Friday 19 December - The Messiah

Seen outside a bank on rue d'Amsterdam

The weather forecast was for rain today. I went first to the four model shops on the rue du Douai. As the rain had set in I decided to take up the time on tramway T3. At least it was in the dry. 

This tram disgorged about 50 schoolkids and 15 attendant adults

At Porte de la Chapelle some 50 schoolkids, about 7 or 8 years old got off the incoming tram. There was one adult for every three kids and they all had to hold hands. Once off the tram they walked to the front and crossed the tram tracks in front of the out going tram. There was a delay while the last group of three got organized, it was difficult to hold onto three kids and an umbrella in the wind. They all got in to a RATP bus which was waiting.  The schools organize many outings for the children.

I took the tram to Porte de Vincennes and transfered to the tram to Garagliano. At Porte de Charenton the rain seemed to have stopped so I got off to take a look at the SNCF maintenance sidings for both TGVs and suburban trains. There was no yellow postal TGV in sight. The post office is planning to stop using these next August.
I caught the tram on to Balard and back to Villiers.

I had bought tickets for the Messiah in La Madeleine before we left Ottawa. It was an excellent performance although the church was barely a third full. We arrived in good time and found seats in the fifth row in the centre where we found the acoustics to be excellent. Several friendly ladies in the choir acted as ushers and sold programs. They had on filmy long black skirts which blew out when they passed over the hot air vents in the floor. The choir filed in followed by the orchestra and there was an expectant hush. Then it was discovered that one of the lights over the orchestra was not working. There was then a flurry of activity from several men and women in the choir and orchestra, all in formal dress, tracing cables and throwing switches in obscure locations. The conductor took advantage of the delay to promote some of his upcoming productions.  Suddenly the errant light came on to a collective sigh of relief from the audience and smiles from the amateur electricians.

The performance, which was in English, was excellent. All four soloists were good and they were not overwhelmed by the orchestra. The audience was reluctant to stand during the Hallelujah Chorus, maybe because they were not aware of this tradition. After a couple of bars the conductor turned to the audience and vigorously got them to stand. Before continuing he said

"C'est la loi de se lever pour la Choeur Alleluia"

The Hallelujah Chorus after the audience had stood.

My favorite part is "The trumpet shall sound" and this was very well played. The clear notes echoed back from the dome in a memorable manner. At the end, after the applause the conductor gave an encore, something I have never seen before. It was, of course, the Hallelujah Chorus and he made sure the audience stood up. He and the soloists then encouraged us to sing along.

It was a well performed, happy performance which we both thoroughly enjoyed.

The conductor, Paul Kuentz, with the four soloists

From the steps of La madeleine

Thursday 18 December - Bagnolet, Charonne and Hotel de Ville

The trains on line 3 are getting a little dated now.  They were the last ones fitted with the manual door lock levers which have to be lifted to open.  An old lady on the train was not strong enough to lift the lever and had to be helped.

It was cloudy today but no rain and there was a little sun. It was a good day for walking except with temperatures around 13C it was pretty warm in our winter coats. We took the Metro to Porte de Bagnolet and walked along the rues de Bagnolet and Charonne as far as Lodru Rollin. From there we went along Ledru Rollin to the park created from the railway viaduct to the Bastille. 

Tram T3b on a nicely grassed section at Porte de Bagnolet

 The area is quite interesting. There are many small businesses many of which had unusual names frequently in English. The city has gone to great lengths to improve the area with small parks and a few pedestrian areas. The kids are still in school and we came across several groups on outings. A lady dropped two baguettes on to the wet sidewalk, they had slipped out of the paper in which she was carrying them. One rolled in the wet. We didn't stop to see what she did.

A small urban park off rue de Bagnolet

Pedestrianized street off rue de Bagnolet

We passed over an unused section of the old Ceinture railway

The station was still standing including the Ceinture sign

Ledru Rollin. This is part of the viaducts that brought the high level railway into the former Bastille terminus station.  This urban park now stretches for almost 5 km,

 

Lunch was at a restaurant just off the rue de Rivoli, no tarte tatin this time. There was a good exhibition of photographs at the Hotel de Ville. This traced the changes that have taken place since the 1930s, paying attention to social problems. The rioting in 1968 was covered, showing the way street paving stones were lifted and used. The lack of food and housing after the war was also covered. The annual exhibitions at the Hotel de Ville. An added bonus this year was that we were able to walk straight in. There was a waiting line when we came out. 

Wednesday 17 December - Musée de Luxembourg and St. Sulpice

It has been raining lightly all day. The Musée de Luxembourg is a small gallery in the Jardins de Luxembourg close to the Senate building. There was an exhibit entitled "Paul Durand-Ruel, the Impressionist gamble,  Manet, Monet, Renoir." All the paintings on display had been bought originally by Paul Durand-Ruel who had an apartment in the rue de Rome. There works by Renoir, Monet, Manet, Camille Pisarro, Gaugin, Degas, Sisley, Rodin, Millet, Courbet and  others, practically all of them new to us  but all familiar by their style. 

