It has been a gray windy rainy day from yesterday to now mid day here, it seems like hurricane season has move up north to France. Granted not the same wind strenghts but the rest is the same lol!!! I am in my house, thinking how to get out, planning….
In the meantime, here are some new stuff like to share with my readers and family. Orly airport that one folks call Paris, but actually is in the city of Orly in dept 94 Val de Marne, is going thru a metamorphosis of many changes to improve it to real international standards. The site in French is here http://www.aeroportsdeparis.fr/ADP/fr-FR/Passagers/Services/actualites-des-services/metamorphose-paris-orly.htm
Basically,
The idea of renovations from now to 2018 is to eventually make just one terminal (now there are two with four hallways). The two terminals call Sud(south) and Ouest(west), will have a welcome hall increase to 80 000 m2, or the equivalent of 160 football fields ! From now to 2015, when the new international terminal at Sud or south terminal will be done, you will have a new departure gate hall of 20 000 m2 that will be built east of the airport terminals today bringing to a total of 100 000 m2 the space for passengers. I just went by there and its awesome airy more space ,nicer stores and restos quicker service, grand ,its Paris.
There are two terminasl
You can connect between terminals for free every 4-8 minutes at Orly Ouest porte A niveau level departure and Orly Sud porte or gate K free airport of paris buses from Terminal Ouest Gate D arrival levels, and Orly Sud gate G.
At Orly Sud you have video games near Bert’s and on halls A and B, informatioin points at porte D niveau O, and tourist office by ground level or rez de chaussée near porte or gate L. Internet access with wifi spots on public access and departure areas n halls A and B You have train SNCF offices at central counter ground floor near Porte G, and RATP paris transports office by counters at doors or portes J and K.
Coming and going to Orly is by RER B plus Orlyval, correspondance at Antony for both terminals, to come into Paris take it at sortie K exit K at Orly Sud, and sortie A at departures from Orly Ouest. going to Chatelet Paris.
REC C + train correspondance at Pont de Rungis than navette bus to terminals. To Paris you take the bus navette at porte G to take the RER C platform 1 at orly sud and arrivals platform B exit H at orly ouest.
Bus, orlybus from place Denfert-Rochereau outside the RER station to terminals and to Paris from buses leave from exit G platform 4 orly sud and arrival level exit D platform B to orly ouest.6h to 23h30
taxis Alpha taxi, Taxis bleus, taxis G7,and Taxis 7000.
by car take the autoroute A6 by porte d’Orléans A6a or porte de Gentilly A6b then A106 to orly about 15 kms. To leave Orly autoroute A106/A6 direction Paris, porte d’Orléans A6a or porte d’Italie A6b.
To link up with airport CDG, take the RER B to Antony then Orlyval to Orly. check it out at www.ratp.fr
Due to construction renovations at the Eiffel tower, there is no more the 58 restaurant, so they have created a temp Lounge Eiffel place, that is very nice too, herere is more info on this
New restaurant area in first floor of the tower, 58 meters up from bottom and lunch for 25€ and dinner menu for 81€. This is in time to renovate the restaurant 58, it will open a Lounge Eiffel, it will open December 22nd and will be there until next May.Those that come to eat here will have a reduce ticket to go up the tower from 8,50 will be reduce to 4,50€! and a special counter to serve your tickets right inside the lounge (hear it all first from gwened)
for more info see this webpage
http://www.restaurants-toureiffel.com/
We are getting ready for a big celebration next year, the Cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris will celebrate its 850th birthday lol!!! Amazing, there will be lots of celebrations to mark this event,so if planning to see it next year plan well ahead and be prepare for crowds, but again, it will be all worth it. Do it.
There is a special webpage dedicated to this event and it call Notre Dame de Paris 2013, the webpage with all relevant information is here ,http://www.notredamedeparis2013.com/ The year will official begins preparations on December 12 2012. So come over it will be as grand as ever…
The site for pilgrimages in France call Pelerin also has great information on this event, and a nice vimeo video, see it here in French, http://www.pelerin.info/Photo-video/Diaporama-sonore/Les-coulisses-du-photoreportage-sur-la-cathedrale-Notre-Dame-de-Paris-vue-du-ciel
If you want to ice skate in Paris for the end of year festivities plenty of nice places, such as the Grand Palais, From December 13 to January 6 , admission is skates included is 6€ up to 12 yrs old, 12€ adults, free for under 3 yrs,and from Mondays to Sundays from 10h; more info here http://www.legrandpalaisdesglaces.com/
The front of the Hôtel de Ville in Paris will have the usual one from December 21 to March 17, free admission and 5€ to rent the skate shoes. Days Mondays to Fridays from 12h to 22H, and Saturdays, Sundays and holidays from 9h to 22h.
Starting now , the Champs-Élysées will have several installations especially over the garden there will be a road of ice skate facilities, with 3 fields from the little ones to the adults. It will last until January 6, Mondays to Fridays 11h to 23h and Saturdays, Sundays from 11h to midnight. Free admission.
Last as someone mentioned the new museum opening in Lens of the Louvre, and there is another planned for Abu Dhabi, I like to remind you that in my blogroll below I have the Tuileries.org, a group of folks from the descendants of the kings/queens ,emperors and ex Presidents of France to common folks like you and I, are trying to rebuilt from scratch and identical at a a estimated cost of 350M euros the Palais des Tuileries. I have written on it here, and this is a reminder of the great idea. This is the official webpage for the project, http://www.tuileries.org/ discussion on the building by the French Senate in French is here http://www.senat.fr/questions/base/2008/qSEQ080604809.html
The site of Napoleon, both, http://www.napoleon.org/fr/search.asp?q=tuileries and in English a historical perspective in youTube, http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=lis3Q9MA6RE
Happy readings. Cheers!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 