When Paris Gives You Lemons

Ah, Paris, the city of light, artists, and architecture, and wonderful food and wine.

Sarah and Karen in front of Notre Dame. All photos by Karen Cummings except the map and this photo.

We were both art history buffs

I was looking forward to this trip, my sixth, to Paris. I was going with my good friend, Sarah, an artist herself, plus a fellow septuagenarian and art history buff who had never been. We planned early, making plane reservations in January. Then, in February, we booked our mid-September VRBO rental in a gated alleyway with a private patio two blocks from Notre Dame.

We landed at Charles de Gaulle airport on time at 8 a.m. and headed to catch the train. Typically, I would have booked a ride and had the driver waiting for us, but our VRBO place was so close to a train stop from the airport that I thought it would be just as convenient to take the train.

Wrong! The trains were not running. They told us there had been an accident and advised us to take the bus. If you’ve ever flown into CDG, you know it is huge. The last time I was in Paris was eight years ago, and I venture to say that the airport might have doubled in size since then, but we headed off to catch the bus.

An hour-and-a-half wait later with no buses, even though they were supposed to come every 20 minutes, we gave up. Together with Neil, a South African traveler who joined us, and three miles of walking later (all in the airport), we got a taxi to share into Paris. The driver then informed us that the bus drivers were on strike. Someone could have told us and the many others waiting at the bus stop. Hmmmm…

We didn’t get into Paris until almost 2 p.m., tired and hungry. That was when I got a text from Denis, our VRBO host, “I’m so sorry, but we got an issue at the place you booked with bed bugs inside from the previous guest…” Oh no!

15^th Arrondissement

Even though Paris was exceptionally busy as the Rugby World Cup was happening, Denis had found us a place. Still, it was way out on the outer limits of the 15^th arrondissement, an unfamiliar area, and also far away from any Paris attractions.

I insisted that Denis come pick us up as we sat dejectedly on a curb outside what should have been our lodging for the week. He did. The substitute apartment on the sixth floor with a balcony that looked out on a school and a very busy street was nice enough, but not especially well-equipped—no internet, no hair dryer, minimal dishes—and very noisy. But what could we do?

My friend and I settled in and headed to the nearest restaurant.

We found a nice eatery, Arthur and Juliette, just a few blocks away, where we finally got some sustenance and a glass of wine.

Then I made a big mistake thinking we could still head to the Seine to take a relaxing cruise to see the sights from the river, which was included in the Paris Passes I had bought. The cruise was part of our original first-day plan.

We walked a few blocks more as I used my phone’s GPS to search for a Metro or a bus to get us there. That’s when my friend fell. Hard. She tripped on a slightly raised grate on the sidewalk and went down, hitting her head, wrist, elbow, and knee. We were in front of a local café where a waiter ran in and got her a bag of ice. However, the goose egg above her left eye was already growing. She was hurt. We limped back to the apartment with me supporting her as best I could.

So much for our first day in Paris, it eventually got better.

The next day was mostly spent at a local hospital emergency room as my friend woke up with an unbelievable shiner, a stiff arm, and a swollen, hurting knee. People at the local pharmacy near our building helpfully recommended the closest one. We slowly made our way there.

You have to hand it to European health care. While they charged Sarah’s credit card for 800 Euros before treatment, she has gotten a big chunk of that back from the hospital. And, thanks to the Allianz insurance purchased with our Delta tickets, she will be reimbursed completely. She was thoroughly checked, x-rayed, and, after many hours, was sent on her way with a leg brace (as she had fractured her kneecap), one forearm crutch, and a prescription for pain medication. Let’s not talk about how much that would have cost in the US.

Late afternoon on the Seine Cruise.

So, were we able to salvage the trip? Of course!

We were in Paris, weren’t we? Yes, we had to cross off two major items from our bucket list. Mine was climbing the Arc de Triomphe at dusk and watching Paris light up. I had done it maybe 20 years before, and it was a wonderful memory, which it remains. From a recommendation by her husband, Sarah was to climb up to Sacre Coeur, take in the Paris view, and explore the Montmartre region. Those will have to wait for another trip.

