The Islands in the Seine

9/6/11 Quelle jour!  Days just don’t go the way I plan them.  I had mon petit dejeuner dans l’hotel.  Then I set out walking to Ile de la Cite.  My plan was to cover the island, climb to the top of Notre Dame, then go on to Ile St. Louis, then to la Rive Gauche to find the little walk-only streets, then have dinner at Procope (where Ben Franklin used to dine).  It was very cold & windy this morning, so it took more energy to walk against the wind.  I stopped at a café for un café.   Then on to Notre Dame.  I was looking up at the top of the cathedral to see people up there where I planned to climb.  I didn’t see the low curb & stepped off and fell, skinning my right hand and left knee.  People helped me up and pointed out that the hospital was around the corner.  So, I went to the emergency room.  The staff there are tres gentils.  I was seen by a nurse and a doctor.  Diagnosis was just skinned palm and knee.  Palm cleaned & bandaided.  And released to climb to the top of Notre Dame.  So that I did.  But not all the way to the top, just to the second level.  I took pictures of the views of Paris from the viewing platform.  Then down to walk in the park.  I had taken my bread & cheese, so I had a little picnic in Square Jean XXIII.  Lovely.  Then I went to Ile St. Louis for a little walk around, crossed over to la Rive Gauche.  But I was tired, lots of sitting in parks, so I started back towards my hotel.  Another Paris surprise!  There on the bridge was a film crew, in the process of filming a scene!  I watched for a while, took a few pictures, then wandered back to the hotel.  After a little rest, I went out again to mail my last postcard (to myself), buy some bandaids, eat a nice salmon salad at Café Royal near my hotel.  It was very good.  Came back to the room, took a hot bath.  I have to accept that I cannot go all day & into the night.  I am exhausted.  And now both my wrists hurt a lot.  Tomorrow I have a tour of Versailles & truly hope to go to Musee D’Orsay in the afternoon.  I just hope some ibuprofen takes away the pain in my wrists, so I don’t have to go back to the hospital. 

Paris is such a young, energetic city.  I’m tired.  Actually Paris is extremely old, so much history, but I’m still tired.  Actually Paris is so old and still young and energetic.  I think it has always been on the cutting edge of creativity, art, literature, architecture.  New, modern sculptures and art immersed in the center of old architecture.  The Louvre is in the old palace built over 500 years ago.  And the entrance to the museum is a group of modern glass pyramids.  Old and new in the same space.  Paris is not stuck in its past.