Saturday 31 May 2014
Having decided to return to Bordeaux
Friday to return the rental car to make for a super easy departure on the 11:18 train to Paris, we should have known to be on guard.
 |
Groovy Paris building
|
AR wanted to get the diary all finished while we still had
internet at our hotel, SR wanted to make sure she got a good coffee before
boarding the train. After a reasonable
sleep in until 9:15am (not so late
considering being awake extra time in the night to do Saturday horses), showers,
packing internet, uploading photos & blog it was agreed for SR to
get coffee while AR finished the internet and they'd meet at the station
platform, which is after all, only across the road. With clock ticking, AR was
sure he could get the blog photos finished and uploaded and timed his departure
with precision. Logged off, computer packed, already the elevator doors opening
on the ground floor, no worries, he had a few minutes to spare.
But then the sliding exit doors to the street at our two
star 24 hour manned by one employee reception desk hotel were locked closed
with a note in French on the door. AR wasn't sure if it said 'back in five
minutes or fifteen minutes' or possibly something else entirely... he started looking around for a fire exit but
those locked front doors are the fire exit. Another guest turns up waiting to
be allowed out and after a few minutes the receptionist returned, whether her
return was earlier than the sign indicated or not, we do not know. Arrived at
the platform one minute to spare, all is well and another travel lesson
learned.
 |
Roland Garros French Open Ball hanging from Eiffel Tower
|
Pleasant (and superfast) 3 1/4 hour train trip to Paris, the
countryside is green and mostly acres of agriculture interspersed with small
towns on relatively flat ground, but with some small undulating hills to keep
it interesting. We have 2 days in Paris before coming back later.
Checked into our hotel which was great but amazing how
little space to fit the bed in. Must only have been 20cm all along the end of
the bed with the bathroom door in the middle.
Headed out to explore Paris
and walked 3km to the Eiffel
Tower. There were heaps
of people sitting on the grass everywhere with picnics. The French Open is on
so big screens with big crowds about watching that plus a tennis court set up
for anyone to enjoy a game, right there at the Eiffel Tower.
 |
French Open on the big screen
|
Met up with Sandy's sister
Julie under the Eiffel
Tower and walked close by
for dinner at Firmin le Barbier which turned out to be an absolutely fantastic
and reasonably priced restaurant. AR had done a 5 star Trip Adviser review
before dessert. Wouldn't normally order dessert but after the mains we were
keen to see what they could do with desserts and we weren't disappointed. We
sat outside and Julie asked me to take a photo of the sisters together and I
did but when I mentioned that it was hard to get them in and the tower Julie
said 'what tower?'. She didn't realise, as she had her back to it, that at the
end of the street in all its glory was the Eiffel Tower.
It was a super night and as it got dark the lights on the tower were amazing. Then
on the hour they have 5 minutes where the tower completely 'twinkles'. Even
when we left and walked a kilometre or so at 10:30pm there were people
everywhere watching buskers or buying souvenirs or still queuing to go up the
tower. Apparently it was built in 1890 as a one off for an expo with the
intention of pulling it down but foreseen to become a worthwhile tourist
attraction it stayed, much to the disgust of some Parisians. Hard to believe it
was ever built as a temporary exhibit, it is really massive.
Sunday 1st June 2014
Caught the metro then a 45min train to Chantilly
racetrack. Was a big day with the 2100m Group One Prix Du Jockey Club race as
the main event worth 1.5m Euros ($A2.25m) and also three Group 2 races and one
Group 3.
 |
50 Euro bets on finding the ball - not for us but very interesting
|
From the train there was a courtesy bus to the track or a fifteen
minute walk through cool native forest. After walking through the beautiful
forest we then had to cross the course proper twice to get to the grandstand
area. It was a bit strange not having bookmakers for such a big day of races.
The tote odds were displayed on the big screen for a minute or so before the race
jumped but no dividends displayed after the race which was super weird. Didn't
even seem to be results on any tote monitors just the odds for the next race.
A glass of champagne was 14 Euros ($A 21) and SR managed to
resist that. After each race in a special room open to the public the jockeys
had a big audience as one by one they sat on the 'weigh-in' chair with their
weight displayed on a large electronic sign behind them. The stewards, media
and public were all there, with more than a handful of public patrons wanting photographs of the goings on.
 |
Eiffel lights and then 5 minutes of strobe every hour
|
Great parade ring and most horses had two men in suits as
strappers. Also later in the day when leaving again through the forest we
walked over to watch the start of a race and after the horses had warmed up
they were again being led by handlers right up until and sometimes right into the barriers.
The racetrack was surrounded by amazing and old buildings
and the town is a big horse training area. The committee room was a separate
three story building with outdoor cafe style seating. There was about 40
fantastic old cars on display throughout the grounds just for the day. We
caught a faster train back to Paris which took
25 min but the same price and then waited to hear from Sandy's sister about dinner plans with our
niece.
 |
Table with a view please (look up)
|
Met Sandy's sister Julie, niece Rachel and Rachel's best friend and Contiki
companion Jacquie at the Champs D'Elysees metro exit, walked for while and
found an Italian restaurant that looked good. Meals ordered the girls gave us a detailed description of the 23 day
Contiki tour they had just finished, what a blast they had, with some stories best not repeated here! Julie said a couple of the girls at work, when she had told them Rachel was on a Contiki tour said, 'oh, the screw and spew tour' which we don't think impressed Rachel's mum, but Rachel thought it was hilarious and said she was going to hashtag that to all her photos, it was very funny.
Monday 2nd June 2014
Well we'll be back to Paris for a week really soon, but for now up in good time to get the Metro to Gare du Nord for a fast
train to Amiens.
We have a tour of the Somme battlefields tomorrow and Sandy's
sister Julie is coming up in the morning to join us for it before we then pick up a hire car and go sampling the real bubbles in France's Champagne region.
 |
| All major French train stations have a piano that the public can play |
 |
| Sunday afternoon picnics |
 |
| Tennis anyone |
 |
| Sandy's sister Julie who's pretty good at French so now know what we are eating |
 |
| 15 minute walk to the races through the bush |
 |
| Course proper at Chantilly |
 |
| We are in charge of towing in the prize giving podium |
 |
| Jockey weigh in room |
 |
| Mounting yard |
 |
| Well dressed strappers |
 |
| Heaps of vintage cars on display for the day at Chantilly |
 |
| Chantilly committee room |
 |
| Prize giving for the $A2.25m Prix Du Jockey Club group 1 - the UK top hat guys won it |
 |
| Sandy, Jacquie, Rachel & Julie |
 |
| Family photo after dinner |
