My wild activity forthese days is tree-climbing! In Paris, I feel the best way to appreciate the city has been to relax and try to soak up its unique atmosphere. Here, there are many tourist attractions, museums and viewing platforms, guys rattling their models of the Eiffel Tower and people dressed as silver robots. But this is not all that makes the city alive and certainly not what makes it unique. So we decided to explore by foot and seek out some less conventional viewpoints.
While wandering the city, I noticed that, despite being a sprawling mass of concrete, the city is home to a great many trees. Many more per square mile than Liverpool. And, I would venture, more London Plane trees than in London!
On arriving at our hostel, we discovered our private bedroom view was at the level of the tree canopy! (Working for hosteling international reveals its perks.)
And so, I was inspired to explore the urban canopy and hopefully catch a view of the Eiffel Tower.
After the obligatory coffee and croissant, I was inspired to explore the urban canopy and hopefully catch a view of some famous monuments.
Paris in summer smells of damp and pollen and motorbike fumes. I found a surprising number of trees to climb in the city. The bark was slippery and its colour rubbed off on my clothes. I clambered up into the higher branches and was able to see the Eiffel Tower from three different viewpoints: the south, from near the Seine and from Bois de Boulogne park.
More of my last day in Paris to come..
And yes, I did decide to climb trees in tights.
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