Eiffel Over

Tag: ferry

  • Paris – towers, boats and beaches

    Paris – towers, boats and beaches

    Today we had a proper tourist day in Paris. We’ve been numerous times with our daughter but now she’s old enough to remember we decided to take in some sights. And you know, it’s good to do these things every so often even in the places you call or once called home.

    Main mode of transport was the Bateau Bus. I love the ferry ride. I often wonder why boats aren’t used more in cities to get around. We had three great rides along the river to get us to right across town.

    Here are some snaps

    Nation Station – I have always loved the futuristic from the past look of this station.
    The peeing fountains are always a giggle
    The eponymous tower in all its glory and ridiculousness
    Complicated node connection
    Paris Plage
    The plan of Paris Plage activities
    Beach bar and football area
    Climbing wall and water misters to keep everyone cool

    Paris Plage

    Paris Plage is Paris’s beach. Created by closing a busy road along the banks of the river. The fully pedestrianised area is a mixture of beaches, at areas, games areas and just generally space to hang out. It’s not commercial. It’s there to enrich the life of people. A fantastic example of shared public abundance.

  • Caen to Santander

    Caen to Santander

    Today we begin our summer #surfacetravel continental adventure: from Caen in Normandy to Santander in Northern Spain. We are travelling via mixture of bicycle and train.

    The adventure began yesterday with putting our bicycles on the ferry at Portsmouth. As a cycle passenger on a ferry you exist in this weird no persons land between foot passenger and car driver. The cycle route from Portsmouth harbour to the ferry port it’s actually very well signposted. But when you get to the ferry port it is unclear what you are supposed to do. Once we realised though that you’re supposed to line up with the cars, it’s pretty straightforward. And cycling across the open expenses of the ferry terminal and up to the boat feels quite rebellious.

    As a regular readers of this blog will know, I love a ferry ride. Ferries are like floating buildings. A funny mixture of shopping centre, hotel and seagoing vessel. I also love a cafeteria. All of this made for a very enjoyable six hour crossing. I particularly enjoyed trying some handstands in the deck with S.

    Riding with Brittany ferries feels like I’m having a little piece of France pick you up from the UK coast. A two course lunch menu followed by a stiff coffee. The Tour de France on the TV.

    Speaking of which, I was blown away watching the race leader stop to allow his rival to catch up after having fallen on the slopes in the Pyrenees. So often the historical stories of men racing in the tour are about macho rivalries. this feels much more sporting, much more human.

    Looking forward to beginning our own Tour de France.