Memories and hints of a travelling IT professional.
The TGV is a two-floor highspeed train of the French railway company SNCF running on the grande lignes in France. It also goes to Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Köln and München. It is on duty since 1981 and can go as fast as 320 km/h. The train à grande vitesse is comparable by quality with the German ICE. It has some special features like a nifty salon where four persons are sitting in a compartment faceing each other at a table. A classy kind of travelling!
Going to the Centre Georges-Pompidou in Paris, France is always fun! It is a futuristic building in the heart of Paris, close to the Hôtel de Ville. If you get inside you’ll find free WiFi, a bar, a nice art shop, a children’s art playground – but this museum is a playground for humans of all age.
Continue reading “The temple of contemporary art”
At the end of the over-crowded, commercialized and steadily inclining Champs-Élysées you’ll find the Arc de Triomphe at Place Charles de Gaulle. It has been built by order of Napoleon to commemorate the victory of the battle of Austerlitz in 1806. You can walk trough a subterranean passage to the Arc and get on top – seeing 14 main streets crossing.
Continue reading “The Étoilé”
Not as vast as Père Lachaise but also bigger than big. The Cimetière de Montmartre is a more quite graveyard close to the center of the neighborhood of Montmartre. You can stroll around and look out for history.
Continue reading “Cimetière de Montmartre”
Strolling throughout Montmartre in the morning is always a great idea. But there comes the point where you definitely need a café au lait and a croissant. In that case the boulangerie of Gontran Cherrier is a great stop: while you sit there you can have Montmartre behind the windows and a magnifique pain au chocolat at your fingertips.
Continue reading “French breakfast”
To me the most beautiful church in the world and the place to be on a Sunday morning if you are in Paris. The Basilique du Sacré Cœur is situated on the hill of Montmartre and is visible from most places in Paris, France. It has been built as a memorial to the lost war against Germany in 1870/71.
Continue reading “Basilique du Sacré Cœur de Montmartre”
When you walk through the wonderful neighborhood of the Marais – maybe from Place de la Bastille, crossing Place des Vosges (always worth a detour), you will find a lot of good restaurants of various kinds. I myself normally don’t go to classy restaurants while travelling; it costs me simply to much time. A good alternative in the Marais is Chez Marianne, a nice small restaurant in a sidestreet. You can sit outside and if it is too crowded – they also got a comptoir for food to take away.
Continue reading “A pit-stop at the Marais”
One of the major sights in Paris, close to the Champ de Mars. Built in 1887 by Gustave Eiffel as a watch tower for the World Exhibition – and in remembrance of the French revolution – this iron giant draws the attention of people from all over the world. It’s the landmark of Paris and can be seen from most places inthe city.
Continue reading “Tour Eiffel”
I’ve seen some ethnologic museums around the world and most – let’s face it, are quite boring. You only like them if you are an expert or a student in the specific field. But the Musée du quai Branly in Paris, France is really different. Behind a big glass wall separating the museum from the city, there is a huge garden with trees and green fields.
Continue reading “Science as it should be presented”
The biggest graveyard in Paris, France. A vast space with over 200 year old graves, temples and figurines. You can walk for hours through this crowded necropolis and watch out for the graves of lots of celebrities. Not an easy game because of the high number of paths and sepultures.
Continue reading “Cimetière du Père Lachaise”