2024 10 Spain

Spain 22,

Nov. 3, 2024,

Hi Everyone,

I took the last day to explore my neighbourhood. I am staying in the 5ieme in a 3* hotel called Hotel Claude Bernard on rue de Ecoles. This is a very central area on the ‘Left bank’ right in the middle of the student area. I am a few blocks away from the Sorbonne which I visited and photographed from the outside. I never realized how big it is. This is the area that I used to come to a lot as a student in Reims when I wanted to visit Paris. The area has not changed much except for the price of the hotels.

I walked through the 5ieme and the 6ieme taking pictures as I walked. Sunday, everything is closed in Paris. There are virtually no cars in Paris as there has been a major political effort by the mayor to restrict cars altogether. She has been successful. I did not see any traffic jams. There is very little traffic and very little place to park. In some areas you can not drive at all unless you live there or are delivering merchandise. People have adapted by taking public transport, walking or using a bicycle.

I had lunch at a Parisien bistro which is unusual for me when travelling as I usually have a good breakfast, skip lunch, have a cap in the afternoon and eat dinner around 7:30. Today, I decided to do ‘lunch a la Francaise’. I had an onion soup, bread and a ‘verre de vin rouge’. Wonderful to be so Parisian. The waiter addressed me in English. I continued speaking in French. Afterwards, I asked him why he had spoken to me in English. ‘Do I have an English face?’ He replied that I did. Is that a compliment or an insult? I guess that I will never know.

I am staying at a CDG Airport Ibis. All Ibis hotels resemble each other and this one is no different. Clean, modern, a bit sparse in decor and very convenient. I have 100m to walk to Terminal 3 where I will take off. The hotel provides an ‘all you can eat’ buffet. I usually try to stay away from these meals as they tend to have much volume and mediocre quality. The salad was very good, the cheese was excellent, the desert was very good, the wine was good enough table wine and the meat was ….. oh well you can’t have everything you want for the price.

My adventure terminates tomorrow when I return to Montreal. There are 3 parts to a trip: 1, the planning, 2, the trip, 3, the memories. The best part are the memories as they go on forever. The 2nd best is the planning. The 3rd and worst part is the trip itself. You must get over it as quickly and as safely as possibly to enter the memories part.

Love,

Brian

2024 10 Spain

Spain 20.

Nov. 1, 2024,

Hi Everyone,

I arrived in Paris last evening and took the metro to my hotel in the 5ieme arrondissement. I could not be better situated in Paris. My hotel is near Boul Mich and Boul St Germain. My 3* brings a new definition to the words ‘tiny Parisian hotel a la Francais’. My room is 160 square feet, with a bathroom and shower that even I have difficulty entering. Nevertheless it is spotless. I even have a window that opens onto a stone wall. I ate breakfast in the basement of the hotel, delicious. I am very happy!

Today, I explored Paris using an internet guide, Paris Inconnu and Paris Insolite. This leads me to ‘quartiers’ in Paris that I had never visited. I walked along tiny streets taking many photos. I left the 5ieme heading north and crossed the Seine to arrive on Isle St. Louis. I saw the back of the Notre Dame Cathedral that is under construction after the fire. Many years ago I stayed in a hotel on the banks of the Seine overlooking the back of the cathedral. 53 years ago, 21 franks for the room, 5 stories, walk up, very romantic.

After Isle St. Louis I once again crossed the Seine and continued north to a quartier called Le Marais. It is still the Jewish area and there are many Jewish type stores including a bagel boulangerie. I spoke with a Franco-American couple and invited them for a cappuccino. The 1,2,3 and 4 arrondissements are now car free zones. You can only drive there if you live there or are delivering merchandise. You can now walk in the middle of the street with no problem. The merchandise in the stores is amazing. There is a very strong ‘pouvoir d’achat’ here. The styles of the clothes resembles nothing that we have in Montreal.

I then walked towards Montmartre. Eventually I got tired and took the metro. I walked around for a while and then stopped or a ‘petit rose’ in a ‘troquet’. I drank the wine outside in spite of the rather cool temperatures. I am a real Parisian.

I am having supper in a small restaurant near my hotel, while writing my blog. I will see Remi for coffee tomorrow afternoon.

Love,

Brian

If you have been to Paris, I am sure that you have similar photos as the ones that I am presenting. If you have not been to Paris, save up your money and take a trip to Paris. It is easily the most beautiful city in the world.

Brian

2024 10 Spain

Spain 19,

Oct 31, 2024,

Hi Everyone,

There are hard and busy days travelling and there are easy days travelling. Today was an easy day. I packed my bags, took a few pictures of Reims and eventually took a TGV to Paris. It was a 45 minute train ride, on a train that was not crowded at all. Genevieve drove me to the station as Patrick had a condo meeting. Some owners want to insulate the building which seems like a monumental task.

