On the road again - Or under the channel again...

Today we went from London to Paris via the Eurostar. We've been using these super trains for more than five years now and this time we noticed they were getting a bit shabby. They still travel at around 300 kmh, making the trip from London St Pancras to Paris Gare du Nord in just over two hours. When you consider that it takes an hour to get from Charles de Gaulle Airport to the city of Paris and about an hour to get from London to Heathrow (unless you use the Heathrow Express in which case it takes only fifteen minutes), you can see why the Eurostar is so popular. All seventeen cars of our train were packed and of course there is a train leaving every half-hour or so.

Using the Eurostar is interesting. Once you pass through immigration control in London you are officially in France which means that when you arrive at Gare du Nord you step off the train and go wherever it is you are going without having to clear customs or engage in any of the usual formalities which are associated with entering a country. And, immigration control seems to be a total formality. Perhaps this is because the great majority of those using the Eurostar are residents of the EU.

You are actually under the English Channel for barely twenty minutes, and as long as you don't think about the immense weight of water pressing down on the tunnel you would hardly be aware of the nature of the Channel Tunnel.

We arrived at the station in Paris and two things immediately struck us. First, although the station is posted with "No Smoking" signs, they seem to be honoured more in the breach than in the observance. France is a country with a lot of smokers! It is now illegal to smoke in hotels and restaurants and cafes. In the main the prohibition is observed, but there are always those who feel it does not apply to them.

The second thing we noticed was the number of beggars. While we stood in line, waiting for a taxi, we were approached three times. At the same time, London, which used to be a real mecca for beggars seems to have cleared them out. I can't remember seeing one in the last week.

We got a taxi and before long were at the flat. Taxis are surprisingly inexpensive here; as they are in London, and this is probably because in both cities there are special bus lanes that taxis can use which expedite their access, particularly in rush hour and other crowded times. Even so, they are too expensive for us to use on a regular basis so after doing the minimum of unpacking, we went out to get our Navigo passes. These are very similar to the Oyster Cards which we used in London. Virginia had been studying up on the procedure and marched boldly into the station where she was promptly told they didn't do the Navigo. A bit of a let-down; but we walked to another Metro station where Virginia, with great aplomb, got us both our cards. Tres Bien!

The area in which we are staying was mostly built in the last four decades of the nineteenth century. The street itself, rue Cyrano de Bergerac, came into existence in 1897 to commemorate the celebrated play of that name by Edmund Rostand in the same year. The neighbourhood is largely unspoilt with very few tourists. It is always a surprise, and a bit of a shock, to hear English being spoken. The original Pathe Studios are behind the flat and are now a film school.

Montmartre was a village best known for the mining of plaster of Paris, cheap wine, windmills, taverns, and later frequented by artists. The geography, stairways and picturesque walks still preserve the village character with outstanding examples of 19th Century streetscapes. Unlike some of the other areas of Paris, residents are friendly and we enjoy meeting up with people we have met on earlier trips.