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Post by htmb on Feb 20, 2014 20:37:52 GMT
Thank you, breeze. I haven't been to ST in ages and will certainly check out your link.
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Post by htmb on Aug 21, 2014 20:26:59 GMT
Just looking over this thread started last February, I'd say our trip to La Rochelle was pretty successful. We certainly couldn't have gotten any closer to the old port! I'd go back to La Rochelle in a heartbeat.
I've pulled up this thread because my daughter and I are planning a trip. Christmas has been discussed, but since she can get more time off next summer we've put talks of a Christmas trip on hold for the moment. Originally my daughter wanted to go to London and Amsterdam for the ten days she can get away, but a couple of nights ago she decided she would really like to spend a few days in London and then relax the rest of the time in Paris. I think, based on her current circumstances, that's a wise idea and will certainly be easier for me to plan. Amsterdam will have to wait for another day. We traveled to Paris and Pont-Aven together in 2009, but we were with friends. This will be a more relaxing trip for her and she can wander Paris and take photos until she drops if she wants.
So, just like last year, I am working on accommodations in Paris. Once I have that locked down the rest will fall into place. Since my daughter will leave after the first ten days, and I plan to stay in France for awhile, I'm also thinking about what I will be doing and where.
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Post by mich64 on Aug 21, 2014 23:28:24 GMT
It is funny, we have not even departed on our September 2014 holiday yet but the discussions have already begun for September 2015. So far it seems like London and Paris as well! I think it has to do with all of those Paris photo threads of late. Wonderful htmb that you will take a holiday with your daughter.
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Post by htmb on Aug 21, 2014 23:48:54 GMT
Yes, I'm looking forward to doing some traveling with her, Mich. She's a good traveler and we're pretty close. She also works extremely hard and deserves a little time off.
This is my slower time professionally, and once things get busier, it will be much more difficult to devote time to planning. That's what happened to me two years ago. My trip went well, but it cost more money that it should have. I also wasn't overly happy with the location of my Paris lodgings, mainly because I waited so long to find something suitable.
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Post by mich64 on Aug 22, 2014 19:06:28 GMT
Well have fun with your beginning stage of planning! I like to start as soon as I am back, like you finding suitable and economical lodgings is my first priority once the decision on our destination is firm.
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Post by htmb on Aug 22, 2014 19:20:38 GMT
Yes, it can be fun, Mich. For someone who hates to spend money with a passion, a couple of the expenses - lodging and airfare - make me cringe and hesitate for awhile.Once I get past those obstacles the rest of the planning can be very enjoyable. Not that I do that much planning when it's just me, but there are a couple of special things my daughter wants to do in London that I will need to research a little more carefully. I'm pretty set with the hotel area where we will be staying in London, and I am zeroing in on a Paris apartment that I think will be adequate, though not the cheaper one I had considered for awhile. The killer for me will be the one day trip she wants to make to Versailles. I suppose I have several months to work on my attitude about that one, but it is something she really wants to do. I doubt I will send her off on her own, though I may consider letting her go inside the chateau while I stay out in the gardens. That's one I'm not going to worry about for now. I am sure we can work something out.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 22, 2014 20:05:47 GMT
Versailles can be excellent although I am also one of the people who are not impressed by the opulence of palaces. However, the size of the place is amazing and obviously the gardens are spectacular. Perhaps I will be able to assist you.
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Post by htmb on Aug 22, 2014 20:13:13 GMT
That would be great. Will you take WDCP to Versailles? All kidding aside, Kerouac, I would welcome any advice. Actually, the day I was at Versailles in 2008 the weather was miserable. Raining and windy. I was not really dressed to be outside and my friend most definitely was not. We fought the crowds inside, understood immediately why the masses turned on the royalty, and went to sit in a café and drink wine while we waited for the rest of the group. Any subsequent trip is bound to be more enjoyable. Actually, I tried to talk my daughter into Pierrefonds. Will continue to work on that, but even if she doesn't have the time, I plan to go sometime on my next trip. After looking over your reports again, I really think I would like to see the whole area. It is just the getting there that will be a bit of a challenge.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 22, 2014 20:24:24 GMT
Not if I have a car.
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Post by mich64 on Aug 22, 2014 20:37:34 GMT
While I did enjoy our visit to Versailles, given the opportunity I would be back to Pierrefonds in an instant. Even without the excitement of the filming of Merlin, I would be thrilled to visit again. It is just such a beautiful and serene village. I wish I could assist you with the logistics of getting there but we had a car.
Versailles was overwhelming but I am glad that we went. We had a beautiful day, arrived early enough to not be in the longest of lines and the fountains were operating, can not be much more fortunate than that. And we found the statue of an Admiral of France with husband's family name and it was so funny, he looked just like my father-in-law.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 22, 2014 20:53:41 GMT
I think it is good to compare the two places since they are so totally different.
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Post by mich64 on Aug 22, 2014 21:12:34 GMT
I agree Kerouac. I feel fortunate to have been to both and I think htmb would love Pierrefonds. I hope you can figure a way to get there htmb!
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Post by bjd on Aug 23, 2014 7:19:40 GMT
I must confess that I have never been inside the palace of Versailles. We have taken the children to the gardens on one or two occasions when they were small (so a long time ago), but I have never wanted to visit the palace. The crowds were not so awful years ago but I just don't like those opulent over-decorated palaces.
