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Post by californian on Mar 29, 2015 15:31:29 GMT
I am so sorry, Purvis, I am sure you'll get your money back, but losing confidence on doing these transactions takes a big toll, it makes one weary of trusting any of the so many internet sites ever again, it's alway a little scary to give your CC info anyway. Listen to your son and go to Hawaii, you won't get sick again!
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Post by purvis on Mar 29, 2015 16:02:33 GMT
Getting the money back ($1,505.00) is not what annoys me it's that I was foolish enough to get scammed. It does make you less trusting of people. I know there are people without scruples out there but this is the first time I have been had by one of them and it takes ones confidence away. Purvis
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Post by Oz-T on Mar 29, 2015 21:14:14 GMT
Purvis, I would demand that Booking.com fix this immediately. Your payment and liaison has been with them, not the hotel. Didn't they turn this into the full payment? Didn't they forward the funds to the hotel? It is surely their responsibility to recover the funds. At worst, your bank should be able to recover the amount if your card was charged improperly and no service has been provided.
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Post by purvis on Mar 30, 2015 3:21:26 GMT
As I have said it is not getting the monies back that is important to me it is the fact that I feel I can't seem to do anything right these days. First I came back from Hawaii a year ago very sick then I had a fall on an escalator at Pearson International in Toronto last November and now it seem I can't book a hotel properly. It's starting to feel as if these happen in the last year that I should get the message that my travelling days are over even though I have not yet completed my "Bucket List"
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Post by purvis on Mar 30, 2015 4:09:42 GMT
My problem with Booking.com will be settled in 2-4weeks time but now lets get back to OZ's tour tale as I just can't wait to read about Paris. Purvis
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Post by Oz-T on Mar 30, 2015 10:12:33 GMT
Day 22 – Paris
Back on track... After 21 days at a solid pace and only two rest days in that period, we scheduled today for some casual strolling around Paris. Having visited this magnificent city many, many times, the next three days were going to be much more low-key than previous occasions. There were a couple of new places to explore, but not today. This was going to be a simple day of absorbing the sights, sounds and feel of Paris, something we have done before and never tire of. The McDonalds next to the hotel was the only nearby eatery and that’s where we sat down for our breakfast of bacon/egg muffin , juice and coffee. Whilst eating, we decided where our day would begin. The walk toward the nearest rail station was a bit more than half a kilometre because we were not near the centre of Paris and fewer stations are around. There was nobody at the ticket office so we had to learn how to use the vending machines. The tickets cost €5.30 each and would take us to Gare du Nord and return, using the RER. For anybody unfamiliar with the Paris rail network, they have three train systems here. The main one is the Metropolitain (The Metro) and most of it is underground. The RER is a rapid transit train system that runs on separate lines to the Metro, although the two systems intersect at quite a few stations. In terms of ticketing, anybody can swap between the two systems using the same ticket, although it would cost you more if you head too far out, such as the airport. The third rail network is the SNCF system that we’ve used before which takes you to regional areas or other countries and you need a different and more expensive ticket for that. Gare du Nord is the busiest railway station in Europe but we know our way inside and around it. We were soon out on the streets of Paris, immediately taking in the familiar sights. The weather was looking nice too; blue sky with the occasional white cloud and a pleasant temperature. We walked west through the major intersection, past the outdoor cafes and smelling the aroma of fresh coffee. Rue de Dunkerque takes us north-west and near a couple of hotels we had previously stayed at. We stopped to look at them, remembering some happy moments from past trips to this cosmopolitan city. We crossed the main road and up to Montmarte, stopping to take a photo of the impressive Sacré-Cœur Basilica. Mrs Oz does her usual routine here - rolling her eyes and asking me why I take a photo of it every time we have been