Journey's end

Well, we're back, and here are some final thoughts about the journey.

Terminal 3 redeemed itself on the way out. It provides everything a traveller needs while waiting three hours to get on a plane and come home.

The Montmartre area of Paris is a terrific place to stay, especially if you want to have more than merely a tourist experience. We loved the neighbourhood, and spent hours walking around getting lost, buying our breakfast every day from a different boulangerie, buying a different wine every day from a different wine shop, and having random meals in the local cafes. It was quite a contrast, because our apartment building was 20 feet from the Montmartre Cemetary, which is as quiet as a ghost, as you can imagine, and a few hundred feet from Rue de Clichy, which is a hive of activity, especially at night. There is the matter of the sex corridor on Rue de Clichy, but that did not bother us at all.

I have always heard that Parisians are rude and arrogant, but that was not our experience. We only encountered a few goofs, and every place on earth has its share of goofs. I found the people to be friendly and helpful and easy to approach. I will be going back to Paris sometime because there is a lot left to see and experience. Paris was really the sidebar to this trip, and I am really happy the way it turned out.

I will also return to La Salette. I now know how easy it is to get there, and with Alexandre as a guide I have no qualms at all. I cannot express adequately my gratitude to Shirl for sharing this bittersweet experience with me. The drive through the Alps from Grenoble to La Salette and then to Notre Dame de la Salette will remain in our memories forever. Shirl was taking digital photos, while I was taking SLR film photos that have to be developed. I am hoping that my pictures of Mont Obiou, which I call the scene of the crime, come out well. I will post one if they do.

Au revoir.