Five years ago, I took my sister to Brussels on a day trip from Paris and the royal palace was unusually open for visits -- only a small part, of course. We went in because there was not much of a line but after about 3 rooms I was ready to leave, and it's nothing like the glitz of Versailles.
htmb -- why don't you let your daughter go by herself to Versailles if she wants to visit it? At worst, she can join a tour for the day if you are worried she will get lost (although that is unlikely to happen). It is often good to separate for a day when you are travelling with someone.
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Post by htmb on Aug 23, 2014 11:10:26 GMT
I'm sending her with Kerouac, Bjd. Problem solved.
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Post by lagatta on Aug 26, 2014 13:48:58 GMT
That is great. I've been to France many, many times, and have never visited Versailles. There are so many more interesting places near Paris, in my view. Then there is this place, in Southern Italy: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palace_of_Caserta
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Post by Deleted on Aug 26, 2014 17:33:47 GMT
I'm trying to remember the last time I went inside the palace, and I'm pretty sure it was about 15 years ago and already too crowded for my taste. But I was with an American friend whom I had not seen since university days, and also her daughter, so I made the sacrifice.
I took my mother as far as the courtyard about 7 or 8 years ago. She was happy to glance at the building but was already in no condition to make an actual visit. And since she was already not a good walker, even visiting the gardens was out of the question.
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Post by htmb on Aug 28, 2014 15:14:08 GMT
I'm willing to give the gardens another try if my daughter really wishes to go to Versailles, but will most likely leave the inside tour to others. While I would not mind seeing the Hall of Mirrors again sans the crowds, I have no interest in viewing the rest of the palace interior.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 28, 2014 22:00:28 GMT
There is a television programme in France at the moment where the people of each region rate their favourite monuments, out of a short list of six. Today it was the turn of Ile de France, and the rankings came in as follows:
6. Louvre 5. Notre Dame 4. Opéra Garnier 3. Sacré Coeur 2. Tour Eiffel 1. Versailles
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Post by htmb on Aug 28, 2014 22:04:00 GMT
I laughed out loud in disbelief at numbers 1 and 3.
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Post by lagatta on Sept 20, 2014 11:34:59 GMT
Sacré Coeur is a ghastly turn-of-the-last-century architechtural mishmash, not to mention the politically reactionary reasons it was built in Montmartre. Like Fourvière in Lyon. Versailles has considerable historical interest for the edification of the centralised French state (see the historical film: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Taking_of_Power_by_Louis_XIV ) which you should be able to find in streaming online, but I have zero interest in visiting the place. I don't like formal gardens very much.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 20, 2014 17:33:49 GMT
I guess I am French because I have always loved Sacré Coeur.
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Post by mossie on Sept 20, 2014 18:33:22 GMT
I always look out for the quick glimpse of Sacre Coeur one gets from the Eurostar as it slows down ready to stop at Gare du Nord. Then I know my next trip has started.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 20, 2014 19:33:15 GMT
It was the same for me, even coming in on the "boat train" from Le Havre to Saint Lazare. Seeing Sacré Coeur meant that we had finally arrived. And while some people seem to not like Byzantine domes, I do.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 20, 2014 19:44:18 GMT
I laughed out loud in disbelief at numbers 1 and 3. You will probably be pleased to know that Versailles came in 14th of the 22 top monuments of France in the final poll. The programme revealing the results of the poll of 200,000 people is not finished yet, but I am relatively certain that Mont Saint Michel will come in 1st. As for poor #22, it was the train station of Limoges.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 20, 2014 21:00:00 GMT
Well, just like with the 'Idol' shows, I tend to underestimate the power of internet votes. The #1 monument in France is the Royal Monastery of Brou. (Just for the record, #2 is the cathedral of Strasbourg.) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Monastery_of_Brou
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Post by htmb on Sept 20, 2014 21:05:28 GMT
Is the Royal Monastery located anywhere near Strasbourg?
I really do hope to visit either Strasbourg or Saint Michel on my next trip. The only thing I'm dreading are the anticipated crowds.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 20, 2014 21:07:16 GMT
No, it is in Bourg-en-Bresse.
You need not worry about the crowds anywhere in France if you can bear the crowds in Paris.
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Post by bjd on Sept 21, 2014 13:56:57 GMT
It was the same for me, even coming in on the "boat train" from Le Havre to Saint Lazare. Seeing Sacré Coeur meant that we had finally arrived. And while some people seem to not like Byzantine domes, I do. Oh, I like Byzantine domes on real Byzantine architecture -- what I don't like are kitschy 19th century copies. Hence my dislike of Sacré Coeur.
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Post by htmb on Oct 28, 2014 23:47:57 GMT
No, it is in Bourg-en-Bresse. You need not worry about the crowds anywhere in France if you can bear the crowds in Paris. Funny, but most of the time Paris does not feel crowded to me. I suppose when I say crowds, what I really mean are lines. I hate waiting in line and prefer to move on if the wait is too long. In seven trips to Paris I have never been up the Eiffel Tower. Part of the reason has to do with the lines. My daughter mentioned she wants to go up on our trip next summer, so I've agreed only if she'll take the stairs so we don't have to stand in line for the elevator.
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Post by bjd on Oct 29, 2014 9:01:37 GMT
We visited the monastery in Brou many years ago when we lived in eastern France and went to visit someone nearby. It was beautiful and empty -- we were the only ones in there. I'm surprised it made #1 on that list since I rarely hear it mentioned.
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