to Paris. "You must have eight of these photos now, are you expecting it to look different each time?". No, but when I see something really worth a photo I just snap the shutter regardless. One day I might capture a UFO hovering behind the dome and become world famous. That's when I'll ask her "So who's a smartypants now?". Sacré-Cœur Basilica We've been into the tourist shops here many times, but this is now a Mrs Oz custom to browse around to buy gifts for the kids and their partners. I just followed behind like a good husband and handed over the euros when called upon to fund this retail operation. We wandered into a chocolate shop and marvelled at the version of Notre Dame Cathedral. I was going to ask Mrs Oz whether I could buy just a small spire or flying buttress, but she gave me a look that implied that this wouldn't be consistent with our diets. I would have settled for a gargoyle. We continued along Boulevard de Clichy and made a few detours until we found a cafe that looked enticing. Checking the menu outside, we ventured in to have lunch. Mrs Oz was a bit wary of me ordering because I just cannot resist trying to speak French and she was a bit worried about being served fried wallpaper with a side of giraffe ears. I actually surprised her by ordering the pepper steaks we had decided on, and whilst she remained until the last moment unsure of what we would be served, she was pleased that I'd gotten it right. So it was bon appétit, and we enjoyed the meal and the red wine that came with it. At €20 in total for two mains plus a glass of wine each, it was quite nice. As we looked out the window, we realised we had also stayed at the hotel just over the road. We walked along the street all the way to Moulin Rouge (where we saw the show on our first trip to Paris) then meandered through some surrounding streets before stopping at a cafe and taking in the sights and sounds of Paris while we sipped coffees. We stopped at a supermarket and bought some food for a light dinner, then walked back to Gare du Nord to catch the train back to the northern suburbs. Then another walk back to the hotel. The location was a bit out of the action, but it was quiet and cheap. This Ibis Hotel was costing us €119 per night and we might have been able to do better, but this suited us. And the location actually worked best for tomorrow's excursion. After weeks of getting copious doses of history, tomorrow we were going to actually visit some royalty.....
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Post by tiffany on Mar 30, 2015 12:11:46 GMT
When my friend and I went to Versailles (in October), we arrived at 11:00 a.m., bought our tickets, and waited in line 5 mins to get inside. I don’t know if the line-up was so short because it was October, but we were shocked at how fast it was for us to get into the place. We wanted to see Marie Antoinette’s estate, so we spent the whole day there, and still didn’t see it all. I’d love to go back again someday.
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Post by Oz-T on Mar 30, 2015 12:39:56 GMT
October might've had something to do with it, Tiffany. The day of the week matters too. We went on a Sunday - not my preference, but it had to align with the day our friend was going there. That's an awful day to choose because more people go, being a weekend, and the place is closed on the following day (Monday). It's handy to know that you experienced a short entry time - it can be done.
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Post by tiffany on Mar 30, 2015 13:36:39 GMT
I believe it was a Friday when we went. The downside to going in October is that all of the flowers are gone. I’d love go to back again to see the gardens when they are in bloom. I really enjoyed Marie Antoinette’s estate though, and I’m glad I saw it. One thing I’ll mention about Versailles is the lack of signage throughout Marie Antoinette’s estate. Even with a map, we had a hard time finding some places, as there are no signs directing you to where you want to go, and everything is a lot further away than it appears to be on the map.
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Post by purvis on Mar 30, 2015 14:04:44 GMT
Am enjoying your Paris report and waiting for your next few days in "The City of Lights" . Purvis
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Post by 1jhwks on Mar 30, 2015 23:20:06 GMT
mmmmmmmm....chocolate!!! Did the shop have other chocolate displays?
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Post by Oz-T on Mar 31, 2015 0:39:00 GMT
Yes, there were other chocolate displays, but the 'cathedral in the room' was Notre Dame. It dominated the store because you had to walk around it and drool....
