Surprisingly I didn't have time on my first day in Paris to make it to the Arc de Triomphe. Luckily it's a pretty quick trip to there on the Metro from our accommodation without the need to change lines at all. And it was definitely worth the effort of getting out of bed early again (the Chez Jenny cocktails were very nice the night before, not so great the morning after).
The Arc de Triomphe is beautiful. It's hard to describe (partly because it was hard to comprehend) the sense of peace I felt there despite being in the middle of 12 busy roads converging into one roundabout. But I didn't feel that it glorified war in any way but was rather a superb and very respectful monument to what the country of France has endured through war and to their soldiers who lost their lives. The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier with its eternal flame is particularly poignant. Then, of course, the views from the top make walking up all those steps worthwhile!
Back to the apartment to meet Lindee and Liz and get my luggage for our trip to Troyes (pronounced twa-yay). The train left Gare de l'Est at precisely 2.12pm as scheduled and arrived in Troyes at exactly the time scheduled also. For somebody like myself who is used to travelling on VLine trains, it was very impressive. It was pouring rain when we arrived in Troyes but our accommodation was superb - a beautiful old house converted into a B&B run by a charming couple. My bedroom was La Petite Chambre, an attic room which I liked to refer to as my garret. It was obviously decorated to cater for small children as it was crowded with soft toys. I had to throw a lot of them into the cot under the window to make room for me!
We went for a wander that evening to find somewhere for dinner and stumbled across an Irish pub called the James Joyce. I ordered the fish & chips (probably because it came with a salad and I was craving for a fix of green food by this time) and I think it was the best fish & chips I've ever had. Also had a Cosmopolitan because clearly I hadn't had enough cocktails the previous night. So there I was - an Australian drinking a New York cocktail in an Irish pub in France. And very happy about it all too.
