From Russia With Love - 6. Chapter 6

We finally left the Eiffel Tower just before two o'clock and had a late lunch in one of the cafes. Kodi, Jess and I went with something we were familiar with, which was croque monsieur; which is basically Welsh Rarebit, but made with brie instead of cheddar. Our parents had some fish stew thing called bouillabaisse, and Jess was even brave enough to try a snail; rather her than me.

After we had allowed our food to digest, we headed back to the Bir-Hakeim station to travel to the Sacré Coeur Basilica.

“Let me guess,” Jess whined, “another journey where we have to change trains?”

“I'm afraid so, sweetie,” I said.

The journey on the metro line six from Bir-Hakeim to Pasteur took us just over ten minutes and we then changed to the number fourteen metro line; with Jess complaining all the way. We only had a few minutes wait for the metro train for our journey to Abbesses station; a journey which took us about half an hour and thankfully we all had seats. Well most of us had seats; Jess used my lap as a seat for the entire journey and by tee time we reached our destination my legs were numb, which made realise just how big she’s getting.

As soon as we exited the station, we would see the white basilica perched high atop the Montmartre. Since we were feeling adventurous, we decided to walk up instead of taking the little funicular railway; well, we walked, while Jess bless her, sprinted up and down a few flights of stairs ahead of us. I have no idea where she gets her seemingly endless energy reserves from; it was tiring me out just watching her.

We took a few photographs of the outside of the basilica as we walked up, and we also took a few photos of the city below us as we got higher and higher. We walked around the interior of the basilica, and us kids decided to walk up to the top of the basilica to get a look at the view; our parents elected not to make the climb with us. Kodi and I, just as we had done at the Notre Dame, kept a tight hold on Jess while we were looking around the dome. It may sound odd two fourteen year olds taking on such responsibilities, but we both try to build up the brownie points with our parents, as you never know when they are going to come in handy; well that, and I do actually love spending time with Jess, I always have.

We were all a little disappointed though that, just as was the case with the Notre Dame, the crypt was closed, but we figured we’d had an enjoyable day anyway; a tour of the crypts would just have been the icing on the cake.

By the time we finally left the Sacré Coeur, it was fast approaching five o'clock. We decided to take the funicular railway down to the Anvers metro station instead of walking down the Montmartre.

“This isn't the station we used to come here,” said Jess.

“Very observant of you Jess,” I said, “but at least by using this station we have a direct train back to the hotel.” Jess smiled at me.

“Actually guys, we’re going to stop off the Arc de Triomphe first. If we don’t fit it in now, I’m afraid we may miss it entirely.”

“Come on Dad, we’re shattered,” I said.

“It won’t take long to actually look at, but I think it would be a real shame for you kids to have come to Paris and not seen the Arc de Triomphe.”

“I suppose you’re right Dad. I have been looking forward to seeing it.”

“Can we get the metro train straight there, or do we need to change trains like we have been doing?” Jess asked

“No, Jess. We can take this train all the way without needing to change.”

The journey to the Charles de Gaulle Étoile station, the nearest station to the Arc de Triomphe, only took us about twenty minutes. We exited on to the Avenue de la Grande Armee and saw the Arc de Triomphe sitting on an island in the middle of the traffic. After we had taken a few photos from where we were standing, I began to wonder about how we were going to safely reach it, when Dad pointed out the underground tunnel that we would use.

We saw the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, and took a few snapshots. We were a little early to see the lighting of the ‘eternal flame’, which would not occur until half past six; so that gave us about forty five minutes to pass. Since it was free for children to climb up to the top of the Arc, Kodi, Jess and I availed ourselves of the opportunity; again our parents decided not to join us. I’m actually beginning to wonder if one or more of our parents are afraid of heights. It provided not quite the same spellbinding view as we got from the top of the Eiffel Tower or the Sacré Coeur, but it was still pleasant enough to have made the effort seem worthwhile.

We waited to observe the lighting of the ‘eternal flame’, and since it was a nice afternoon, we decided to walk back to the hotel; after all it was only a walk of half a kilometre.

We finally made it back to the hotel a little before seven o’clock. Kodi and I were about to run up to our room when my dad said, “Boys, we’re just going to order from room service tonight. I’ll be putting the order in at eight thirty, so have a look at the room service menu and let me know what you want.”

“Will do, Dad.”

We hurried up to our room, ran a bath, and jumped in.

“Oh God, Kodi you have no idea how much I need this.”

“You’re not alone in that Kyle. I can’t remember the last time I felt this tired.”

The two of us laid back in the large jacuzzi-sized bath tub and I wrapped my arms around Kodi’s chest. We laid there for what felt like forever.

“You know Kodi; I’d love to know where Jess gets all of her energy from.”

Kodi laughed, and said, “Oh yeah, me too. She’s always been full of beans though. You remember when she was starting to crawl?”

“Oh God, I’ve never so many carpet burns on someone’s knees before.”

“Yeah, but it never slowed her down.”

“I don’t get why she’s never tried out for any of the sports teams? I mean she’s certainly got the energy and the stamina for it.”

“Yeah, well I think Jess is a lot like you in that department. She’s far more interested in learning than she is in sports.”

“I can’t believe that your sister is more like me than she is like you.”

When the water finally started getting cold, we got out and dried ourselves off.

We told Dad what we wanted for dinner, and just after nine o’clock, there was a knock on our door; it was one of the hotel staff with our food.

We were about to start eating when there was another knock on the door. It was Richard.

“Just a little something for you two, and whatever you do, don’t tell your mother.”

After he had left, I asked Kodi, “What is it?”

“A bottle of red wine.”

“Ooh, party time.”

“Let me rephrase, my dearest. A bottle of non-alcoholic red wine.”

I bet Kodi's dad was off having a right old giggle at the 'don't tell your mother' line he pulled on us.

We had a nice meal which consisted of potato soup, a large steak (which looked it could still walk around and moo) with a selection of potatoes and vegetables, and a slice of chocolate cake. We even enjoyed the non-alcoholic wine, which gave our evening’s repast a slightly more adult feel to it.

After we had finished eating, I put the tray outside our door, and we turned on the TV. We made ourselves comfortable on the bed and watched a couple of films. It was nearly one o’clock in the morning by the time we fell asleep.

Our brief time in Paris had come to an end, and we would be heading off to the Gare de l'Est station early in the morning to catch the sleeper train to Moscow.