Take your time to read my travelog. It contains some 300 photos that I selected from my collection. I promise that I will not test your memory.
FR.IT~es!
fr=france, it=italy. Frites=French Fries ~ way of enjoying life in Southern France and Northern Italy. [17.9.2005 - 1.10.2005] hongkong . paris . marseille . aix-en-provence . arles . avignon . pont du gard . gordes . roussillon . sault . fontaine-de-vaucluse . nice . eze . venezia . firenze . pisa . roma . paris . hongkong
17 Sep 2005
My trip started with a midnight flight from Hong Kong and waiting in Heathrow airport for 3 hours [Heathrow Airport. London]
When I arrived Paris finally by 3pm, after checking in hotel, went to check out the Louvre, my big-time favourite in Paris. [The Louvre. Paris]
The sun is very strong, sky very blue, but there is a tinge of coolness in the air - Paris in fall. [The Louvre. Paris]
Not long after, we actually approached Ile de la Cite, thus took a small detour to pay Notre Dame Cathedral a visit. [Notre Dame. Paris]
Details, details, details. What is noted on the facade aside from the famous twin towers. We eventually did not go in because it was closed, but took a lot of pictures outside. [Notre Dame. Paris]
Time for dinner because guess what?! It's already around 8:22pm when I took this picture. En route to Champs-Elysees, we were greeted by this stunning view of Louvre against sunset. [The Louvre. Paris]
... not to mention I believe the digicam lens only captured like 50% of the original atmosphere. [Louvre. Paris]
We were not able find the desired restaurant, thus took the Metro to another one close to our hotel. Authentic subway, nothing like the MTR, as we learn to crawl through its web-like maze. [Metro at Concorde. Paris]
18 Sep 2005
Today was a Paris city day tour for us as we shall be leaving for the Provence tomorrow morning. First stop- Montmartre. Walked through these typical side streets to reach there after getting off the Metro at Lamarck-Caulaincourt. [Montmartre. Paris]
Can you imagine the bakery selling all sorts of cheesy toasts and bread? And can you imagine a cheesy hotdog cost 4 Euros (~HK$40). But I must admit the warm cheesy toast was yummy. [Montmartre. Paris]
The famous Montmartre marketplace, with many artists showing off their works, many painting on the spot. [Montmartre. Paris]
The pictures were very typical Paris scenes. There were even some "artists" who cut out silhouettes with their nimble fingers. [Montmartre. Paris]
East to Place du Tertre, the market place, is the famous white church frequented by tourists. [Basilique du Sacre Coeur. Montmartre. Paris]
Starking colour contrast of church vs the clear blue sky. [Basilique du Sacre Coeur. Montmartre. Paris]
The good... now the bad. After having lunch, strolled along a street full of sex shops which lead us to Moulin Rouge - guess it is only full-house during the evenings. [Moulin Rouge. Paris]
... where it starts at Place de la Concorde, and ends at L'Arc de Triomphe, or the other way round. [L'Arc de Triomphe. Paris]
Champs Elysees actually starts from L'Arc de Triomphe to Place de la Concorde. Shops of top labels, roadside cafes line up along the famous route. [Avenue des Champs Elysees. Paris]
They have this nice Peugeot showroom in the avenue which featured one of their first models. [Peugeot showroom. Champs Elysees. Paris]
... and a beetle-like concept car, Peugeot 4002, attracting all the attention it deserves. [Peugeot showroom. Champs Elysees. Paris]
In the Metro subways, occasionally there are amateur singers demonstrating their talents or trying to earn a buck or two. [Metro. Paris]
We couldn't resist going back to the Louvre again to take some night shots because it is so beautiful. [The Louvre. Paris]
Returning to Champs Elysees at night, we had dinner at Leon du Bruxelles, belgian cuisine. Ate a full course which consisted of grilled cheese as appetizer, a pot full of moussels, french fries, ending with a creme brulee. Here's their website: http://www.leon-de-bruxelles.fr/. Recommended to one of my colleague as well. [Leon du Bruxelles. Paris]
After lunch, we drove around Marseille in our rented car and went to the highest point in Marseilles to visit the church and have the best view of Marseille. [Notre-Dame de la Garde. Marseille]
The interior is less elaborate than Notre Dame in Paris, but still the solemn religious atmosphere overwhelms the place. [Notre-Dame de la Garde. Marseille]
