Next Sunday, we will begin our trip to France, Monaco and, I hope, Italy. I bought a few more guides and maps today. That brings our list, just for this trip, to include the following:
I visited our local AAA and the only item they had to offer that day was the map and visiting their Web site together. They were very nice. The map has actually been immensely handy. As we make train, day-trip, and hotel plans, the regional map helps put things in perspective. We've purchased
Suzy Gershman's guides for years. Even if you weren't born to shop, they offer just tons of practical advice about many cultural, monetary, and practical aspects of our trips. I chose the phrase books because, when I travel to France, my companions usually depend on my (notorious) French language skills. And I'm always rusty in the first few days of the trip. Kirk knows and understands this. He's seen me as we leave
Paris-Charles DeGaulle (CGD) Airport nervously, confusedly interacting with RER or Metro staff. But he's also seen me, usually on the first or second evening of our trip, drinking wine and swapping stories with our oh-so-kind and gentle Paris friends. In an easy-going and fluent-seeming, if crude, French. But this time, ah, this time I will have my handy phrase book to help. I'll read it on the flight to
Paris and on the trains to
Reims and
Monaco. When I disembark, I'll be ready to speak the language, read the signs, and be the champion of the day. Then, since we will be in Monaco, oh so close to Italy, I bought the phrase book for Italian, as well. I have never taken any Italian lessons. And I want to enjoy the first opportunity of my life to be in Italy. (Yes, I've been in transit through
Aeroporto Malpensa (MXP). But that does not count for much, as memorable as it was.) Maybe
San Remo? We'll see. We've had a number of friends recommend the Streetwise maps. We've borrowed copies to get all around Paris. Mind you, we also made our own discovery that we like even better. They are the
Moon Metro Travel Guides. We have used them on previous trips (Washington, DC and London). They are neighborhood-by-neighborhood guides. Each section has a fold-out map of the neighborhood. Then recommends restaurants, shopping, and sites in that area. It is strongly oriented to public transportation. That is, the Tube in London. Or the Metro in Paris or Washington, DC. And it so works for real, on-the-street situations travellers may want to overcome: Where to have lunch near the Tate Modern? What sites are in the area around our friends' place? Will that
neat bookshop near Dupont Circle be open on Tuesday night? Are there second-best alternatives? Sadly, the last time a Moon Metro series covered Paris was back in May 2005. So, we bought the Streetwise map instead. I did not purchase a Streetwise Map for the Cote d'Azur. They had one. But the Streetwise format, an admired classic one, is better suited to cities, I think. In the Cote d'Azur, our precise destination is a resort hotel in Cap d'Ail. It's on the Bay of Monaco, and is within a couple of kilometers of the Monaco train station. in Paris we'll be staying in the 16th Arrondissement near the Parc de Trocadero and then in the 8th near the Parc de Monceau. Funny thing is that my brother and sister-in-law will be staying at the hotel in the 8th before we do.
As far as the kitchen renovation goes, we picked up our KitchenAid wine cellar. And then we stacked the Franke sink and the Danze faucet in the TV Room. Our poor house sitter. There will be a lot going on during the week we're in Europe. We're so glad he'll be there.
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