Up the Seine to Paris

2013

Entr’acte
                  est 
                             arrivé  
                                         à
                                                 Paris!

   

On June 11. 2013, Enr’acte arrived at Le Port D’Arsenal de Paris.  It doesn’t get any better than this! 

Paris

The River Seine was lovely but stopping places were scarce.  The guides would indicate a good  Halte Nautique but when we arrived there was nothing there.  It was a bit maddening. But we eventually would find a nice spot outside a lock but it was a bit tedious.

We were advised  to stop just after the final lock 5 miles from Paris for the night and make the last run at 06:00 so as to avoid the fierce river traffic of tour boats, ferries and cargo peniches.   Again, that was not to be. There was no longer any place to stop between the lock and Paris so we ended up arriving in Paris during the busiest time of the day.  The traffic was outrageous,!  Feries, construction barges, water taxis, sight seeing tour boats, peniches carrying cargo, police boats and fire boats  but in the end we managed to travel through without incident.

We locked through to  the Marina d’Arsenal smack in the center of Paris.  It does not get any better than this. 

 Arrival in Paris   Port D’Arsenal de Bastille The Djazelles

Paris was a blast.  We were within easy walking distance of everything we could want or need—everything except diesel fuel.   Even in Paris, all fuel had to be ferried by jerry can sometimes a great distance and on foot.  There was a diesel barge that serviced the peniche fleet but they only dealt in large volumes and we were too small.

Our main interest this time in Paris was to take in the Jazz clubs and participate in the numerous Jam sessions throughout the city.  In this, we were not disappointed.  The sessions were many, the clubs affordable and the musicians outstanding.  We were readily accepted by the jazz fraternity and indeed treated like royalty, making many new friends throughout our stay.  There is this myth of the unfriendly, angry Parisiene.   Well, we certainly did not encounter them.  Every single person we met was the epitome of friendliness and courtesy.

Ellen and Matthiew  Club 37 in Paris   Jam at the Django Festival