From Meaux to Paris: Made it

June 20, 2008

Our breakfast is typical for big budget-style hotels. To save money there is only one over-worked staff member on duty to take care of the front desk and the breakfast buffet. Coffee is instant, made by a coffee machine, and the bread isn't from a local bakery but some kind of inferior and cheaper bake-it-yourself product. Nevertheless, the hotel has Internet connection, the staff are friendly and we were allowed to bring the bicycles inside for the night. They didn't bat an eye when we wheeled our dripping bicycles through the lobby to the conference room, where they were to be stowed.

After a good night's sleep, we again look into reserving a room with our asus eee. We are now up to the task, and succeed in booking a hotel for three nights in Paris, near the Gare de l'Est and the Canal de l'Ourcq, which we will follow into France's capital. I am happy and relieved that we won't have to hunt for a room at the end of the day when we are tired, with loaded bikes, in a big city and, and, and ... Having eliminated those stress factors, we set out for Paris.

On our way out of Meaux, we take a quick look at the old town and the enormous cathedral. How did they manage to pile stones so high without the aid of modern machines?

Today we pass the 1,000 km mark. It is grey but not raining and not cold as we attempt the tow path along the canal leading from Meaux to Claye-Souilly. It looks promising - but not for long. Soon large rocks and a very rough surface force us back onto pretty, but hilly and less direct country roads. According to my information, in Claye-Soiully we will be able to get on a proper cycle path to Paris.

The path in Meaux: this looks pretty good at the beginning

What do you mean we can't ride our bicycles here? After a few hundred meters the path stops - oh, that's why.

Around here my odometer registers 1,000 km so far on this trip

From Claye-Souilly we just have 30 km more to go and we are in - Paree!! The path is at first green, then more housing and the surroundings become more urban. In a critical mode, I must admit the cycle path along the Canal de l'Ourcq has quite a few shortcomings. Its surface is often poor, sometimes you must reduce your speed to a crawl since there are intentional ridges, I suppose to prevent cycists from jeopardizing pedestrians, but very inconvenient for a loaded tourer. Sometimes the path follows the canal, then it climbs to go through the forest, then back down. There are blind corners and racers out for training pop up at top speeds.

The beginning of the bike path to Paris along the Canal d'Ourcq

Some unpleasant ridges every once and a while

When we get closer in, cycle traffic increases and experience in city cycling is helpful. You can follow the path, if you want, to the Seine. This is indeed an easy way to find your way into the center of Paris without getting lost.

A so-called lift bridge on the canal: a whole section of the road is lifted vertically

We must now leave the security of the canal bike path and plunge into Paris city traffic. We find shared bus lanes for bicycles and get to our hotel quite easily - amazing - aided by Janos's familiarity with Paris, a sketchy map along the bike path and lots of adrenaline.

At the hotel, question number one is where can we store our bicycles? The proprietor of the little hotel won't come by until the evening. The Algerian restaurant on the ground floor, "Le Bec Fin", serves as a reception and gives us the key to our room but has no idea what we should do with our bicycles. No matter how good your lock is, you must never leave a bike out on the streets in Paris over night, and if it is a good bike, not in the daytime either, this much we know.

We made it. Now where do we put the bicycles when we're not sitting next to them?

We wait and wait but the "patron" doesn't show up. Eventually it becomes clear that we - Janos that is, I don't have the strength - will have to carry our bicycles up the narrow and steep staircase to our room on the fourth floor. The good news is our room (65€) is spacious and can easily accommodate our bikes. And there they will stay, for obvious reasons, until we leave Paris.

Our room is located over the restaurant "Le Bec Fin"

We decide to eat at the Algerian restaurant downstairs, a lovely place with bright tiles in colorful patterns from floor to ceiling. Naturally, we have couscous. The vegetables in broth are brought to the table in a copper pot, the couscous in another copper pot, accompanied by raisins, chick peas, harissa (a spicy chili paste common in north Africa). And then comes the grilled meat - the platter of meat would have been enough for at least six hungry cyclists. We are shown how to mix the harissa with the broth which is then poured over the plate of cous cous and vegetables. To make the meal complete we have a bottle of Algerian wine. We only have to make it up the stairs now before we conk out.

Today's ride: 52 km (32 miles)
Total: 1,045 km (649 miles)

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