Camino Day 26 & 27 - Paris

On my last full day yesterday, I was happy to revisit the places that I have enjoyed most in Paris again.

Walked by an electric car rental station, haven't seen one of those yet in the States (maybe my eyes are just wide shut back home).

Walked past the World Peace monument in Champ de Mars (Field of War named after the Roman God of War, and right across from the French Military School). The placement of the monument in this location is key, and the fact that its design looks unfinished is as well.

Saved my final dinner for a French restaurant specializing in cuisine from the SW of France, duck. Great meal, but not the kind of food you could eat everyday, not without taking up smoking that is...

Witnessed a street person verbally attack a passerby on the street. The innocent man was followed and yelled at for 3 or 4 blocks on the other side of the street from me. Sad to see so many homeless...

Saw a great movie, "Le Prénom". It was in French, so I only caught 50% or less, but great story line. Will have to see it again with English subtitles.

Walked past a gated community in Paris... They have them too.

Learned more about myself and a few cultures this trip.

Learned that this body is but a shell, hiding the same person that came to Europe to live at 18.

Learned that there is still a fuel in this place that ignites a fire in me.

I will be back if fate allows it...

Back to Bella today!! Very, very excited!!

Cheers!

Camino Day 25 - The Bois de Boulogne, Montparnasse

Woke up to the construction workers across the street humming to the Bee Gees, too funny!

Biked out to the Bois de Boulogne today. Camped in the Bois back in 1987 as a 19 year old. Was surprised then to see the Bois filled with prostitutes and their prospective clients both day and night.

Not much in the Bois has changed in 25 years. Even biking through you get the propositions from the working ladies. The Bois, once a great hiding place for bandits, is now a hiding place for Paris' biggest red light district.

Jardin à la française (the French formal garden) hasn't touched the Bois. Twice the size of New York's Central Park, the Bois de Boulogne is much more wild, with dirt paths, single-track trails, and horse riding trails.

Took another turn around the Arc-de-Triumph roundabout today. Unlike roundabouts elsewhere in the world, cars in the roundabout actually yield to cars coming in from the arteries. True "right of way".

French drivers seem very accepting of bike traffic. Only been honked at once, and that was from a scooter cruising through Montparnasse. No helmets on the bikers here in Paris. Feels like biking when I was a kid, free, and a bit dangerous.

A good barometer of the type of Paris neighborhood you are in, is the amount of dog crap around. "The nicer the neighborhood, the more dog crap!" commented Carl, a transplant from New Zealand, and Tour Guide at Fat Tire Bike Tours, Paris.

Tomorrow is the final day of this personal Camino...

Cheers!

Camino Day 24 - Paris Rain and Sunshine

Attacked the Paris rush hour in the morning. Very exhilarating! While they drive on the same side of the road here, the road rules are a bit different (especially the round-a-bouts). And then there are the scooters to watch out for. If there is a crack in the traffic, a scooter will be sure to fill it.

Went passed the Chinese embassy on Champs Élysées and witnessed a Tibetan protest. They kept the protestors, probably less than 100, a block from the Chinese embassy. Almost more riot police than protestors. The right police were decked out in protective gear, shin guards and all.

The protest was over the Chinese government holding the real 11th Panchen Lama prisoner. China "elected" its own 11th Panchen Lama and imprisoned the Dalai Lama's selection, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima.

Road over the Monmatre Cemetery, quite a site. Closest thing we have to it are the cemeteries in New Orleans.

Day ended with some blue skies and sunshine as I weaved my way down from Sacré Cœur to the
Centre Pompidou.

More attacking the Paris rush hour to the Bois de Boulogne tomorrow.

Cheers!

Camino Day 23 - Versailles and Tour Saint-Jacques

The rain just doesn't stop here in Paris. Though as Karim, the crepe maker in Versailles says, you just got to keep smiling.

Versailles has some beautiful grounds for biking and walking.

The look of the sculptured gardens is starting to be fully repaired after the storm of December 25, 29 1999 when 210km winds blew down over 10,000 trees on the grounds.

The new gardener decided to plant a mix of trees, rather than the single original species, so that not all the trees could be destroyed by a future blight. This decision has not gone over well with the traditionalists.

Got to cruise through the Galerie des Glaces/Hall of Mirrors, where the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919. Nicest room in the building by far.

