We walked from St. Germain-des-Pres, the oldest church in Paris, to the Seine, along tiny streets, by cafes and shops.
I wanted Megan to stand on Pont des Arts, the wooden pedestrian bridge in the center of Paris, because you can see famous monuments...the Eiffel tower, Notre Dame, the Louvre. All lit up for the night.
It was not as crowded as I expected, since most of the Parisians are on holiday, but to be honest the atmosphere was much friendlier and safer than usual. I did not feel as threatened as I tend to, there.
But we were harassed by a French man at the other end of the bridge. He came up right up to me and spoke in English, so I told him that I spoke French and basically acted as if I was a very offended French woman. That seemed to work, because he started calling after me in French, but then he followed us. "Laissez-moi, Monsieur". I couldn't remember what my dad had taught me, something that was more like "go away". But eventually, by walking quickly enough and ignoring him, he left us alone.
Typical.
We walked up to one of my favorite bars, Le Piano Vache, which is near the Pantheon in the Latin Quarter. The walls are plastered with posters, photos, and drawings; think old dark wood walls and worn tables. After having a glass of wine (there are no menus, the bartender knows what they have), we went back to the apartment.
Could you really tell that all the Parisians were out of town? Or were you just expecting that to be how it would be?
ReplyDeleteWe went to Pont des Arts. I have never felt so safe on that bridge, and realized it was because most of the people there were tourists. And it was a third of the usual number of people for a weekend.
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