I arrived in Paris, Gare de l’Est and took a metro to my hotel in the 5ieme, near Boul Miche and Boul St Germaine. I could not be better situated in Paris, right in the middle of the Quartier Latin, with easy access to anywhere in Paris. The hotel is classified as 3* but could be reclassified as the rooms are tiny, tiny and the elevator is typically Parisienne, slow and only capable of taking 1 person with baggage. Nevertheless my situation in Paris could not be better.

This evening I am eating dinner at a Parisienne bistro across the street from my hotel. The couple next to me are 100% bo-bo. They are well dressed, speak politely, with beautiful accents and very handsome. 1st they ordered wine by the glass, not by the bottle. They each tasted a glass of white wine which they sent back because it was not good enough. They graciously accepted the 2nd glass each. He then ordered a steak which he sent back because it was medium well done and not rare. She only took a small entree. She then asked me politely my opinion of the desert that I ordered. I am anxiously waiting for her comment on the desert. They should only know that I am writing about them.

Tomorrow I will research Paris Inconnu which is a site that recommends lesser known areas of Paris for people who have visited the well known Paris sites. I have 2.5 days to explore Paris.

Love,

Brian

The room above is a small model of a library.

2024 10 Spain

Spain 17,

Oct 30, 2024,

Hi Everyone,

I arrived in Reims in 45 minutes with the TGV which travels at 350kph. Even moving at that speed, you don’t feel the speed at all. Patrick was there to meet me at the station. Everything has changed since I left Reims as a medical student 48 years ago. The railway station has grown, has 2 entries and Patrick had to choose the right one. We drove to his apartment (condo) which I had yet not seen. Several years ago they sold their house and purchased an apartment. Lo and behold, it was the same apartment that Remi’s mother used to live in 50 years ago. I remember the apartment quite well as I had been invited there many times to share a meal with Remi and his mother. The apartment is a pent house made up of 2 apartments joined together with an elevator that opens directly into the apartment. Many years ago when my parents, my Auntie Ann and Phillip came to Reims to visit me, we were all invited to stay for a few nights with the Dropsy’s.

We arrived at Patrick’s to drop off my baggage and then went for a walk around downtown Reims to pick up a few groceries. On our return, Genevieve, Patrick’s wife was waiting for us with a bottle of champagne and ordeuves. We spent the evening sipping wine, talking about old times and getting caught up on the news of each other’s families. They have 3 children and 8 grandchildren who live in Reims, Luxembourg and Martinique.

Yesterday morning, we walked around Reims so that I could do the touristy thing and take pictures of my old haunts. Reims has changed a lot from when I was here as a student. Is a beautiful city. It was much destroyed by artillery fire during WW1 and was rebuilt after the war. Many of the downtown building became blacked due to the car exhaust. These buildings have all been whitewashed by sandblasting making city very attractive. Much of the downtown area is now a pedestrian walk way with a tramway that weaves through the streets. It has 4 cars, moves relatively slowly, is electric with electricity running without danger through the tracks that you can walk on. There are no ugly over head wires. Why can’t we have something like this in Montreal? I stopped by the St. James store to purchase a blue sweater. Every year for the past 30 years, I buy a new blue French sweater. I have a pile of them in my cupboard and could easily open a store.

Yesterday, I studied for my ski patrol exam in the morning. Each year I have to read a 200 page book and pass a 3 hour exam on the internet. There is also 1 weekend of practice and 1 day for a ski exam which I don’t have to take as I am a Level 2 ski instructor. There is also a practice session of how to evacuate skiers from a chair lift if there is an electricity problem. I am now a member of the Canadian Ski Patrol and Mountain Explore, which is another ski patrol organization based in Quebec. This doubles the reading and the exams that I must pass in order to wear the red jacket with a white cross and patrol a mountain with no pay but does include a ski pass and a free lunch. I love it.

In the afternoon, Patrick and I took a drive through the Montagnes de Reims. This is an area south of Reims that extends to Epernay and is where all of the champagne vineyards are situated. The province is called Champagne, hence the name, champagne, and only grapes grown in this region can have the designation of ‘champagne’. Other wine that is not grown in the area must be marked ‘method champagnois’ and not ‘champagne’. We drove through the vineyards which stretch for miles and passed through several small villages. There are hundreds of small vineyards, some of whom have their own brand while others sell their produce to the ‘grands marques de champagne’ like Mumm or Moët et Chandon.

We eventually stopped at a small vineyard and met the patron. He invited us into his house for a tasting. He produces 18,000 bottles a year which is a relatively small amount. He is a member of a cooperative in order to press their grapes together in 1 big machine. Carefully, they must not mix up their grapes. This allows them to produce 100.000 bottles a year which is still a very small portion or the total market. He and his son manage the vineyard, sell the produce and deliver it themselves to their clients all over France. Some of the bottles are shipped to other countries. We tried 2 different bottles and eventually purchased 2.5 for consumption at home. The half is because we drank ½ bottles in the tasting session.

Patrick purchased a folding door system which we picked up and tried to put together. It is a German system, therefore the instructions were very logical and thus impossible to understand. The door system is too wide so had to cut it in 2, another minor headache. Remember the rule, measure twice, cut once.

