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The middle of April, 2002

We've arrived in Paris after a leisurely trip from Waterloo Station, London on the Eurostar. We're told that the British tracks are of such poor quality that the high-speed train has to limp along until it hits the Chunnel. Isaac isn't wild about the changes in air pressure through the Chunnel; it bothers him more than takeoff and landings in a passenger jet.

But here we are, in front of the gothic Cathédrale Notre Dame de Paris, built in les XIIe et XIVe siècles (1163-1345). We're told that all road distances in France are calculated from a marker in front of the cathedral.

Nearby we find the Hôtel de Ville de Paris, the City Hall. This one was built in the 16th century after the original was set ablaze during the 1870 Parisian revolution.

Robert Doisneau's famous 1950 picture, Le Baiser de l`Hotel de Ville, should now have a familiar background :-)

Here's what it all looked like in the middle 1550s. The Seine is at right and the Hôtel de Ville is in the middle. The small house with the cross in front of it no longer stands. It was the location of the execution place, first a gibet, then a guillotine.

Next, the Centre Georges Pompidou and a patisserie near the Metro Opéra station.

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