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Post by Oz-T on Apr 1, 2015 9:34:02 GMT
Day 23 – Paris
Today was the day that history got a bit up close and personal. When Mrs Oz asked me what I meant, I replied that we were going to meet a few kings and queens today and she worried about whether we were suitably dressed. Yes, jeans, casual shirts and sports shoes would be just fine. We added our light nylon jackets as we left the hotel and set out for our destination on foot, with a little drizzling rain threatening. I only had a rough, hand-drawn map to navigate the streets but it would suffice as we headed north along Avenue du General de Gaulle, passing Stade de France, the 80,000 seat sports stadium. There would be a 2km walk to our encounter with royalty: the Basilica de Saint-Denis. We decided on this route because it had better prospects for photos and I was right. We walked along the Canal de Saint-Denis and it was not only prettier than the main roads, but also quieter. Another brownie-point awarded by Mrs Oz - I’ve been on a roll this holiday. Saint-Denis Canal Eventually we crossed the waterway as we walked closer to the Basilica. We stopped at a small store and purchased two small yoghurts and some fruit, sitting at a nearby park bench to eat our breakfast. We could see the Basilica now and were ready to explore it. And here are the reasons for this visit. This Basilica (technically a cathedral since 1966) is the first ever Gothic building. Beginning as an abbey church in 1144, the site had a chapel on it as early as 475 AD. Construction of the first church began in 754 AD as directed by King Pepin the Short. I can only assume that the original doorway was only five feet high. This site became the place where kings were buried, starting with Dagobert I in 639 AD and ending with Louis XVIII in 1824. Nearly every king between these dates is here and there are 43 of them, along with 32 queens and a heap of princes and princesses. Inside, it looks like a standard Gothic church, much like the many we had already visited on this tour. But then you discover that you can’t get up close to the altar area and that’s because you’re directed out a side door to an area where you pay a fee of €7.50 to see the rest. And it sure was worth it. The entry fee gets you into the section where the tombs and crypt are. And there’s a lot of tombs here. Most of the names won’t be familiar unless you have a reasonable understanding of French history, but there are some kings here that most people will know of. Many tombs have reclining statues of their occupants, which gives you a bit of an idea what they looked like. There’s also a bit of a history on Saint-Denis himself, although you’ll need to understand French to read it. I’ll try to provide a condensed version. Denis was the Bishop of Paris in the third century. He had been sent from Italy to bring Christianity to Gaul, and that’s what brought him to settle on Île de la Cité, the island in the Seine River where Notre Dame Cathedral is located. Denis was an enthusiastic converter of people to become Catholics, which brought smiles to quite a few people, but definitely not the pagan priests who noticed they were losing their flock. That didn’t please them at all so they dealt with it the way that any God-loving, ethical, sensible priest would do: they grabbed Denis and two of his buddies, hauled them up to the top of Montmarte, and beheaded them with a sword. Incidentally, it’s believed that’s how the hill got its name – mount of the martyr. The story now begins to get a bit weird. In what must surely have been one of history’s greatest acts of indifference, Denis supposedly picked up his severed head and walked down from the hill, preaching sermons for a total of six miles. I bet that spooked the locals so much it’s no wonder they started doing weirdo things themselves like eating snails. I also think it’s a pity that nobody thought to get all this onto YouTube because it would have gone viral. Saint-Denis The long walk of six miles had to come to an end because I guess Denis needed a drink and that was always going to be problematic when you’re holding your head under your armpit. It would have been interesting to watch though. Anyway, poor Denis died at that spot, which happens to be exactly where we were standing. They later built the Basilica of Saint-Denis on this site in his honour. Christian martyrs often gained sainthood and there are plenty of pictures and statues of Denis standing, holding his head. Forgive me for the quirky mindset, but where exactly does the artist put the halo? Saint-Denis (We later walked around to the north portal and I took a photo of the carved depiction of the three executions here. In the interest of personal safety, I made a mental note to not try to convert anybody from their chosen religion whilst I was here.) Beheading depiction in the carved stone area above the door. ... and in close-up. I walked amongst the tombs and read the names, thinking about how each one had a story of their life. There was ol’ Clovis I that I talked about at the start of this travel tale. And there’s