Once upon a night in Paris…

How a story can change in a moment! Yesterday I woke up in my tent on the cliff top, went for a morning swim in the sea. It felt like I was saying goodbye to the Atlantic as I was floating there in a natural pool, watching the waves crash against the rocks. And then I had the tiniest of thoughts of Paris, a few hours later I was on board the high speed train to the capital of this beautiful country. My miles south were finished, my chapter on the coast closed, for now.

Being plunged into a city on a bike at night is an experience for sure. I tailed a courier or two for a couple of miles as I wove my way through the city towards my hostel, couriers know a city like no other on a bike, and are a good way to learn the ways of the traffic and how the roads work! Eventually speeding through the city on Heimlich, I’d forgotten all about my sadness at leaving the sea and was excited to be in a place I’d never set foot in before. At the hostel, I met some other visitors, chatting, singing, playing ukulele until after midnight, when, accompanied by Sam, a traveller from India, we headed out into the city to do some sight seeing!

Montmartre is the highest area of Paris, and the views from the highest point, la Sacre Coeur over the twinkling lights of the city gave me shivers. We wandered the streets of Paris, eating crepes, stopping for a beer, and finding the Moulin Rouge.

At around 2 or 3am we headed back on the now empty streets in the direction of the hostel, and heard music coming from the top floor of an apartment block. Sam shouted up in the darkness towards the 4th floor balcony, and outright asked if we could go up! Wonderfully, moments later a chap came down, opened the door for us and invited us into his home! He introduced us to his cousin and we sat there in their apartment, sharing stories and chatting the night away. Eventually we returned to the hostel, marvelling about how our day had turned out, and retired to our dorms at about 5am.

This morning I am back on the city streets with Heimlich, and of course we’ve headed straight for la Tour Eiffel! Twiglette was pleased to see it too!

The Eiffel Tower is huge. Well big innit. So much larger in life than I’d imagined, and sat there studying it I felt a bit in awe. At 324m high it’s the tallest structure in the city. On each side are engraved the names of French scientists of note, there being 72 in total. I really loved spending time chilling here, and took some time to work on juggling and handstands and ukulele playing whilst basking in the aura of the place.

I crossed la Seine, and found l’Arc de Triomphe. The arch, which predates the Eiffel Tower by some decades, being constructed in the early 19th century, sits in the middle of an intersection of twelve roads, with a circular road around it. I looked for the obvious bike path towards it but saw none, and the pedestrian route took some flights of stairs to a subway beneath the road. So, taking my life into my own hands, I spiralled inwards on the roundabout to rule all roundabouts, through the copious amounts of traffic, thinking “I’m gonna die, I’m gonna die.” Fortunately, I didn’t die. Unfortunately, having made it all the way to the centre, I then found out that bikes aren’t allowed on that centre circle where the arch stands. Fortunately Heimlich is a rebel. But then we were asked by the police to vacate. Not as bad as my previous encounter with the gendarme I might add! But that’s another story. Back out of the twelve-road intersection (“I’m gonna die, I’m gonna die”), but thankfully survived! Time for a beer! I’ve carried this one in my bag all the way from my local brewery in England. Cheers to unexpected adventures!

Reading material for this trip. ‘One Man and His Bike’ by Mike Carter. Great read about a chap who quit his job to cycle around the British coastline.

Goodbye Atlantic.

Heimlich, you rebel