Rue Cler, Paris, Saturday Oct. 07, 2006

We are following our Rick Steves religiously and traveling cheaply. The Eurail pass was a great idea; it works here in the Subway (but not unfortunately on the metro). On our second day, we got ready for the day quite late and missed our hostel breakfast. But, we roamed around a bit in local marché (market) and bought a croissant and a pain au chocolat for breakfast. If you ask for caffé au lait (café latte), go for a big cup if you like light (relatively) coffee. It is the same amount of coffee in a big and small cup but more milk.

We then went to Rue cler neighborhood for lunch. In Paris many roads are named as “rue”. Step by step the Parisian culture unfolds. The cafés do not have front doors (symbolically). People sit on the outside alongside the roads and enjoy their food and coffee as they watch people go by. The bricked streets give the streets antique look. We finished our lunch and walked around a little more. This was our rendezvous with Paris. People here dress up very well, especially females. In a few minutes I saw some never-seen-before dress styles. Next to Saint-Pierre, around the corner church, we saw another rare activity, a fashion show or dress display from a clothing store.

Then we stopped for another coffee since our morning coffee was a disaster and we met at a café close by a fine lady who could speak English and a very friendly tour guide who would be upset if we did not visit places he recommended. We really had a good time there chatting for quite a while. The bar owner was from Normandy and recommended places to visit there. The lady, Frederique, insisted on paying for our coffee but we decided against it. Nevertheless, she gave us her e-mail address and asked us to call her in case we would need any help.

Next on our roster was the Eiffel tower.