Louis XIV who must be turning in his grave at the thought that us common people were walking through his grand palace at Versailles these days. Crypt, Saint-Denis Basilica Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette are here, although their hasty burial in an unmarked grave in a Paris cemetery didn’t leave many remains to be reinterred here. We got to the tomb of Louis XVII, that many people probably pass by without knowing the sad history. Monument to Louis XVII Known as Louis-Charles, he was the second son of Louis XVI. He was only four years old when his seven year old brother died from tuberculosis, making him the new dauphin (crown prince). Then the French Revolution started and the family had to leave Versailles and move to the Tuileries Palace in Paris, unable to leave the premises for a couple of years. At the age of six he was with his family, trying to escape France when they were captured and returned to Paris. A year later the palace was raided by a mob and the family fled for their lives, only to be imprisoned a few days later. After four months Louis-Charles saw his father for the last time, when Louis XVI was taken away to a trial. With the French Revolution in full sway, the former king was taken to what’s now called Place de la Concorde and up to the guillotine (that sat where the obelisk now stands). If all that wasn't bad enough for young Louis-Charles, things got even worse. When he was eight his mother Marie Antoinette was taken from him and guillotined two months later. Poor Louis-Charles only lasted another two years after being poorly treated in custody. He died at the age of ten, officially from tuberculosis, but the welts and scars on his little body suggest otherwise. One thing was sure: revolutionary France was rid of the heir to the throne. The boy's body was buried in an unmarked grave in a cemetery. However, in keeping with custom, his heart had been removed and it eventually was placed in a crystal urn at the Basilica Saint-Denis. Recent DNA tests have confirmed that it is the authentic heart of the most unfortunate crown prince. Crystal urn containing Louis XVII's heart. Emerging from the crypt and up some steps, I took a photo of the statue of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette who both looked very regal. Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette There were dozens and dozens of additional tombs but I won't go into any more lengthy discourse on them. Parts of this cathedral are so spectacular with colour, I couldn't resist changing my camera settings to capture them in all their glory: (not bad for a dark cathedral, I thought...) Leaving the basilica we headed past the Saint-Denis town hall and toward the shopping area of Saint Denis and it's all a bit downmarket. We found a takeaway restaurant and had our lunch there - chicken tikka burger meals (including fries and drink), €6 each. Town Hall The morning had been very interesting and we slowed the pace in the afternoon, wandering around the streets of Saint-Denis and stopping for coffees in the late afternoon. Then it was a walk back along the Saint-Denis Canal where we stopped to watch a road bridge rise up to let a boat through. Saint-Denis Canal We could have squeezed in more things that afternoon but this was a deliberately slower pace. I had plans for tomorrow that Mrs Oz readily agreed to. She'd had enough of dead royalty and was looking forward to the next day's itinerary ....
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Post by tiffany on Apr 1, 2015 11:54:04 GMT
There’s so much to see and do in Paris, you can spend weeks there and not see it all. I hope to make it to Saint-Denis Cathedral some day!
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Post by purvis on Apr 1, 2015 14:12:50 GMT
Oz: Thank you for such beautiful pictures. They and your commentary make the tour come alive. Purvis
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Post by Oz-T on Apr 1, 2015 21:26:03 GMT
I knew I wouldn't be the only one to lose my head at Saint-Denis Basilica, Purvis....
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Post by 1jhwks on Apr 2, 2015 12:58:58 GMT
OMG!! Those colors in the stained glass windows are amazing!!!!!!!!!!
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Post by marielouise on Apr 2, 2015 16:17:45 GMT
Oz, I have only read as far as the Mont St Michel installment. I have been busy tending to our first grandchild, born a week ago. When I was a teenager, I took a French course in Tours with my sister, we signed up with a bus tour of Mint St Michel through the school, well as young people are wont to do, we walked out on the mud flats for more than half an hour, then as we saw people heading back, we started wondering when the tide would come in, well we headed back and were quite astounded how long it took to get back. We then went into a museum at the base and saw cartoons of people drowning, it said that the water came in at the rate of galloping horses. It scared us a bit and as we came out and headed back to the bus we saw the tide had come in and it had become an island, quite scary.