In the afternoon we took out the bicycles and rode through Reims and on a bicycle path along the canal. There is a canal that runs through the city and makes its way to the Rhine. When I was a student it was not at all used as parkland. Over the years it has been developed into a longitudinal park that is well used for jogging and bicycling much as the Lachine canal in Montreal. The bicycles resembled the old retro bikes of the fifties where you rode in a sitting up position. Nevertheless there is good gear and brake system. We resembled Paul Newman and Robert Redford in the film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and the theme song ‘Rain Drops Keep Falling on my Head kept running through my mind. We rode for 15-20k eventually arriving at the estate belonging to the family of Marion, his daughter. Marion, her brother in law and her father in law all have beautiful houses on the enormous property. Part or Marion’s marriage took place on the estate 11 years ago. The actual marriage ceremony took place in the Basilque de Reims which is 1000 years old. Remi accompanied the ceremony on the organ. I was determined to go the the wedding which took place 6 weeks after my bypass. The houses are 150 years old and have been fully renovated in a most modern way inside. They were not home so we just made ourselves comfortable on chairs in the garden.

In the evening I had dinner with Richard’s family including Richard, Regine, Yseult, Luca his charming wife and beautiful daughters. We had cocktails at Regine’s apartment and then went for dinner in a ‘cool and in’ part of town. There were wall to wall restaurants and outdoor terraces filled with young people eating, drinking and having a good time. Richard dropped me off near Patrick’s as it rather complicated to arrive there with the one way streets. He was most fearful that I would get lost as I had forgotten the name of Patrick’s street but did remember that I had to turn left after the 2nd or 3rd street. Anyway I arrived home safe and sound.

Today I will board the TGV to Paris where I will stay at a small hotel in the 5ieme arrondissement. It is very close to the Boul Mich and St Germaine the really in and nice area to be in. I will stay for 3 nights and spend the last night in an Ibis at CDG to be ready to take the plane on Monday morning.

Love,

Brian

Pictures to follow immediately

2024 10 Spain

Spain 1,

Oct 15, 2024,

Hi everyone,

The greater part of this post will be a general review of what circumstances brought me here today. For some of my readers, this will be a review that you may wish to skip through briefly. I graduated from Mcgill University in 1970. My marks were above average but not good enough to get me into medical school. Some of my patients reading this blog may not wish to know this fact. In any case, I decided to go on a trip to Europe with my friend Bram. Our first few days in Paris were a bit strange as we didn’t really know what travelling was all about. Eventually we decided to hitch hike to Marseille. Hitching was legal and safe in those days in Europe, everyone did it. We split up for various reasons on the way and met up at the youth hostel in Marseille. The rules for successful hitching were simple: 1. Always hitch with a girl. That provided her with safety. Motorists would easily pick up a couple. 2. 2 guys alone would never get a lift. 3. You could get a lift as a single guy but it could take a little longer.

We stayed in Marseille for a few days, drinking cheap wine and lying on the beach. It was my first taste of meeting youth travellers from all over the world. Youth hostels in those days were cheap, safe and a good method of meeting people and learning the ropes of successful travelling. We decided that hitching was time consuming and that we need ‘wheels’ for the trip. Many kids bought old VW vans if they were travelling in a small groups. They often slept and cooked in the vans. We hitch hiked to Milano and bought 200cc Lambrettas.

I had my first of several motorcycle accidents in France. I was riding alone in the dark and it was raining heavily. I slid off the road on small stones and went over the handle bars. I was not wearing a helmet as it was not obligatory. I was scraped everywhere except for my head. A French teacher came by and took me to his house. He gave me oily salve for my wounds. I stayed with his family for 3 days while he arranged to have my bike fixed. This was the first of many kindness’s that I got from strangers over the year that I travelled.

I met up with Bram several days later. Bram then had his own motorcycle accident, a little more serious as he was taken to a hospital and the bike was destroyed. That put him off on travelling. He went home in 6 weeks and I returned home in 6 years, with 1 year spent travelling, 5 years in a French medical school, French friends whose friendship I have maintained for life and a beautiful French bride.

My time in Spain was a real eye opener. I had never travelled alone in my life and had no experience riding a motorcycle. Necessity is the mother of invention and I learned fast. I was in Spain and Portugal for 2 months. I loved Spain then and am happy to be here now again. My budget then was $3 a day. $1 for gas, $1 for food and $1 for a hotel. I slept out on beaches, parks and often in a ditch on the side of the road. Anything to save money. I road across North Africa and took a ferry to Italy. The bike was stolen in Italy. I hitch hiked for 6 months. I skied for 2 months in Austria, Italy and Switzerland. I hitched through Italy and Greece eventually ending up in Israel. I slept on the beach for 1 month and worked on a kibbutz for 2 months. At the end of the year, I went to France where I stayed for 5 years studying medicine.

My parents and my girlfriend kept my letters, eventually giving them to me and one day I will write my memoires.

Love,

Brian