please empty your brain below
"Eurostar's wifi is very poor. I got better connectivity by turning it off."

Amen to that. Not just true of Eurostar, though.

David | 12.04.19 - 10:31 a.m. | #

J'ai mangé un croissant à Derby, je suis vraiment désolé.

Kevin Too | 12.04.19 - 10:35 a.m. | #

For a place that can be as lovely as Paris, Gare du Nord is an embarrassment.

Chris | 12.04.19 - 11:26 a.m. | #

Read, by chance, on the Eurostar speeding through Northern France (and not in the WiFi). The tricolore bullets are a nice touch, and well done on the 8M.

Lux | 12.04.19 - 12:37 p.m. | #

I can't believe you bought the cornish pasty in Paris, so I'm surprised you haven't been arrested for importing said item into the country ;)

Margaret | 12.04.19 - 5:22 p.m. | #

Travelling with a Cornish pasty across the Channel, inside the EU, is not illegal (neither is it just about to be).

diamond geezer | Homepage | 12.04.19 - 5:33 p.m. | #

I can’t remember when DG last spent a night away from home (as described in these pages).

dg writes: Remember harder.

Every one of these trips outside London seems to be a day trip. I make an exception for seeing his family at Christmas I think? But that is somewhat different.

He got a whole post a while back explaining why other people seem to like having drinks while out and he doesn’t: is there a way he can explain why other people stay in hotels, b&bs, cottages etc and he doesn’t? Seems to be doing this even back before his redundancy too. So it’s money obviously, but I think there’s more going on as well.

Flaud | 12.04.19 - 9:14 p.m. | #

Disappointed you didn’t post at 18:15 or 13:46.

Jimmy | 13.04.19 - 6:03 a.m. | #

Is the greve du zele at the Gare du Nord still going on?

dg writes: No.

Customs officers were being being ultra-thorough checking bags leading to long queues. I was lucky and waited for less than an hour but my friend queued for over three hours.

Trains left on time so Eurostar staff were busy rebooking lots of passengers on the next available train on a first come first served basis.

Martin | 13.04.19 - 11:38 a.m. | #

I really like Gare du Nord - well arriving there, at least. I like how you get off the train, walk off the end of the platform with no barriers, and straight out into work-a-day Paris. It's how I once believed all travel to and from our neighbouring countries would logically develop, but too many things have instead conspired against.

NickW | Homepage | 13.04.19 - 9:28 p.m. | #

There's always so much to do in Paris. I am hoping you found time for the high speed rail exhibition that's on for the next few months...

ap | 14.04.19 - 8:00 a.m. | #

Pre Eurostar days, my memories of Gare Du Nord was that it it was a filthy dump. The station was then improved both above and below ground (presumably with the coming of Eurostar). Unlike the purpose built Eurostar facilities at Waterloo and even better ones at St Pancras, Gare du Nord gives the impression that the Eurostar bits were just shoe-horned into whatever space they had available. Security / passport control is very cramped and usually entails queuing on the upper station balcony. The waiting room is far too small and not fit for purpose, especially when there is any delay.

I suppose one difference is that there are more departures from St Pancras as trains also go to Belgium and now Holland, whereas from Gare du Nord they only go to the UK.

Rogmi | 14.04.19 - 10:57 a.m. | #

For something different on a wet day, especially with youngsters is the Palais de Decouverte (Paris' science museum) in Le Grand Palais. As well as a variety of lectures (even better if you understand French) it has a sparktacular electrostatics display theatre, where long-haired "volunteers" are charged up to several hundred thousand volts to see their hair stand on end!
Always a favourite when visiting...

NickK | 14.04.19 - 6:39 p.m. | #

(another comment moved to Friday's post)

diamond geezer | Homepage | 14.04.19 - 6:43 p.m. | #

Ouch, only just in time.
Notre Dame en feu.

diamond geezer | Homepage | 15.04.19 - 6:29 p.m. | #

Trains go from Gare du Nord to many places in Belgium, Netherlands and northern Germany, as well as Normandy.

Just seen the news about Notre Dame. There are suggestions it may be connected with restoration work going on in the roof.

I remember York Minster and, more recently, Peterborough cathedral, had serious fires, and both have been carefully restored. Hopefully much can be saved this time too.

Timbo | 15.04.19 - 6:58 p.m. | #

I meant the Eurostar departures from Gare du Nord. I assume that these facilities are only used by Eurostar and as a self-contained set up.

How are passport / customs arranged for trains to other countries - are there similar arrangements for these at GdN, or are these done at the border?

Rogmi | 17.04.19 - 12:08 p.m. | #

Rogmi: Eurostar and Russian Railways are the only train companies from Paris operating services where passport checks are necesary, although French authorities may occasionally direct police to check passports on all international trains. Russian Railways operates from Gare de l'Est and passport checks on these trains happen at the Poland/Belarus border, as you could get off in Berlin or Warsaw for which no passport checks are routinely needed.

Customs checks are not currently required routinely between EU countries. There are no trains to Andorra. The border with Monaco is not enforced. Customs checks to Switzerland happen on arrival in the first Swiss station, if they happen at all.

John | 19.04.19 - 8:12 a.m. | #

Thanks
I forgot that most of the EU generally has an open border whereas the UK still controls theirs.

Rogmi | 19.04.19 - 10:47 a.m. | #











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