Paris looks different from the river; it even looks different from looking at the river. Walking Paris, as we like to, offers stone and brick and steel and light, in different styles, but moving along the river on a boat is just different. And every few trips, we're drawn to it again.
There could hardly be anything more touristy than the various sightseeing boats offered by half a dozen companies along the river. This time we chose this one, whose boats are mostly named for 20th-century performers. We were on Jeanne Moreau; here's Catherine Deneuve waiting at the dock.
We chose Bateaux Parisiennes only because their pier is at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, where we had just renewed another of our every now-and-then habits.
Among the special sights are views passing under the bridges, including the Pont d'Iena above, where you can see both the original span, and the new one added in 1937 to an 1808 bridge, more than doubling its width.
And a different view of bridge decorations. Above, the statue representing naval victory on the Pont des Invalides, then two views of the ornate Alexandre III bridge, built to welcome a Russian Czar's visit to Paris.
But it's especially the boats that draw the eye, varying in color and kind and condition. There are dredges and tugs, working boats that pull barges. Retired working boats that have become homes or vacation retreats. Restaurant barges, more tour boats and some whose purpose was never clear.
But the river also gives you a sneak view of land-bound attractions as you pass. Here's the obelisk from a temple at Luxor, Egypt. In the center of Place de la Concorde, surrounded by wide lanes of traffic, it seems unapproachable. Glimpsed through the trees along the river bank, its scale seems different.
The river also gives you new angles and contexts for the monumental buildings along the way. Here, the Louvre pops up above the river traffic.
And nearly opposite it, the wonderful 1900 railroad station that became the Musée d'Orsay, and our favorite Paris museum. From the river, it is even more imposing, and gives good views of its iconic clocks.
And here was a surprise: a former cargo boat, now a houseboat, and carrying on deck a 1950s era Amphicar, ready to drive across the river and up the road.
It seems these days that any construction project in Paris is an excuse for a large ad, whether the building is a store, offices, a church, or even the Louvre.
Water-level views of the Ile Saint-Louis, and an unexpected encounter with a marching band... The band photo was our One-Clue Mystery this week, and the ever-vigilant George G spotted enough bits and pieces to identify the spot.
And a few more scenes. There are even a few extra in the slideshow below, as well...
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