The July Reunion 7-19 & 7-20-15

Saturday -
In preparation for my sister & brother-in-law's visit we did a last minute shopping and decided to try the proposed route for getting back to the apartment once we get back to Gare du Nord from the airport tomorrow.  Our metro line (#5) is closed for three days and they have busses running along the route, to a spot somewhere between our apartment and the station.  (In truth I can't understand the logic of dropping people off somewhere without multiple connecting points into the city, like Gare du Nord or Gare de l'Est but then I'm not Parisian or a transportation expert.)  We were able to connect down to the station on the single bus line that serves this stop. Next order of business was to find the bus stop near the station which would get us back to the apartment.  So of course I go to the one closest and it turns out to not be serviced on the weekends, and our return with our visitors will be Sunday afternoon.  We go to the next closest stop and it's packed with people who would normally be taking the Metro.  It doesn't look promising for the trip back.

Sunday -

We get out early since we have to retrace our bus trip down to Gare du Nord to get out to the airport to meet Gail and Peter.  It is very crowded on the bus, we had hoped that people might stay home on Sunday but no luck, but we get to the station within 30 minutes and have another crowded 30 minute ride out to airport but all in all not too bad.  This is the first time we've seen conductors actually checking tickets in the nearly five months we've been here. This is a bit of a joke as well since virtually every day we see people getting on buses and the metro without paying.  I guess it's because they have all the tourists trapped on the train out to the airport and it must be a reasonable source of additional revenue, catching scofflaws.
Once we get there we have a bit of a wait, but the flight was actually a bit early and very soon Gail and Peter come waltzing out of the baggage claim area and we have an affectionate reunion.  We get them Navigo passes and then were off to the city.  Once we get to Gare du Nord we decide that a taxi is the easiest way back to the apartment (good choice) and we get back in about 15 minutes.   We have a celebratory late lunch on the deck, with olives, wine, and cheese in the sunshine and do our catching up.  I've not seen them since our bike trip together last fall and it's been even longer for Deb. We get them a bit situated in the guest room and then sit down to watch the Tour for a while.

After the end of the day's racing we all head out for a walk along the canal to stave off some of the jet lag. Paris in the last few years have converted long spaces along the Seine into a beach, called Paris Plage, by trucking in sand so that people can sunbathe and play in the sand.  It has also migrated up here along the canal, much to our surprise and delight, with the additional bonus of having small boats and floats available for rent.  There is a zip line across the canal, beach chairs, a concession where one can play foosball, and a dance floor where there was a tango session going on.  Also concessions where one can purchase food and drinks to sit out and picnic.   We walked along down to the head of the basin then around and back on the other side, finishing up in the evening around 9:30 with the sun still on the tops of the apartment buildings.  All in all another enjoyable day in Paris.