Hikes near Paris It was just after our picnic lunch on the Carrefour de Denecourt when Mrs. Easy Hiker started to sing the praises of hiking in the Ile de France, thanking the Hiking Gods for making all local trails so conveniently flat. She hadn’t quite finished her sentence when we went on a steep…
Hiking near Paris The Parisian Banlieue – a term covering anything from just outside of the city limits to villages and small towns a one-hour railway journey away – has a bad reputation, not all of it undeserved. But for every town over which a pallor of tristesse – actually, the bitterness of exile –…
Day Trip from Paris Remember when I took you on an unexpectedly adventurous journey from Pontoise to the outskirts of Auvers sur Oise? And I promised you: no more bad surprises? Today, I am going to keep that promise. The Auvers-sur-Oise Van Gogh knew The first thing you will notice when crossing the bridge into…
Day Trip from Paris Memories of Two World Wars The highlight of our day hike in Compiegne was the visit to the Musee de l’Armistice to view some of the relics of two world wars. Aside from the monument erected to honour the war dead, we saw relics of two world wars that were on display too….
Day Trip from Paris Here’s What Hitler did in Compiegne One hour away from Paris lies the quiet provincial town of Compiegne where not one but two recent chapters of European history were completed. If the 30 Year European War from 1914 to 1945 was a drama in five acts, Compiegne was the stage of…
An Easy Paris Hiking Trail Get a feel for France profonde an hour away from Paris in Santeuil (Val d’Oise). Take this Paris hiking trail in the Valley of the Viosne. Have a break from the shopping and sight seeing you’ve done in the City of Lights and breath the French countryside.
