We have just returned from a holiday in Paris with a couple of disappointments and one unexpected surprise. The first disappointment was how few of the Bouquinistes (book boxes) were open even right by Notre Dame. In the past there have been dozens of them to peruse but this time very few. It could have been because it was a morning in the middle of the week but the ones that were open seemed to be selling anything but books so no more ‘Anticipation’ titles to add to my small collection.
While we were in Paris there were commemorations for Remembrance Day on the 11th November and for the 10th anniversary of the Bataclan Theatre massacre on the 13th. The second event put paid to our plans for the day which involved travelling around to visit book shops. There were endless cavalcades of vehicles with flashing blue lights carrying dignitaries to the six sites of the massacres where 130 citizens died. They held ceremonies at each site which involved closing what seemed like the whole arrondissement plus any metro stations in the area. There were armed guards around everywhere as they were worried in case there might be a repeat of something similar. We decided to visit the Jardin des Plantes and La Menagerie instead which, surprisingly, we thoroughly enjoyed.
The one unexpected plus to the trip, which was a river cruise, was two nights moored at the Quay d’ Austerlitz. It took a few minutes to realise why this sounded familiar before it came to me. It was where PAN’s boat ‘Laloun’ tied up to load the first PAN titles which were printed in France. The photo below is taken from the bridge in the background of the photo above. Click HERE to read the memories of ships boy Gordon Young from back in 1947 and how the Quay fits into all of it. I’ve contacted Gordon but no reply yet. I hasten to add our boat is the white one in the photo below.
It was also interesting going through the Border Control as we were on a coach and new rules had only come into force 9 days previously which the driver had never encountered before. We arrived at the Port of Dover and stopped at the first check point to be told we had to go back out and follow a convoluted route to get to the Cruise Terminal to be checked in. When we eventually got there, there where rows of face and finger print scanning machines all standing idle. Instead we had to join the long queues to two booths where the scans were done manually! We then rejoined the coach, which was then sealed with a sticker on the door. Back to the port where the man at the check point said something and the driver who, understandably so he could hear, opened the door thus breaking the seal and so it was back to the scanning point all over again. Luckily a kind official there took pity on us and just put a new seal on the door. It was the same coming back with again rows of self scanning machines all sitting idle. On the plus side, sailing with DFDS, we got free meal vouchers so it was a full English breakfast on the way out and Harry Ramsden’s fish and chips on the way back.
