In the south of France, you need wheels to get around. Our options were to buy a car, rent one, or use Pierrick’s classic car. We chose the latter.

The plan was to send La Dolce (short for La Dolce Vita, her name) down south by train. We could freight her as south as Avignon. She was deposited Thursday evening at Gare de Lyon and would be arriving to her destination Saturday morning. Meanwhile, our flat was emptied Friday. We could have stayed one last night in our flat, huddled on yoga mats, but instead my sweetie surprised me with a night at a hotel… and not any hotel!

Le Notre Dame Hotel

The Notre-Dame St-Michel Hotel is a 3-star hotel entirely designed by Christian Lacroix, one of my sweetie’s favorite designers. Lacroix wanted to offer high-design to the middle-class, so this hotel is not overly expensive. It’s beautiful and has an amazing view of the Seine and Notre-Dame Cathedral.

View from our hotel room, which was on the very top floor.

For those who care, Shakespear & Co. is the red awning.

La Seine & Notre-Dame by day.

La Seine & Notre-Dame by night.

I don’ remember what this building is, but it’s beautiful!

Notre-Dame at 7 AM on A Saturday

The next morning I was up at the crack of dawn. Pierrick, on the other hand, was not. I did not want to waste my morning away in a hotel room so I went out to visit Notre-Dame, and what a great idea that was! I had only been inside once or twice before. Usually there’s a queue and loads of tourists. Like many Parisians, I tended to avoid the places where the tourists flock. On the morning of Saturday 26 March, the church was almost deserted and I got to capture a few great photos.

Now have you ever seen this place so empty?

Le Point Zéro des Routes de la France / Point Zero of the Routes of France

Appropriately, our travels begin at the point zero, or starting point, of the routes of France. From here, the journey begins!