We went on an Insight tour, Country Roads of France and it visited lots of small towns, such as Chablis, Vezelay and Troyes in the north and many more in the south. It was quite slow paced and very enjoyable.
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Post by Oz-T on Apr 6, 2015 23:31:20 GMT
Day 24 – ParisToday was the last full day of our holiday before travelling home and Paris had delivered another beautiful day – sunny and a blue sky. Breakfast was next door at the convenient McDonalds – bacon/egg muffins and coffee for €4 each. We were about to continue our visit to the parts of Paris that we had for some reason never explored on previous trips. We made our way to the station – Gare de la Plaine Stade de France – and strode up to the vending machine and purchased our Metro passes (€6.80 each) confidently enough to almost pass as locals. Oh all right ... the camera and tourist brochure in my hand may have given the game away, but it felt good. Emerging from the Metro in the heart of Paris, we began our walking tour at the Arc de Triomphe. If you’ve never been here, it sits in the middle of La Roundabout de la Killer Cars. On past visits we’ve always used the pedestrian underpass to get up close and/or climb the stairs to the top. If you want to get there another way, dropping in by parachute would be safer than walking across the endless stream of traffic. The Arc de Triomphe is one of the arches that align to form the ‘Axe Historique’, an axis of grand historic monuments. More on that a bit later. From the arch we commenced our walk south-east along the line of the axis. This of course is the Avenue des Champs-Élysées, the spectacular boulevard with the expensive shops. The name comes from ‘Champs’ (field) and ‘Elysium’, the heavenly paradise for mortals related to Greek Gods. We browsed a few of the stores as we made our way along this grand street. Toward the end of the shopping precinct we noticed a small supermarket so we popped in to buy something for our lunch – baguette, paté & tomato, plus bottles of water. At €3.44 we sure know how to eat lunch on the cheap. It wasn’t long before we made it to the parkland area on the left so we found a seat under a tree and ate our lunch. Gardens alongside the Avenue des Champs-Élysées Relax, the crooked bits are actually attached billboards. Continuing our walk, we approached Place de la Concorde, easily identified by the Egyptian obelisk we’ve seen so many times. This large, octagonal open area was originally known as Place Louis XV but changed to Place de la Révolution during the French Revolution. There was a huge statue of the king there but it was torn down by the mobs. This is where the guillotine was located; the executions drew enormous crowds. The obelisk is one of a pair that stood outside Luxor Temple in Egypt. I’ve brought back one of my photos from our Best of Egypt tour in 2009 to ‘unite’ the two obelisks again. They were given to France as a gift nearly 200 years ago. Transporting the first one was a difficult task in those days and it’s a miracle it got here in one piece. They didn’t attempt to try it again with the second obelisk and that’s why it stayed put. They’re over 3,000 years old. Tour buses at Place de la Concorde I took a few photos of one of the fountains. This one is called Fountain of River Commerce and Navigation and it commemorates river navigation, irrigation and harvests. The two figures supporting the upper basin represent the Rhine and Rhone rivers. There’s another fountain in the south section of the square commemorating the sea. If you ever get to walk around Paris at night, these fountains are a must see. The obelisk is deliberately in the centre of Place de la Concorde and a useful marker. We followed the same line further and into the Tuileries Garden. Back in 1559 the widowed queen Catherine de Medicis decided to move residence to the Louvre, which was then a royal palace, and set about having a new palace built nearby to live in. This became known as the Tuileries Palace, surrounded by the vast gardens we were now walking in. It’s a pleasant area where many people congregate. In a past era, the well-dressed Parisians would promenade here – it was the place to be seen. We sat on one of the seats and simply watched Paris. A little further down is another arch: Arc de triomphe du Carrousel. Its construction was ordered by Napoleon and it stood as a triumphant gateway to the Tuileries Palace. I thought I had seen something like it before, and I did. They copied much of the design from the Arch of Constantine which sits near the Colosseum in Rome. Marble Arch in London was in turn influenced by this one in Paris. Unfortunately, the palace no longer exists - it was burned down by revolutionaries. On the other side of the arch is the Louvre and our walk down the grand axis was complete. We had gone 3.5km in a straight line from the Arc de Triomphe to the Louvre along the ‘Axe Historique’, taking in some significant monuments along the way. The axis actually extends further north-west than where we started, all the way to the square-shaped Arche de la Défense. Paris is indeed very thoughtfully laid out. We had plenty of time spare so we wandered over to Champs de Mars for yet another visit to the Eiffel Tower. It always looks spectacular from the grassed area. It was time to begin our return to the centre of Paris and we strolled through the surrounding streets with the tower popping up from time to time in the background. We couldn’t resist a tempting departure from our diets that was presented to us in the window of this patisserie... Eventually, we got back to Gare du Nord and wondered what we would do for dinner, considering there wasn’t much choice near our hotel. I suggested that as this was our final afternoon in Paris and the end of our huge holiday, it was time for something a bit more elaborate than usual. We found a nice looking restaurant near the station and sat down for a nice dinner. And of course, an obligatory French champagne. After a train ride back to the hotel it was an early night. Tomorrow we would be back onto a plane.