In the afternoon I walked over to Tour Saint-Jacques, all that remains of the former 16th century Church of Saint-Jacques-de-la-Boucherie ("Saint James of the butchery") which was leveled shortly after the French Revolution. Here marks the starting point for pilgrims in France going on the Camino St. James to Santiago de Compostela in Spain.

Cheers!

Camino Day 22 - Day and Night Bike Tours of Paris

Got to ride through the puddles during the morning cruising by some of the major sites in Paris: Champ de Mars, Ecole Militaire, Des Invalides, Place de la Concorde, Louvre, and Champs Élysées.

Learned about some of the Louis', and more about Napoleon that I didn't know (was a Corsican who grew up hating the French, then became the leader of the French Army and country only 14 years after graduating from military school).

Rain held off for the evening ride. Got to meet some great folks from South Africa who shared info about a great mountain bike race, Sani2C http://www.sani2c.co.za/ that I would love to try.

Also chatted for a while with John, a 58 year old DJ originally from Manchester, now living in Bristal. Hilarious guy, amazing to be still performing a job for 20 something's at 58!

More great biking past Notre Dame, Ile St. Louis, La Sorbonne, and the highlight, biking through the Louvre grounds at night.

On a bike, no better way to see the city of lights!

We finished off the night with a boat tour along the Seine with some great red wine (not a huge fan) consumed from plastic cups. A group of youngsters at the back of the boat would start up singing a new song as we crossed under each bridge on the Seine (nice echo returned from the bridges).

Highlight of the boat trip was pulling in to dock at the end, we had to wait for a larger ship to pass, one of those river cruise liners where people sleep on board. As they pulled beside us we saw one of the cabins curtains open and a nude older couple standing up to get pics of the Eiffel tower. Great show for our boat of a couple of hundred people!

Biking around the gardens of Versailles tomorrow.

Cheers!

Camino Day 21 - Donostia/San Sebastian to Paris

Sad to leave Donostia/San Sebastian, great town, but headed to Paris for some bike riding.

Haven't been to Paris since 1987, so I am sure that I will bring a different perspective to the city.

Had a stop over, 4 hours, in Hendaye, a border town on the French side. Very Basque there as well.

Went for a walk in Hendaye to kill some time, and came across a pizza vending machine (see pic). Heard they have baguette vending machines in France as well. Thought I had seen every kind of vending machine when in Japan (they vend underwear from machines, just in case).

Listened to some music for the first time on this trip. Playlist favorite while staring out at the French rainbow filled countryside passing by? Led Zeppelin IV! Killer album!

Cheers!

Camino Day 20 - Spots

As I leave this hilly land for a flatter one, it reminds me of needing to describe the "spots" that I have been experiencing while hiking in the hills and mountains of Catalunya, Navarra, and Euskadi.

A spot...

Both the physical and extra-physical space experienced,
sensed as you move within it.

A place where the body and mind are required to be in a specific gear,
no choice in the matter.

There's the steady climb,
where you lay yourself completely into the spot.

There's the steady descent,
the inverse spot,
when every muscle and mental fiber are forced to brake.

Then,
there are all of the spots in between...
These require a change of gears.

When we tire,
when we become too accustomed to a specific spot,
it becomes harder and harder to shift up or down.

So,
we grind the gears,
or stay in the wrong gear too long.

When it darkens,
it becomes harder to read
all of the spots in the road.

So,
we trip,
and even fall.

Though very often,
there are partners,
who help navigate the road,
who help set the pace,
who help shift the gears,
who catch us when we trip,
or who pick us up from our fall.

These,
are much appreciated spots.

Between,
are countless other spots,
that we travel on our own.

Camino Day 20 - Donostia/San Sebastian

Highlight of my day was walking down to the beach this morning, and being surprised by the soccer fields that had been constructed on La Playa de la Concha.

High tide had recently gone out, so the sand was nice and hard. Great fun to watch the kids play soccer on the beach! I wonder if they do this for kids in Rio?

Watching El Clasico tonight (Barca vs. Real Madrid soccer match).

Cheers!

Camino Day 19 - Tolosa to San Sebastian/Donostia (by train)

Raining this morning, so the train to San Sebastian/Donostia it was today. Making the Camino transition from hiker to biker soon...

