Au Revoir Paris

We dropped down through the lock from the Paris Arsenal onto the River Seine just after 9am. Uncharacteristically early for us but the day was forecast to be hot and we wanted to cover some distance to make up for the 10 days our boat had languished in one spot whilst we enjoyed the sights of the city. Waiting for the lock to empty and the gates to open is a bit like waiting in the slightly scruffy and dingy wings of a theatre and then suddenly it’s time; out you sail onto a glittering stage with the most magnificent backdrop of grand buildings and your audience waving from ornate bridges which gleam gold in the sunshine. Not that boats on the Seine are anything unusual of course. Dozens of them plough up and down every day and evening carrying thousands of tourists. There are cargo barges too but smaller private boats are not quite so common. Being reasonably early in the morning meant we more or less had the river to ourselves and whilst the star of the show is the city itself we felt centre stage for a little while at least.

This is the second time we have enjoyed our own Paris cruise on l’Avenir. This time was beneath clear blue skies and so was perfect. One of the other Australians in the port was brave enough to take his boat out and join the crazily busy procession of bateaux mouches (huge trip boats) plying the Seine in the evening to enjoy the illuminated buildings and bridges. They returned to port thrilled by the experience. We would have loved to try it too but unfortunately our navigation lights, untested for years, stubbornly refused to play their part and contribute to the ‘City of Lights’. Perhaps next time.

We followed the Seine downstream as far as the junction with the River Oise. I would have liked to continue to Vernon in order to visit Monet’s garden but that also will have to wait for another trip. We did stop overnight at another Impressionist favourite though – the restaurant Fournaise on the ‘Isle des Impressionistes’ at Chatou where Renoir painted a series of works. The island was a popular destination for artists for a period of time when boating (and partying) on the Seine was all the rage. Then bicycles became ‘the latest thing’ and the fashionable cycled off elsewhere. 

Restaurant Fournaise

The area was renowned for its quality of light and there seems to be something in that. The evening sky put on quite a show – no flashy sunsets; a much more subtle shifting of cloud formations and colour. Quite a crowd of young people sat chatting, picnicking and enjoying the warm summer evening. Every so often someone would pull out their phone and capture a picture of the ever changing sky and their friends enjoying themselves. The digital equivalent of what Renoir himself was doing perhaps.