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Post by Oz-T on Apr 7, 2015 2:24:21 GMT
... we walked out on the mud flats for more than half an hour, then as we saw people heading back, we started wondering when the tide would come in, well we headed back and were quite astounded how long it took to get back. We then went into a museum at the base and saw cartoons of people drowning, it said that the water came in at the rate of galloping horses. It scared us a bit and as we came out and headed back to the bus we saw the tide had come in and it had become an island, quite scary. It's a treacherous tidal inlet, Marielouise. No wonder strangers to this area (like those two Norman soldiers) get trapped in the mud and drowned. The peaceful sight of the little island with mudflats can change so suddenly like you described.
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Post by Tonnet on Apr 7, 2015 3:21:36 GMT
A wonderful, memorable trip, Oz. I think I would like to do similar but it's a little harder as a solo.
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Post by kiwigrandma on Apr 7, 2015 9:31:15 GMT
A wonderful, memorable trip, Oz. I think I would like to do similar but it's a little harder as a solo. Agree. Loved the travel tale. Question for Oz-T. Is it difficult to find your way around du gard nord train station. I'm having trouble booking train tickets on line and thought we'd buy them when we get there. Will be going paris to Ieper and have seen train leaves from that station. Loved your photos as well. Looks like you had a great trip.
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Post by Oz-T on Apr 7, 2015 9:55:47 GMT
Well, not quite finished yet... Just a few words to come regarding our flight home and to summarise the trip for anybody interested in self-tours.
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Post by Oz-T on Apr 7, 2015 10:13:45 GMT
Agree. Loved the travel tale. Question for Oz-T. Is it difficult to find your way around du gard nord train station. I'm having trouble booking train tickets on line and thought we'd buy them when we get there. Will be going paris to Ieper and have seen train leaves from that station. Loved your photos as well. Looks like you had a great trip. It's not too difficult, Kiwigrandma. But it's a huge station where three train systems intersect. If you're unfamiliar with the place it'll take time to find your way but you'll do it. With some guidance, you would have a general idea of what to expect and you should be fine. I'd be pleased to help you on this. The only time I buy Europe rail tickets online is if I am travelling a bit to regional areas or between countries (I can buy them here cheaper than what the Europeans pay). If it's just a ticket from Paris to Ypres (Ieper) I'd probably wait until I got to Paris and buy it there, assuming it's not a busy tourist season.
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Post by tiffany on Apr 7, 2015 11:37:03 GMT
Great tale Oz. I did a similar walk while in Paris, but I started at the Louvre, and made may way to the Place de la Concorde. Paris is a great city, and I hope to go back again someday. It sounds like your independent adventure was quite successful!
