Our 14 hour layover in Mexico City, with precious little sleep in the flight there or for the nights before,was rewarded with over 5 hours of sleep in route to Paris. At our hotel in Roissy en France, we had the pleasure of a shower and some reorganization. After our luggage missteps in Mexico, we were thrilled to see both suitcases on the luggage carousel at Charles de Gaulle airport and overjoyed that everything was intact.
In the evening, showered and bundled up, we strolled away from the pig smell into the small, ancient town. The center of town is Eglise St Elois, a beautiful cathedral built completed in 1597. We enjoyed the gardens of the cathedral, the handsome homes and watching the people. My mastery of the language is leftover from the days my work took me to Montreal. Essentially, I can be polite in French and, thankfully, none of my Montreal associates taught me to swear.
Dinner was delightful at La Brasserie de Terroir, right around the corner from our hotel. How can pâté melt in my mouth? It was delightful. Charcuterie is an art form here, (perhaps due to the close proximity of the pigs??) so we were compelled to enjoy a plate filled with the local sausage. But for heaven's sake-why would anyone have a pig farm SO close hotels? Which came first-the pigs or the hotels?
What were my lessons of yesterday? Be thankful for the wine served on Air France, as it certainly helps to sleep on 10 hour flights. Use of the towel warmer in the hotel bathroom speeds the drying of our smalls. Carry a camera everywhere.
I'm thankful for this short opportunity to see the outskirts of Paris. I will return, when my agenda is for Paris and for France. But for now, my path is set to The Way. Off we go to Bayonne today. The legendary EuroRail awaits.
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