Had a few breaks in the rain today to catch some pics of San Sebastian/Donostia.

Donostia is the Basque name for the city more commonly known as San Sebastian (Spanish name) outside of the Basque territory.

Even more confusing is the fact that town names have different spellings in Basque. There is the spelling on the road signs in Navarra, and the spelling on the old tiles on the building walls at the ends of town. Basque orthography has been in a state of flux, and these changes can be seen captured in the signs and city names (even spellings of names of people).

Like everything, there are those who don't care how things are spelled as long as intent is clear (descriptive), and there are others who think and have been taught that there is one and only one correct way (prescriptive). With many Basque dialects, it becomes a political fight to pick the "correct" way. Historically, for most languages, the majority (most powerful, loudest, most stubborn) usually wins these battles, and the "lesser" dialects die out. Language for all of us is a very personal thing, we will fight to keep it alive.

Cheers!

Camino Day 18 - Leitza to Tolosa

Rain day today, and chilly. I could see my breath most of the day.

Only pic is the crossing into Basque territory.

Didn't take the Via Verde to Andoain for fear of flooded tunnels, and no towns along that route as a back up plan for taking a road instead.

So, the plan was to mix some highways with country roads. The highway got me out of Navarra into Basque territory just fine. Wasn't raining then, and little to no traffic.

I then crossed under the freeway A-15 onto a country road that climbed up over the mountain tunnels that A-15 passes through.

This country road turned into a hiking trail climbing on the crest of the mountains. It had started to pour by now, and I was hiking partially blind up in the clouds.

I got to one of those famous crossroads, and had 3 options: 1) take the trail down to the valley below and follow the river and the highway (curvy with no shoulder and wet roads), 2) the narrow path along the crest of the mountains (according to the posted trail map this looked like the most direct route), or 3) take the right path where the mountain bikers were heading (a wider but longer path that had a few offshoots that looked like great opportunities for me to get lost).

I took option two, the narrow path. It climbed up immediately. Got very dark with the fog of the clouds, the rain, and the trees. After about an hour of hiking, I came to a bunch of fallen trees and a path that was washed out down a steep face.

I attempted to cross, but immediately got stuck in the mud, and backtracked an hour to the crossroads again. I decided to retreat from the mountain, take option 1, and head on down into the valley.

I had a moment of sun when I got to the valley floor, but then the rain came pounding down on me again. My gloves were long ago soaked through, but they kept away a bit of the chill.

I stumbled into Ibarra, and couldn't find a hotel. Asking a bartender, he pointed me down the road a bit to Tolosa.

Tolosa looks like a cool town, will take some pics in the morning if the rain ever stops.

Spent the night washing the mud off of the clothes.

If there's rain in the morning, I think I will keep off of the highways, and take the train into San Sebastian (don't want to become a roadside casualty).

Cheers!

Camino Day 17 - Lekunberri to Lekunberri to Leitza

Yes, this was supposed to be a short day. From Lekunberri to Leitza is 15k. I took the Via Verde out of Lekunberri, but at the 5k mark was left with 3 options: take the road, take the tunnel, or take the trail around the tunnel. I chose the tunnel. It was a long one, and half way through was flooded. Didn't have my waterproof hiking boots (ditched those in Montserrat), I backtracked out of the tunnel.

For my second choice, I took the trail around the tunnel. This looked promising until it turned into a muddy mess. Concentrating on my footing for the next 15k, I was very surprised to look up and see a signpost for Lekunberri with 1.5k.

Yes, I had done a complete circle somehow. So, I hiked the 5k back to my 3 options, and took the road this time. 15k later I arrived in Leitza. I can't help but think that two old gentlemen that I came across on my first attempt tried to warn me, but one was hard of hearing (or couldn't understand my thick accent).

I am spending the night in Leitza, a border town (on the border with Navarra and the Basque territory). More and more Basque flags posted on balconies here. Funny to see the only Spanish flag on the Guardia Civil building.

Can't help but think that these roads were used by Miguel Indurain during his training (5 time Tour de France champion and favorite son of the Pamplona area -- a Basque as well).

Pics are a mix from the mistaken route, and from the town of Leitza.

Tomorrow, if I don't get lost, will be Andoain.

Cheers!