Valerie Jardin had kindly carried over my Paris booking from January 2021. The original workshop had to be cancelled for me because of renewed issues with Covid across the UK and Europe. My hotel in the 5th district had refunded my money. Only Eurostar held onto my money; only their offer was for me to rebook within a month or so.
The last few weeks waiting before travelling had been a little fraught. After confirming my place on the January 2023 workshop I had rebooked the same hotel and of course Eurostar.
There had been strikes on the UK rail network in December and these surprisingly had impacted Eurostar as well. The threat of continued strikes was being speculated in the press. Then the French unions announce strikes in January. To further complicate travel, the Farnborough into London Waterloo line had been closed 10 days earlier due a trackside landslide.
Day 1 Thursday 26th January 2023 – Eurostar to Paris
Luckily the Bracknell line to Waterloo was till running despite it too having had a landslide in the weeks before I travelled. I went early to buy my tickets to Waterloo and discovered that when I presented my Eurostar tickets I automatically had a reduction in my fare – thank you very much Bracknell booking office!
The 7:02 am from Bracknell was quite empty but 30 minutes later, after stops at Feltham, Staines and Richmond, it was standing room only.
From Waterloo, I went to the Northern Line with only three staircases to struggle down. This train was packed and I had to stand for the few stations to Leicester Square. At Leicester Square, there were even more (longer) steps to the Piccadilly Line, where I joined an almost empty carriage.
Once in the Underground booking hall, there is a flight of steps, but alongside is a small lift to take visitors up to the corridors to the mainline stations.
The gates to the waiting hall for my Eurostar train opened after a short wait and then I had to pass through security. My suitcase was indeed quite heavy and had to be lifted up onto the scanner’s conveyor belt. The queue for the initial French Immigration checks was short as we all went through the automatic passport gates. Next was the new addition, post Brexit, of a small booth where I had my passport stamped. Welcome to France in London!
There were trains to Paris and Amsterdam, waiting as well as my 10:30, so the area was indeed very busy.
I went to the Costa Coffee for a hot croissant, a pain au raisin and a coffee. Having to move down the counter was a step too far from with some passengers who complained and threatened to never return.
Costa had tables and I found a vacant one, so at least I would have a place to sit. Manhandling my case and camera gear on the steps on the Underground had been rather difficult to say the least!
As the other trains left the hall cleared. Electronic boards said that the train to Paris would arrive at 10:22 and we would be told our platform allocation at around 10:10 am.
The hall was again beginning to fill up and by 9:50 am I decided to go for a walk. As I passed the gates, gate 9 opened and it was for my train. At Paddington the tracks are above the hall so I joined the crowd piling onto the travellator going up.
My carriage was number 11, which was quite a walk down the platform. There I joined at the far end only to discover that my seat was at the opposite end of the carriage.
Around me, it was chaotic as some passengers were double booked on their seats. I’m not sure how it was resolved, but the seat next to me was then occupied by a man whose seat reservation had been double booked.
The journey to France was uneventful.
Once through the tunnel the skies over Calais were blue but by the time we reached Paris it was damp and grey.
Day 1 Thursday 26th January 2023 – Gare du Nord to Hotel Design
Once I was through the crush of everyone leaving the train and squeezing past porter’s trolleys I followed the signs to the RER line B. A Zone one ticket was now €2.10 which was indeed a bargain.
Down from the station concourse and below the Metro concourse there was Platform 42. My luck was in and and a train was there. Unlike three years ago the carriage was empty and I could have a seat…
Two stops later and I was off at Luxembourg RER station. I had watched how others navigated the RER gates, luggage first, then your body, and this time I went through with no trouble. Plus I knew which end of the long platform to leave for street level (the one where the train had entered the station)
Once at street level all was familiar from three years ago on the Boulevard Saint-Michel.
Heading towards the Sorbonne I arrived at my hotel at 14:30, too early for check in. Instead I left my suitcase and headed out to grab a quick lunch.
Inevitably this meant going to McDonald’s at the bottom of Rue Soufflot.
Now I could make an interesting comparison between McDs in Waterloo and here in Paris for a big Mac meal. At Waterloo I had had gone large, but the meal there was still cheaper. This McD’s restaurant has not aged well and definitely could do with a lot of TLC including fixing the stools, the screens at the pickup desk and getting the vending screens or working. One of the high stools had had no seat when I last in Paris 3 years ago and it still didn’t have one now.