We travel from Reims to Paris in excess of 300 km/hr. We are told the train can attain speeds of over 500 km/hr. We blur past fields of wind turbines, one of France’s supply of electrical energy. The blades turn lazily in a slight breeze. It makes me wonder why there are no windmills on the Port au Port Peninsula.
There are pros and cons of traveling by train or by car. When you consider gas and insurance for a car, the costs may be similar. The car gives you the freedom of coming and going as you please. Finding parking space, especially in cities, is challenging; and toll stations in France can cost up to €20 per day.
For this trip we’ve chosen the trains, and they are easy – unless you are talking about 2 bumpkins who stumble their way through train stations and foreign languages. In Paris, there are 6 stations. We need a 5-country, 2-month Euro rail pass that we can only get at Paris Nord. The metro (subway) conveniently connects intra-city to regional transportation.
With 2 suit cases and 100 pounds of luggage in tow, we conquer line-ups, metro stops and broken escalators. We climb up stairways, down stairways and up stairways again. We push our suitcases through turnstiles and ward off con artists looking for money.
Finally, a street musician is singing La Bamba in tune with his Spanish guitar and we are traveling south through sunny France, en route to the Loire Valley and everything is right with the world.
NOTE: (For those of you who are too young or live too far west of Newfoundland) The Newfie Bullet refers to our defunct train which attained a maximum speed of 40 km/hr.
There are pros and cons of traveling by train or by car. When you consider gas and insurance for a car, the costs may be similar. The car gives you the freedom of coming and going as you please. Finding parking space, especially in cities, is challenging; and toll stations in France can cost up to €20 per day.
For this trip we’ve chosen the trains, and they are easy – unless you are talking about 2 bumpkins who stumble their way through train stations and foreign languages. In Paris, there are 6 stations. We need a 5-country, 2-month Euro rail pass that we can only get at Paris Nord. The metro (subway) conveniently connects intra-city to regional transportation.
With 2 suit cases and 100 pounds of luggage in tow, we conquer line-ups, metro stops and broken escalators. We climb up stairways, down stairways and up stairways again. We push our suitcases through turnstiles and ward off con artists looking for money.
Finally, a street musician is singing La Bamba in tune with his Spanish guitar and we are traveling south through sunny France, en route to the Loire Valley and everything is right with the world.
NOTE: (For those of you who are too young or live too far west of Newfoundland) The Newfie Bullet refers to our defunct train which attained a maximum speed of 40 km/hr.
Hi J. & M.
ReplyDeleteYou are on your way, once again. Lots of exercise, climbing up & down those stairs.
The front of the train, resembles, a Space Ship. Hope you both enjoyed the ride.
I agree with you, there should be Wind Mills, on the Port au Port Peninsula. The Wreck House Area, another good spot!!
How much is a Euro in Canadian $$? Look forward to the next adventure.
Have A Nice Day.
Verna