Lost in Translation, Chartres and 9-11
Trip Start
Aug 21, 2006
1
13
70
Trip End
Dec 18, 2006
Paris,
France
Monday, September 11, 2006
I lit a candle in the Cathedral today in Chartres in honor of those killed and with a wish that the violence, arrogance and war in the world right now will cease. I don't know about you, but I don't feel any safer right now than I did 5 years ago.
The film in Notre-dame the other evening showed hundreds of French citizens praying and mourning for the victims of 9-11 at the cathedral
01-Tracy Eiffel
. The US certainly seemed to have the attention and the sympathy of the world on that day. It is a shame that the path the US has chosen post 9-11 has taken us away from that place of inclusion and to a place of greater isolation, violence and hatred. Treat others as you would have them treat you....violence creates more violence. It's easy to get lost in your anger but essential to not let yourself. It's a sad time right now for the world. However, I find the people I have met on my trip to be friendly, accepting, and gracious regardless of where they are from or their socio-economic class which makes me very happy and hopeful for the future!
My tour to the Loire Valley was cancelled today due to lack of interest, so I took a train to Chartres about an hour outside of Paris. I strolled through the historic village and of course, the cathedral. It was amazing. Not as well maintained as Notre-dame but certainly just as architecturally noteworthy with fewer tourists!
The weather has turned warm again in Paris...just in time for me to leave for Venice tomorrow...It was warm yesterday too when I climbed to the second platform of the Eiffel Tower. What a view! Then I walked along the Seine, crossed over the Pont Alexander III between the Grand and Petit Palace and up the Avenue des Champ Elysees to the Arc de Triomphe. What a change in scale from the old part of Paris I have been hanging out in. Wide boulevards, sweeping views...I'm glad I saw it but decided that I preferred the smaller scale of the old Paris.
I took the RER train line C back to Notre-dame where I met up again with my French Algerian friend. We had run out of things to talk about in the Rick Steve's guide book by now and were trying the translation websites at the local internet cafe. This was quite a frustrating experience as the translations were not very good...compounded by the fact that my friend was not truly fluent in written French so the translations of his messages were completely worthless! With the prospects of any meaningful time losing steam fast, it became clear that our only options for amusement were non-verbal ones. As his advances became increasingly frequent, we parted ways. I enjoyed the rest of the evening walking around and relaxing at the hotel!