We enjoyed the Seine cruise on our second night after the hospital day and another delicious dinner near the Eiffel Tower. We found that almost every restaurant we wandered into served delightful meals with excellent service, and Sarah could also find gluten-free fare (some restaurants with more selections than others).

While I was getting up to speed with bus and Metro routes—thank you, GPS—we wisely took a cab ride back that night, but for the remainder of our four days, we either took transit or walked. I must say, Sarah was a trooper as our total for the trip topped 30 miles.

New Parisian attractions and old favorites

First, Paris is under construction almost everywhere as they are busy preparing for the summer Olympics in 2024. Was I disappointed with the base of the Eiffel Tower being completely enclosed by a glass wall? Yes, for sure. I have heard that it is for security, but I remember sitting on the grass on the Champs de Mars in years past and enjoying the tower view and the park between it and the Ecole Militaire. Now, a modern domed building has been built between them.

There’s also the sad sight of Notre Dame being repaired. They might be in the Guinness Book of World Records for the amount of scaffolding built for the rebuilding. Still, I was disappointed that the plaza in front of the church was also blocked off and wholly filled, so there was no way to take in Notre Dame’s fantastic facade.

We had lunch in the Musee d’Orsay Restaurant, which I highly recommend as the view and meal were perfect.

Paris is still a walking city.

While Paris is definitely a walking city despite its extensive Metro and bus system, we opted to try to limit my friend’s walking by first visiting Musee D’Orsay, where they very nicely supply wheelchairs. It was quite crowded, of course, because we went there on a Saturday, but people made way for us. It was wonderful to finally visit that iconic Impressionist museum with someone who recognized and appreciated the artists and their styles. It was an adventure getting around with ramps and some hidden-away (though small) elevators that we found. Thank you to the helpful guides who directed us.

The Hop-On, Hop-Off bus, also included with our Paris Pass, was next on our list, but with no hopping on or off. Unfortunately, we had to walk a lot to find a stop as construction eliminated the closest one to Notre Dame. Still, we did see many attractions, like the Arc de Triomphe, that we would not have the time or the fortitude to get to on our own.

On another day, we visited the Louvre, which did not disappoint. Oh, we didn’t go into it. We had almost perfect weather our whole visit and couldn’t imagine spending a day inside, as that is what would be needed to take it all in. Just the magnificence of the structure (and viewing the crowds waiting to go in) was enough to satisfy us.

Our two favorite Paris-area sights…

Another thing we had to cross off on our bucket list was to go out of the city to Giverny to visit Monet’s home and gardens. The next best thing was heading to the Musee de l’Orangerie after the Louvre visit.

Sarah and the author in front of Monet’s Water Lillies.

It was a first for me. It’s hard to describe how serene it was to walk into the circular Water Lilies rooms, each displaying three of Monet’s massive paintings. First, there were few other people, and the museum had signs advocating quiet. We could have just sat there and enjoyed it all afternoon.

We headed to my favorite, the Rodin Museum, on our last day. There is nothing like walking in and first seeing the tightly pruned yews in the garden and then taking a few more steps, and The Thinker comes into view. The ohs and ahs are audible. While The Thinker is Rodin’s most well-known piece, his other creations displayed throughout the garden of what was his home are just as breathtaking. And, again, we didn’t encounter crowds, which made it all the better.

The Thinker is Rodin’s most well-known piece.

So, did we make lemonade…

Sarah and I did a pretty good job adjusting to the circumstances. After three days, our VRBO host moved us closer to the city. While still quite noisy, it was surrounded by several good restaurants (although I think it’s hard to find a bad restaurant in Paris) and was within easy walking distance to transit. I got my croissants, and she got her macaron.

Was I slightly disappointed? I was. Not because we couldn’t do everything we wanted but because the preparation for the Olympics and the tragic Notre Dame fire had changed what I remembered of Paris.

But was I impressed by the friendliness and helpfulness of the people we encountered? Riding on public transit with my usually very attractive friend in a leg brace with two very black eyes led to exciting interactions as we started conversations with locals and visitors alike. Something I don’t think would have happened otherwise.

And to catch the plane home, we hired a driver.