Arrival In Paris

The Eurostar got us to the Gare du Nord on time, 3:52PM, Tuesday, August 31st, and, after the usual Paris taxi scam, Uber got us to our apartment, on Rue Saint-Denis. Waiting for us there was a staffer from the rental agency, who let us in, gave us the keys and the briefest of introductions (et en Anglais aussi) to the apartment, appliances, etc., and then left us to to breathe sighs of relief, to unpack, and to get oriented to our new world. Our first several days were administrative in nature: where is the nearest supermarche? Monoprix, 2 blocks away. Where is the nearest Metro? Reamur-Sebastopol, also two blocks away. Where is the nearest Marks and Spencer? On Boulevard Poissonniere, about 500 meters. Where can we get SodaStream? At any FNAC, the closest being at Les Halles, 550 meters. How can we get the agency to put the payment on the right credit card? Have to visit them in person, on Champs Elysees. And so on. We undertook a few exploratory excursions, but the administrivia, and other matters occupied us until Sunday. The nice thing about Paris is that doing even the most mundane of chores is both an adventure and a delight--you get to travel around in the most beautiful and most interesting city in the world. I'll blog first about the apartment, then the neighborhood, then some of the preliminary excursions.

Fasten seat belts, stow tray table, bring seat to full upright...wait...no

Google Earth view; we're at the red dot

Five minute walking map; Sebastopol and Reamur is the major
intersection we're closets to

Entry hall and elevator...we are on the 4eme etage

Looking from the cuisine to the salon

Salon to cuisine

Chambre

Salle de bains

Among the wall decor is this architectural sketch of the place;
small, sparsely furnished, but a brand new reno of an 1890s
building; we are comfortable, safe, and happy, and very close
to everything of interest

Looking north on the Rue Saint-Denis; that's the Porte Saint-
Denis, the first of Paris' four triumphal arches, dating from 1672;
it was built over the portal in the old Medieval wall, dating from
1356; just FYI; 2 blocks from our building; many more pix of
Rue Saint-Denis and environs to follow