I think of the Autumn Paris tour as the end of my summer touring the same as I regard the Bulbfields Weekend the start of the summer season. They are two tours I have done for the last twenty plus years and am very familiar with the feeling every year.
I only have two pick-ups, Petersfield and Liphook, and am away nice and early.
On the way to Folkestone I make a comfort stop at Clackett Lane services and see a minibus from Wheelers, the company who took over Altonian’s holiday business a couple of years ago. Standing outside the bus were two of my passengers! That’s not on! And they are going to Paris! And I have spare seats! Twenty spare seats!
We press on and arrive in Folkestone at 08:30 well in time for our 10:20 shuttle. So early in fact that we catch the 09:20 which helps me out no end today.
Mind you, we very nearly didn’t get on the 09:20. As we were called forward to board the train I’m just about to drive down the ramp to the shuttle when I am stopped and asked to reverse back to the top of the previous ramp. Then all of the cars and vans ahead of me are reversed back.
Something is wrong!
I follow the first couple of vehicles, who are following the Marshall, down one ramp and up the next. At the top I am told that I should have waited back where I was but now I am here I will wait here!
The problem is a coach has grounded on the ramp down to the train and cannot move.
Once all of the cars have been loaded I drive down to the train facing the wrong way to load and turn the bus around before driving onto the train. Panic over. We are still away on time.
It is sunny today and hot driving with the sun blasting through the windscreen and little cold air about.
We have had a problem with the air con on this coach and are half way through a four to six week wait for parts. I didn’t expect to be needing it in the last week of October.
The journey to Paris is relatively traffic free and we pull up at the Novotel La Defense at 15:30 and I soon have everyone unloaded and I go off to park.
Parking is always a problem here and I had terrible difficulty last year. This year I can claim the parking space underneath the hotel. It is very tight parking here as there is a lot of concrete about and very little room for manoeuvre. Even though I have parked this coach in here before I do not like it. But it does give me time to relax and enjoy a shower before taking the group into Paris for the evening at 17:30.
We are all on board at 17:30 and 45 minutes later I am dropping them all off close to Notre Dame and the restaurants of the Latin Quarter. I will be back at 20:15 to pick them up.
I park just off Concorde Square and eat my sandwiches! I am never sure where I will park and sometimes that can be a long way from food or the weather is very bad for walking about, so I bring along a packed lunch!
When I go back to pick them all up the traffic is much busier than earlier and it is a tad awkward stopping.
Once they are all back I show them the main sights illuminated against the clear dark sky. It is always a pleasure driving around Paris and I enjoy this nightime ride.
Our last stop is for a photograph at the Tocadero, which is a viewpoint for the magnificent Eiffel Tower looking splendid tonight.
As we pull away a Belgian Cosmos coach pulls away after me but tries to push in front of me. I recognise him from the hotel and am sure he wants to get ahead of me to claim his parking space! I can’t be arsed to play silly games with a bus and let him go ahead for which I receive no acknowledgment.
Sure enough back at the hotel he has pulled in just in front of me and is parked at the front of the hotel. From there you can just drive out and off you go. He can’t as there must be a car parked there so as I pull up his reversing lights go on as he starts to reverse back out the way he came in. Too bad I arrive at precisely that moment and block him in! Nice one Hercule!
A quick beer in the bar and then it is bed for me. The beer cost €7.15 which is dear but not as dear as I remember.
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