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Post by purvis on Apr 7, 2015 20:04:04 GMT
Oz: Thanks for taking me on your written and visual tour of Paris. I and others feel as though we are travelling along with you and Mrs. OZ. I'm sorry to see your travel tale end . Purvis
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Post by Oz-T on Apr 8, 2015 0:29:40 GMT
Day 25 – Departure from Paris
It was an early check-out from the hotel due to our flight schedule and we made our way down the street, this time with our small cases on wheels. In doing so, we began to reflect on aspects of this self-tour, starting with the hotels. We had never planned to stay with any particular hotel or chain but the Ibis hotels had worked perfectly for us. They were always clean and reasonably priced for our travel budget. Their free WiFi in the room made it cheap and easy to stay connected. The staff always helped us if we needed guidance and they spoke fluent English. We learned the benefit of making reservations for the next Ibis hotel as we went, rather than wasting time looking for accommodation. And we accumulated quite a few loyalty points for the future. We arrived at the station, Gare de la Plaine Stade de France and as we had taken the precaution of buying our tickets the previous day, we went straight through the turnstiles. We try not to leave anything to the last moment. We always take the train to De Gaulle airport and we were already part way there this time, having chosen a northern departure station that was on the RER line. The tickets cost €15.80 for the two of us, much cheaper than a taxi. We like to get airline check-in sorted out first thing as it’s more comfortable having the boarding passes in our possession. And we knew we would be fine with the weight of our carry-on cases because we had dumped a few items of old clothing a few weeks earlier and hadn’t added much in the way of souvenirs etc. The only dirty clothes were yesterday’s shirts and undies, safely folded in a plastic bag so Mrs Oz would not detect the odour of garments that had no smell anyway. So we relaxed with breakfast at a McDonalds and waited until it was time to board our plane. The Malaysian Airlines flight left Paris behind and we headed east. Several hours later I noticed on the entertainment screen that we were flying directly over eastern Ukraine. I turned to Mrs Oz and told her that there was a war going on directly below us and we went back to reading our books. Just one month later another Malaysian Airlines jet in the exact same airspace was shot down by some idiots using Russian missile launchers. We were fortunate that they hadn’t moved that launcher there four weeks earlier. It was a sobering thought. On the flight we continued our appraisal of how our holiday had gone. We reflected on what went right, and what didn’t, and the overwhelming consensus was that almost everything went to plan. The driving aspect had gone remarkably well and I praised Mrs Oz for handling the car and traffic so well that I could concentrate on navigation and planning. I nudged my foot against my shoulder bag that was under the seat in front of me. That’s where Bruce the GPS was now sitting. He had done a superb job getting us to not only every destination, but also the nearest car parks. We probably avoided 50 hours of aimless driving in circles by knowing exactly where to go when we arrived in unfamiliar cities. And Mrs Oz was pleased that there had been no repeat of the shouting match with Pierre when he was living in the GPS device. And I reminded her that he started it. The car rental had gone to plan and it was a good type of car to get around Europe. We hadn’t asked for a hybrid, but were thankful we had it because of the fuel economy. It was welcome to know we were only moving around on battery energy when caught in city traffic. The only negative on the entire trip was the incident we had with trying to find where to return the car. We’ve now learned to insist on getting decent instructions at the time we get a car. All up, we travelled just short of 4,000 km (2,500 miles) in the car. The following map shows the path we took throughout France, Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands. The clothes washing had gone even better than our previous high mark on guided tours. Here we were for the first time in a month, carrying just a few of the previous day’s garments we had worn. Everything else was clean and folded in the case. And now for the costs. I have never tracked our expenses like this before, but entering them into my iPad in the lengthy periods as a car passenger allowed me to quickly add them up at the end of the trip. Some of the outcomes were expected, but there were some real surprises. Accommodation costs in the Ibis hotels were pretty much on budget, costing an average of €87 per night (excluding breakfast). Meal costs over the entire trip were very cheap, mainly because we were able to choose where we ate and were watching our weight. Breakfasts averaged €3.50 each, compared with €6 each had we dined every day in the hotel. Our lunches were a similar cost and dinners were about double. On top of that we added more for wine, coffees etc. Again, the food costs would be well below what most people