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| Traffic approaching the Arc de Triomphe |
How do Parisian taxi drivers make a living? Tuesday’s 9:00 am 15-mile trip from Aeroport Charles
DeGaulle to our apartment in the 15th arrondissement (I’m traveling
with Liz and Michal Sobieski) took more than an hour and a half, thanks mostly to the congestion just outside of the city and that approaching and around the
Arc de Triomphe. And it cost only 75
euro (split among the three of us that’s not bad considering the alternatives
of shuttles and buses). How many of
these can the driver do in a day? Or
does he just start his day in the taxi queue at the airport and then spend the
rest of the day driving people from place to place inside the city? I should have asked him!
Imagine the craziness at the Arc – eight virtual lanes
circling it (no stripes painted on the pavement); traffic entering and exiting
from 12 radiating boulevards; cars, motorcycles, city buses, motor coaches, open-top tour buses, taxis, delivery
vehicles and emergency vehicles all shifting from lane to lane and crossing at
right angles to each other – sheer madness, I tell you, madness, especially at
the busiest time of the day! Later, I’ll
post a photo that Liz took. The only
“triumphant” entity in this whole setup seems to be the Arc itself – it wins,
the rest of us lose (although there is some entertainment value for us
tourists!).
My first visit to Paris was in 1988, as I recall, with
Jan Lindquist, Robert Stauter and Marie Copenhaver. Robert had rented a car for our trip through the French countryside (starting in Paris) and took us around the Arc de Triomphe a couple
times just for fun! I remember him
saying that the Parisians were able to maintain their nonchalant attitude
towards it because they popped liqueur-filled chocolates (he shared some as an
object lesson) and smoked their Gauloises while driving. Marie, who grew up in the French countryside,
could hardly wait to get out of the city.
I, however, was entranced enough with the city that I resolved to come
back again and again and again. And I have. Scores of times.
The apartment is comfortable and bright, and although the
kitchen is really tiny, it is workable for light meal prep. The ironic thing is that we have a large
dining room with a table accommodating eight – I guess if we want to have a dinner
party we’ll have to grab food from the local delis and restos, or just visit
Pierre Hermé around the corner and go with a dessert dinner! You
can see apartment photos here: http://www.vacationinparis.com/apts/id_269.htm
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