Claude Monet Bateaux de Plaisance 1872-3

Camille Pisarro Entree du Village de Voisins 1872

The exhibition was well attended and worthwhile. However, it was quite small and we were left with several hours to kill before a concert at St. Sulpice which is close by.

After chocolate, hot for Mary and ice cream for me, we found out that the Jardins de Luxembourg were closing so we walked around the area in the drizzle. The temperature was about 11C so it was quite pleasant. The wall of the Mines building is heavily pock marked as a result of the fighting to liberate Paris in 1918.

There are several of these stone or concrete table tennis tables in the park close by

We had dinner in the Nostrand a good restaurant overlooking the Jardins de Luxembourg. A bottle of Saumur Champigny helped to pass the time. The place was filled with local people coming in to have an after work drink. One lady arrived in jeans and a sweater, presumably she lived in an apartment above. There was a white cat who had sneaked in and surreptitiously made a nest below a Christmas tree. I took a picture but the waiter noticed it and moved it out. It turns out this is a famous cat. It appears in a recent book about cats of Paris. It is even on the cover. For more information and additional pictures and video click this link
http://www.linstantparisien.com/en/chatsparisiens/ 

Roxanne under the Christmas tree

Near St. Sulpice on a wet evening

St. Sulpice earlier in the day.  The forecourt was surprisingly empty.  A large number of pigeons were roosting in the tree to the left.

Radio France were recording a Christmas concert in the church of St. Sulpice. It consisted of three performers, the organ, the baroque Ensemble Sagitarius and the Radio France choir. The organ was a bit spotty and the opening work, Bach's Prelude and fugue BWV 547 was a disappointment. The prelude did not flow. I have heard this piece played better in this particular church. The baroque was done very well although I am not a fan of this genre. The choir was excellent and performed very well. At one point they filed down and sang from both sides of the audience - right next to us. The seats are not comfortable but there was an interval during which hot wine was available. The scent of hot wine permeated the church for the second part. There were slots in the program for the audience to sing. I never thought I would be singing French carols in French in the largest church in Paris.

We were sitting just under the pulpit.  The chairs had been turned around to face the organ.

The program will be broadcast on France Musique on December 24.

Tuesday 16 December - Opening of new tramway T8

After lunch at le Bon Georges (foie gras and scallops) I went off to metro Saint Denis Porte de Paris to be at the opening of the new tramway T8. There were no details on the RATP web site although it was announced briefly on TV3 news yesterday. At the station there were no signs at all, in fact the only indication were two flags close to a raised dais. There was still a lot of work to do and it quickly became evident that the opening should have been delayed until the tramway was ready. The area is very different from Chatillon last Saturday although both are high density. This area is diverse and contains many middle Eastern and north African businesses.
The opening was announced for 1600 - just at the beginning of the evening rush.

A spare set waiting at the Saint-Denis terminus.  These five unit trams have three trucks but they are not articulated, the second and fourth "cars" are hung between the adjacent cars.

There were a lot of RATP personnel in high visibility jackets, at times they outnumbered the potential passengers.

At 1515 there was not a great deal of action

The first tram in with invited guests

A tram arrived full to the gills with invited guests, another followed it. There was organized chaos as the guests were channelled politely towards the stand for speeches. Finally a tram full of the important people arrived wrong line and the cameras started rolling. This formed the first official tram out. It was well filled but I managed to get a seat. We took off about five minutes late and we had to stop by the reviewing stand for photo ops.

Tram congestion - three trams in the holding sidings at Saint-Denis with another one in the departure platform at my back.The right of way is nicely grassed or concreted.  Note the blades of the switches are in the concrete and not in the grass.

The trams are very smooth, pleasant and quiet but the journey to the end of the line at Épinay Orgemont took an age.  There was a wait for 5 minutes to smooth out the traffic flows which was strange as we were the first tram out. There are many sections where speed is severely limited by very tight curves, a consequence of trying to fit a tramway into an existing built up urban area. There were many stops for traffic and I hope the RATP can get the sequencing sorted out. Adjusting the traffic lights to give trams priority can take some time - it took months on the first section of T3.

At Épinay Orgemont a group of drummers entered the tram and livened things up.

As of tomorrow the RATP is making changes to some 15 bus routes and eliminating two others. It might have been better to have delayed the opening of the tramway until the kinks had been eliminated.
It was good to finally ride over the double line of T1 at Saint Denis Gare where the four diamond crossings have been in place for several years. There were some decorations at several of the stations and a group of drummers at the terminus. I have the impression that the RATP opened the tramway to make good on their published plan to open by the end of 2014 rather than to ensure it was really ready.
After at slow return I decided not to go on the branch to Villetaneuse Université. I can leave that and the crossing at Saint Denis Gare for another day.

 

It was getting dark when I arrived back at Saint-Denis.  On the left is an outgoing tram.  On the right is the first tram back from Épinay Orgemont.

