15.1.07

22nd December Paris




Because of the wheelchair we boarded last, and were escorted via the lift to the reception area on the boat. So far, so good. We had 2 cabins, one normal twin and one twin with disabled facilities - wider doorway, accessible shower, more room to move. The people at the reception had no idea which cabins were which and initially sent us to the wrong ones, and didn't seem at all concerned. However we sorted it out ourselves and embarked on a tour of the facilities including restaurants, bars, a games room, disco and a cinema. The only problem was that they nearly all closed at midnight, so we didn't have long to play.

The crossing I believed would be around seven hours, which left time for a few hours sleep, but after getting settled in, then crossing La Manche - beautifully calm and not fog-bound - and getting woken by a voice telling us it was 6 am (but really 5 am because of the hour time difference) there wasn't much time left for zzds.

Apart from the above minor hitches, the trip was well worth it. It was much cheaper than four seats on the Eurostar, and the kids could see that we were actually going to another country, even though it was dark. The view looking back on Portsmouth harbour at night was beautiful, and the early morning bus trip into Caen from the landing at Ouistreham was quite surreal. I say early, but really it was around 8 am, but still dark.

We managed to get Richie onto the bus to Caen because Neil could help him up the steps and the madame bus driver was very accommodating. However anyone on their own would need to get a taxi - probably quite expensive, but readily available. The trip takes around half an hour by bus, and the countryside and buildings are very pretty.

We got off at the railway station at Caen and I proceeded to use my best French to book four tickets to Paris. It was easier than I thought, and I even took the liberty of booking first class (42 Euros per adult), as I was hoping to sneak in some shut-eye during the two hour trip. I was to be thwarted in this endeavour, however, as I suddenly felt nauseous once the train had departed, and spent most of the trip either in the toilet or sitting on the floor outside it! To top it off, somehow I jammed my little finger in one of the automatic doors that go between cabins, and it immediately swelled up and went blue. At the time of writing I am booked in to have an X-ray, two months later, as it has never been the same since. Oh well, such are the perils of travelling the world! Everyone else had a pleasant trip, so that is the main thing.

We arrived at St Lazare, (with me feeling much better having emptied my stomach contents completely and the finger was numb rather than sore), at 11 o'clock, and were then taken under the wing of the very friendly porters and had an unofficial tour of the bowels of the Paris SNCF system. They decided that the RER train that we were going to catch to Noisiel, where our hotel was, was not easy to access, so they led us underground past all kinds of pipes and dirt and concrete, to emerge in the middle of Paris at a bus stop where we were to wait to go to the Gare de Lyon. The image of tiny French porter carrying Neil's 20kg back-pack will stay with me forever! They stayed with us until the bus arrived (in this we cannot praise the French rail staff enough) and then they made sure the driver knew where we were going. We did get a wonderful tour of Paris between St Lazare and the Gare de Lyon, but at this stage I should warn all intending disabled travellers in Paris - avoid the Gare de Lyon at all costs! We spent more time there trying to find a lift than we did actually getting to our destination at Noisiel. We did eventually find the lift that would take us to the track we needed, but guess what - it was hors de service! To cut a long (and boring) story short, we finally found someone who took us outside to a goods lift about twenty metres away, and we were then able to catch our RER train to Noisiel. Once at Noisiel I phoned the hotel, L'Hotel des Deux Parcs, and they gave us directions from the station. It involved walking across the road from the station and catching a bus, but it was easy. The buses there have the hydraulic platform that comes out once you push the wheelchair button. It should be noted that when you do this the doors close, and you think they are going without you, but it is the first part of the process of activating the step. Never fear!

After arriving in France at 7am, we were to take around eight hours to reach our hotel in Paris. I was glad to get there because at last I could sleep! Neil and the kids went for a walk but did not buy anything because they didn't speak French, but instead waited till I woke up, by which time it was a bit late to find a restaurant. We went to a Lidl (like Aldi) supermarket and bought snack food and strange tasting flavoured milk - yuk. Still, it filled a gap until the morning.

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