or so waitees. We left quickly hoping there were no security cameras around and still needing a rest stop.
We took the guided boat trip up and down the Seine and saw Paris from a different angle.
(There were facilities on board.) Now it was off to Notre Dame. It was about this time that I noticed the inside of my ring was turning black.
The long line at Notre Dame moved quickly. Once inside we joined an excellent tour in English by a US expat and were able to go behind the altar to the choir area which was only accessible on guided tours. We were pleased to hear that 10:00 Mass the next day would fit nicely into our schedule. Here I will skip ahead to Sunday.
Back at Notre Dame, the thousands of pipes on the organ were all working and the cathedral was full of music. Five priests concelebrated the Mass. Incense was burned and dispersed liberally and filled the air throughout the Mass. Several parts of the Mass were in Latin sung by a young persons choir in Gregorian chant. We had additional time to take in the interior of the cathedral especially admiring the rose windows.
Later we visited the Louvre and again were impressed with the volume of art and the size of the Louvre which had started out as a fort before becoming the king's palace. It is very easy to find your way around inside. There is no way to see all of the Louvre in less than a month so we checked off the must sees. Then we did a quick tour through the paintings and sculptures just to be able to say we saw original works by Raphael, Giotto, Cimabue, David, etc.
Dinner at a street side boulangerie was delicious. I had grilled swordfish on a delicious tomato based sauce with rice, green beans and carrots and Mike had, of course, steak and fries. We enjoyed the French wine but sorry Kevin and Mary Jo, we can't tell you what they were. After dinner we stopped for a lemon and an almond crepe at an outdoor stand.
Monday was our last day in Paris and we still had not gone up the Eiffel Tower. We got an early start, arrived 30 minutes before opening and still cued up in a very long line. Finally inside, we took the 2 elevators to the top and stood in a cloud. Gustave Eiffel had a personal apartment at the top of the tower. Peering through the window of his apartment we saw excellent wax sculptures of Eiffel and his daughter hosting Thomas Edison. After an hour, we realized that the clouds were going to hang around for a long time. We descended to the level of the second platform and took in the great view from there.
Our must see list was looking good. Now it was back on the Metro to the hotel to pick up our luggage and catch a taxi to the airport. Our cab driver had emigrated from Cambodia. He assured us that he often had visitors who were pickpocketed on the train into the city and chose a taxi ride back to the airport. Our advice to Paris visitors: 1. Do not take the Metro to or from the airport if you have luggage to carry or a wallet in your pocket. 2. All that glitters is not gold.
Au revoir, mes amis.
Check back in a day or two for pictures.
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