Monday 15 December - Errands

The weather is forecast to be wet this week.  We got up late. Mary went to a cordonnerie to get her bag repaired - it will be ready tomorrow.  Monoprix has opened a new downstairs section which will give them much more space. Much of the new space was taken up with wine and champagne - not surprising at this time of year.
I went over to the Alsatian Christmas Market in the forecourt of the Gare de l'Est to get a bottle of Alsatian Malt Whisky.

Alsatian malt whisky. Not bad, a little rough but very pleasant, but no peaty overtones.

Madame at Diva et Chocolats was getting into the Chrustmas spirit.

Sunday 14 December - Provins

The weather forecast was for sunny or misty  today but rainy for the rest of the week. This is the day that Provins has its Christmas market and medieval extravaganza so we decided to take the train. We found out that the 0946 from Gare de l'Est does not run Sundays and the 1046 was very much overcrowded being a short train.  The platform was only announced about ten minutes before departure and it seems the toilets are all locked out of service so they don't have to be maintained.  Once again SNCF does not give a damn about its passengers.  I have yet to find a fully functioning toilet on a train this trip.
The train was very full and many had to stand for over an hour. Many were in medieval costume. We ran through dense fog until just before Longueville when the sun broke through and stayed that way all the time we were at Provins. On the platform at Provins a couple of hunting horns were sounded and we followed the horns up to the hill top where the market is held. Many, including kids, were in medieval dress, suits of armour, leather or wool covers. Medieval instruments were being played and there were impromptu processions.
The weather was excellent with full sun - it seems the mist did not clear fully in Paris. We had mulled wine and hot chestnuts and then made our way slowly to the station where our train was a long one with just a handful of passengers.  SNCF managed to get everything wrong. On the way back from Gare de l'Est we stopped off at Sacré Coeur and Place des Abbesses.

The roast chestnuts were pretty much carbonized

Saturday 13 December - Opening of the Paris T6 Tramway

Waiting for the off. The first one was that on the right

The T6 tramway from Chatillon to Robert Wagner was opened today - it is free all weekend. An extension to Viroflay will open some time next year. It was cold and wet which probably helped to keep the crowds down to manageable proportions. I arrived at Chatillon around 1030 expecting things to start up at 1100. Instead I found out that the festivities were due to start at 1100 with Brazillian drummers, there was to be a formal inauguration at 1130 and the first tram was due to leave at 1200. 

To kill some time, warm up and make myself comfortable I found a cafe. Back at the event France TV3 were broadcasting from a makeshift studio. Both tramway platforms were beginning to fill up by 1100 and the numerous security personnel were herding people around in a somewhat random fashion. The drummers started around 1115 and the crowd began to sway to the beat. The people seemed mostly local with a large proportion of elderly although there were a great number of small kids.

The dignitaries tram arrives

Security moved people away from the arrival platform and made room for the arrival of a tram loaded with dignities. There was some sort of ceremony with TV and pictures but I couldn't follow it because I was strategically located on the departure platform with several thousand others. In spite of the weather everybody was in high spirits. 

The first service tram out arrives at the platform

 

Finally, at 1155 the first tram entered the platform and shuddered to a halt. It then jerked forward a couple of feet and finally came to a stop (laughter). The crowd surged forward and everyone chanted "Ouvrez les portes". After several minutes the doors opened and we all rushed inside.  I didn't really have a choice as there would have been no moving against this crowd. As it was I found myself going through the front door of this 6 car tram. Once inside everyone was hooting and cheering but after a couple of minutes this changed to a chant of "Fermez les portes". There was a security guard on the platform at each door keeping people out so the tram was not overfull.  Finally the doors were closed (intense clapping) and the driver welcomed us (loud cheering). We set out a few minutes late (more clapping and comiserating with those poor souls who were left out in the cold).

These trams are rubber tired with a single rail for guidance.  Straight away there were jerks at both starting and stopping.  The acceleration and braking is good but the ride was not very good being rubber tires on concrete. This is a cheaper form of construction that gives nowhere near as good a ride as a two rail system with steel wheels. These trams do not hold as many as a steel wheel tram and the narrow corridor connections create serious bottlenecks in crowd flow. The ride to the end of the line took 39 minutes and many people were getting off before the end to go home.

Several people were surprised at how fast the tram was going compared to the bus. This tramway replaces the number 295 bus route, which was still running today to iron out the gaps in tram frequencies due to heavy overcrowding of the first ones out. The itineraries and timetables of  some 30 bus routes have been changed to take advantage of the new tram, something Ottawa has still failed to do with the introduction of the OTrain.

I caught the first available tram back to Chatillon and came straight back to warm up. Tramway T6 has been enthusiastically opened.

.

At Robert Wagner

The connections between cars are quite restricted.

This evening we went to Le Relais de Venise. We arrived about 20 minutes before it opened and were seated quickly. The service was, as usual, quick and efficient and we were out by abut 2015. it was a good dinner.