Paris Roundup

After two short flights to Paris via Madrid, we arrived on time and in good spirits if tired. We took the bus from downtown Santiago de Compostela to the airport. It was easy and cheap but crowded. In fact, the bus couldn't take any more passengers after we boarded at the stop near Praxa de Abastos. 

Arriving in Paris, we purchased the Navigo Decouverte card as planned. The process was easy once we found the ticket office. We also had our little pictures ready. The card is valid for one week and allows us to take unlimited public transportation including metro, RER trains and others that we didn't use. That took care of the trips from and to the airport and to the Palace of Versailles on top of the metro rides everywhere.

The Airbnb we booked turned out to be a hike from the metro station, in addition to the fact that it took some time to get to the outskirt of Paris by metro. It didn't look that bad on paper but the tired legs said otherwise. That is a sure consequence of a lower price. The unit is nice. It has everything we need. Lots of cooking and eating utensils but would have been nice to have some bonus basic cooking supplies, but there was nothing: no cooking oil, salt or spices. Three bedrooms for the four of us was just right. Headline in the listing said 2 1/2 baths but it is actually two bathrooms with wash basin but no toilet, plus one separate toilet (correctly described in the details of the property). We made good use of the washing machine and the dishwasher. Overall, it is a good place, very quiet and clean.

We did a whirlwind tour of the famous sites of Paris on our first full day; including the Pantheon, Shakespeare and Company, Notre Dame, the Seine River banks, the Louvre, Champ de Elysee and the Eiffel Tower. Our Navigo card enabled us to go to all the sites within reasonable times. We finished the day by going all the way across to the east side of town to get baguettes from Au levain des Pyrénées, supposedly best baguettes in town. Then we went home for home cooked chicken dinner.

Paris day 2 was a day for Versailles. Good thing we left really early because we took the train going in the wrong direction initially, based on the wrong assumption that if you get on the right platform, all trains will be going towards Versailles which is not that far.

We corrected ourselves and ended up arriving with minutes to spare towards the end of the 30 minutes grace period from our booked time.

Versailles is really an amazing place with numerous paintings and artefacts. Not as big as The Louvre but plenty big  for just a slice of history. Too bad we did not know too many of the characters in the French history. We did know Marie Antoinette, through television shows and Gigi was determined to visit her hamlet at the far side of the estate.  The hamlet looks beautiful and quiet but we couldn't get into any of the buildings. 

A few wrong turns made more walking through the huge complex. It turned out it was the most tiring day of the entire trip, bar none. With more walking, we detoured to the market looking for ingredients for dinner. We got a 3 for 2 deal steaks there for dinner at home. That turned out to be the best meal of the entire trip.

Not much was planned for the third day in Paris. That turned out to be a good resting day after Versailles. We did a stroll midday through the neighborhood and went to a pastry shop which was amazing (Boulangerie Pâtisserie F in Villejuif). We had pastry for lunch there outdoor, just like the French would do.

We have tips from a couple of different sources about dinner at Bouillon-Cartier and decided to give it a try. There are three different locations and we picked the one closer to the Eiffel Tower with the plan to go on an evening river boat tour. Bouillon-Cartier did not disappoint. We arrived just after six to find a lineup outside. Didn't take long to get in and discovered that the restaurant was not yet full but it took time to seat everyone. The food were all very good. We had pig snout, pig ear, prawn, escargots for starters and whole sea bass, spaghetti Bolognese, pig's Trotter (feet) and beef steak for main course. The food quality for all the dishes was outstanding. As we got out after finishing dinner, the lineup had gone perhaps 10-fold. Indeed a very popular place.

Off to the river boat tour. We had been trying to get it in but in the first two evenings, we were just too tired to stay out until sunset. We joined Bateaux Parisienne. That was the biggest boat and the best organized boat tour operation I have seen. 

We started out in daylight and ending with Eiffel Tower lighted up. Along the river, there are many sights to see. As the evening goes on, there are more and more people just sitting at the river bank, enjoying themselves. Life in Paris looks pretty good.

I think we have done the tourist bit in Paris and perhaps also experienced the daily life of the locals through our metro rides. Paris is big and crowded and very multi-cultural. The mix of people I feel is much more so than in Canada although I might have a different opinion if I live in Toronto. I just don't see that kind of diversity in London.

I am glad that we visited and experienced it a little differently from almost 20 years ago when I visited the last and only time.

Day 14 - O Faramello to Santiago de Compostela

We made it! The last bit for everyday is always hard. The last bit to the cathedral is no exception. We hit city streets about 7 km away. Naturally you feel you are close but that is still hour and a half away at best. The route leads you through city streets and then villages, detours to go under freeways, etc. It does feel like it's going on and on. Of course, we made it at the end and there is happiness and a sense of accomplishment, not emotional like the completion of our first Camino but satisfying. 

We are also happy that everything has gone according to plan. There are feet troubles but we trudged through. Isn't that the Camino spirit?

We have been worrying about the crowd arriving every day overwhelming the Pilgrim's Office, thus a possibility of delay in getting the certificates. It turned out that pre-registering online helps a lot. Also we registered as a group. When we got there, we were sent downstairs to a different section handling groups. There was no lineup and we received our certificates immediately, all pre-printed with our particulars. Super efficient.

Day 13 - Valga to O Faramello

Almost there. It took me a while to re-familiarized with my gears. Most of my gears are from my first Camino eight years ago. Backpack, rain cover, sleeping bags, poles, those are basics and can be re-used again and again. I am pretty sure there are latest and greatest models around but these things don't need to be fancy. Clothings of course are newer.

One thing of importance is footwear. I did get a new pair of hiking boots for the Camino. I was searching for a new pair of insoles but can't decide what to buy. Buying online without feeling the actual things is difficult for this item. I happened to the Canadian Superstore and saw some Dr Scholl insoles and decided to buy a couple of different models to test them out. I struck gold with the Dr Scholl Walk Longer Comfort Insoles. It advertised 'plush, flexible cushioning'. Well, I would be walking long distances for two weeks so that seems to fit the purpose. There are cushioning bumps at the the ball of the foot, at the arch and at the heel. These  bumps worked wonders, sometimes I feel that they are massaging my feet as I walk. I have not had any problem with my feet this time.

So my winning footwear combination is Merrill Moab 3, waterproof with wide toe box, Dr Scholl Walk Longer Comfort Insoles, WrightSock double-layer socks - medium weight. The only foot preparation in the morning is to apply Vaseline all around my toes and to the bottom of my feet. I did wear my toe socks one day but my feet were feeling the strain so I switched back to my double-layered socks. I only brought one pair of double-layer socks with two pairs of toe socks so basically I have been wearing the same pair of socks for two weeks.

So this is the penultimate day. We are finally back to the Galicia that we know; with animal dungs along the way and with a scent in the air. The distance sounds daunting, to us anyway, but I guess our resilience has improved. It just felt like an easy walk. We put on the rain cover for the backpack at one point but that was a wasted effort. It only rained after we hung out our laundry. Municipal albergue again but this time, there is a restaurant close by.

Tomorrow we shoot for Santiago de Compostela. We planned for a short walk so hopefully we can get the certificate the same day.