would be paying because of our special circumstances (diet, access to cooking facilities etc). The car costs worked out to be €71 per day for the rental (incl. Insurance) and another €15 for fuel. Road tolls averaged €13 per day for those days we were on French motorways. Parking was a cost I had not put into my travel budget but they only cost €8 for the days we had the car. So how does all that compare with a guided tour? I decided to analyse this by looking at the prices for a typical European Trafalgar Tour, and apportioning the daily cost to the number of days we had on our holiday. Then I added an estimate for optional tours, lunches, tips and the number of dinners that typically wouldn’t be included. I was surprised at the outcome. I would estimate that we saved about $9,000 by conducting our own self-tour. Of course, we did not have the luxury of a travel director guiding us everywhere, the three-course dinners or the ability to have a nap whilst on the road. But we did get to see plenty more things than we would ever have seen on a guided tour – and at our own pace. As I said in the beginning of this travel tale, I am not trying to persuade anybody to adopt self-tours for their holidays. It worked for us, but it’s not for everyone. But it hopefully has given some insights into what can be done if you do want to venture into a DIY tour. Or perhaps one day you might be on a guided tour with the ability to deviate from the main schedule here and there when you have free time. It’s been fun reliving our tour by being able to share it with you here. Thanks for your patience with the length and detail of it all, and I appreciate your comments and feedback.
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Post by californian on Apr 8, 2015 1:25:08 GMT
Thank you, Oz! I enjoyed every minute, great tale, wonderful, wonderful pictures. Not sure how much 9000 A Dls are, I guess I could look it up, but it does look like a big saving. My daughter and I are planning the Benelux country tour, either Trafalgar or Insight, I wish we could do your way, but I don't dare to even think about it, we would never get along as well as you and Mrs. Oz... thanks again, I love the French cities, I would like to see them some day, along with a ferry trip from St. Malo to Guernsey and Jersey. Don't think is going to happen, but I would love to do it...
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Post by Oz-T on Apr 8, 2015 1:54:41 GMT
Hi Californian, The saving would be around US$6,800 for a 24 day tour. Now you can see why I didn't dare put this travel tale on the Trafalgar forum - Colonel Trafalgar wouldn't have been pleased to see his own resources used to show how you can do it so much cheaper yourself. I should add that a very important factor is research. I had thoroughly planned the trip and had an itinerary that we generally kept to through the first half of the tour. During the second half we tended to make things up as we went, visiting the main tourist places but making little side trips here and there as things captured our attention and if time permitted. This doesn't go right unless you have access to research material so you know why you're going to a particular place. To achieve this, I had travel literature at my fingertips because I'd purchased e-books and loaded them onto my i-Pad. I'd re-read this while Mrs Oz was driving so I could ensure we knew about all the important things in each city before we got there. And I would explain the history and back stories to her when we were at each place, very much in the way a travel director would do. I sort of developed this approach from various Trafalgar tours because the TD always did a great job explaining things but I'd usually have already researched that material and was looking for more. I not only found my own 'hidden treasures' but visited many more of them than you could ever do on a guided tour. To supplement this research I did spend maybe 30 minutes each day (usually in the hotel room after dinner) having a look at the online road maps and understanding both the distances and driving times for the next day's travel. It was easy and fun, although something you never have to do while on a guided tour. It paid off because despite having flexibility with times, you do have to follow some sort of itinerary if you're going to cover that much ground in the available time.
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Post by purvis on Apr 8, 2015 3:58:41 GMT
My dear Friend OZ: I have so enjoyed your tour of France. I had planned as you know to go to Paris this coming fall but my plans have been scrapped. I still hope to spend 6days in London and have once again reserved accommodations but time will tell if these plans come to be. What I enjoyed most believe it or not is your statements of the daily costs. Money is not an issue with me but being cost conscious by childhood upbringing (an Irish Fireman father) I was captivated by your statements of daily cost re: hotel, food and car expenses. While travelling with one's own agenda one is more able to control the costs especially hotels and food. Once again may I thank you for a wonderful tour of France through your travel tales. Purvis
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