A while back when I asked my husband what he liked best about our May visit to Paris, he replied, "Riding the buses."Today, workers in Paris' public transport system are on strike. (Strikes usually last only 24 hours in France, another idea the French got right, in my opinion.)
Transit workers don't like Sarkozy's plans for reforming pensions. Who can blame them?
But this blog is not about politics.
Today it's about Paris buses. I agree with my husband. Although we've ventured down into the metro to buy carnets, we prefer the buses. If you are a newcomer to Paris, riding a bus helps you get your bearings. It orients you to the maze of streets. It sets your internal compass.
We took more than 52 bus rides on our last trip to Paris. Our favorites are the No. 69 and 63, which lumber across the center of Paris, but the photo above was taken from the No. 42, another favorite. (The light in that photo looks autumnal to me.) One of my favorite rides is also the No. 62, which cuts a tidy swath across the bottom of Paris.
I have found Paris bus drivers to be polite and courteous. For the most part, so are the passengers. I love the LED readouts that tell you how long it will take to get to the end of the line, and I like the recorded voice that indicates the next stop.
My little town long ago lost its bus service. When I moved to Madison, I lived downtown near a bus stop and often left my windows ajar so I could hear the big Grummans of the Madison Metro fleet belch and lurch their way across the isthmus.
I did my grocery shopping by bus, a wearisome task, let me tell you. Today I have a vehicle that does everything but take the bags from the cart and stash them away.
Still, I miss those buses. . .
12 comments:
We've said we should take the buses but all ways have gone the subway! How amazing. We talked about it a lot the last time with just the idea of seeing things.
My husband's honkin' Canon Digital Rebel gets a lot of stares on the bus - I will not let him take it on the Metro. We've been followed a time or two when he has it. That's why I prefer my little Nikon CoolPix...
I've never ridden a bus in Paris - never even thought about it. The Metro, yes, all over, and taxis at night... maybe next time! In Barcelona we used to take the 'hop on/hop off' buses everywhere.
I, too, never took a bus in Paris. Always the Metro. There was something exciting about coming out of the underground to see where you had landed. Now I see that bus riding is an experience I will have to try on our next visit. Thanks for the insight!
Katie, I love Paris taxis, but we use Parish Shuttle from and to CDG. I saw a woman get into a taxi on Place de la Resistance near Pont D'Alma and noticed that the taxi had a few glossy fashion magazines in a pocket on the back of the front seat. I liked that.
I think the reason we like the buses so much, Christine, is that one of our first trips was the No. 69 from Rue St. Dominique to Pere Lachaise. What a ride! I love the return trip when the bus turns into a narrow alley in the Louvre...
I love the shopping part...it's the lugging it in the house and putting everything in it's proper place that I don't like!
I don't mind the shopping, but shopping by bus was no fun. It was a block walk to the bus stop and a four-block walk home.
I only took a few buses in Paris. Usually it was the metro. Sometimes it was the metro to get to a bus stop to get to my destination. But Paris is a city one can explore in every mode of transportation available and still always discover something wonderful!
Isn't that the truth, Toni!
My husband was adament about taking the Metro at first, but when he saw how easy the bus system was, he became a convert. Everyone seems to like the Metro, but we found many advantages to the buses.
I love buses too! I've recently gone car free and live on a street with a bus stop - I'm liking everything about it except for dragging home the groceries.
I really wish I could be car free, too, Mary. I live only four blocks from work now, so maybe I could walk on days when I do not need my car. Those days are so seldom, though.
Mimi:
Thanks for this. We actually use the Metro, perhaps because the maps are readily available and we're able to comprehend. Your post is an encouragement to get above ground and get over another minor fear!
Hope all is well.
CL
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