Paris - Cruising the Seine

The Eiffel Tower lit up before the glittering show

The Seine is a 777 kilometre long river in northern France and it flows through Paris. There are 37 bridges in the French capital so it's not surprising that a river cruise is a popular way to see the city.

There are a few companies that offer these cruises varying in price, and they are very expensive when they include a meal. 

Everyone taking photos of Musee d'Orsay

Chef and restaurateur Alain Ducasse has come up with a more environmentally friendly way to cruise the Seine with his electric boat that is described as "a floating restaurant," and the prices are jaw-dropping, but probably a good deal compared to dining in his restaurants on land?

In any event we opted for the cheapest cruise without food and Bateaux Mouches fit the bill at 17 euros per person. 

We were strategic about going at sunset so we could catch Paris at dusk and then evening within the one-hour cruise.

Getting to where the boat was docked was quite the hassle, as other companies have their boats docked in the same area. Some guests were dressed up obviously for the dinner cruises, whereas the rest of us queued up en masse and tried to catch the 7.30pm sailing.

Unfortunately we couldn't quite catch it with hordes of people in front of us, but instead we got on another one around 8pm and sat on the upper deck (like everyone else).

Catching the Paris sunset on the water

It was still pretty good timing, the sun was just setting so there was a warm pink hue in the sky when we set off. 

There is no commentary on what you're seeing, including the Louvre, Notre Dame, Musee d'Orsay, the Grand Palais, and Les Invalides. Along the way we went under several bridges, each different in decor. By the Tuileries Gardens we saw the 2024 Olympic cauldron lit up with fire via a floating hot air balloon. We all caught that on our phones.

The highlight of course was seeing the Eiffel Tower in all it's glory. We could see it quite close up, and by the time we reached it, it was almost 9pm, when it would be pulsating with lights. 

We passengers had hoped the boat would slowdown at least so that we could see it at 9pm, but the captain didn't care and our cruise continued on, though we were able to catch a bit of the Eiffel Tower with its flashing light show as we craned our necks.

By the time we docked, it was dark, so we probably had the best opportunity to see Paris as night gradually fell over the city.

Picture of the Day: Reflecting Sunset

The sunset reflected off the wall of glass at Oakridge Park

The last few days the skies were hazy because of smoke from the wildfires in Summerland, British Columbia, about 300km east of Vancouver.

But today blue skies and fluffy white clouds appeared and temperatures were nice at 22 degrees Celsius.

I met friends visiting from Hong Kong for an early dinner in Burnaby, where we gorged on lots of sushi rolls, cubes of tuna sashimi mixed with spinach and miso sauce, spicy scallop rolls, and chicken terriyaki with pan-fried vegetables.

On my way back home I stopped at the intersection of Cambie and 41st Avenue and saw the sun reflected off the massive Oakridge Park development and snapped this pic.

Meanwhile, gas prices have soared these days and I had under a quarter tank left. As I drove to Burnaby, gas stations were posting $2.10 per litre, which was eye-watering and hardly anyone dared to fill up.

To my surprise at the next intersection at Oak and 41st Avenue, Petro-Canada was selling gas at $1.94 a litre. I immediately pulled into the station and filled up.

It's sad that anything below $2 a litre is considered a deal these days...

Photo of the Day: Summer Sunset

Tonight's sunset while driving along the Arthur Laing Bridge

Loving the long summer nights, when the sun is setting at 9.52pm...

Picture of the Day: Sunset in the Skies

Watching the sun set over the clouds during our flight

When an airplane ride is about three hours I don't mind sitting in the window seat and admire the view outside.

Our Air Canada flight back to Vancouver was delayed by about half an hour so we didn't land until 4.20pm. 

While we were in the air above the clouds, the clouds, the sun began to set at the horizon we were at and there was a warm glow that gradually faded as we flew further north and became more pink and mauve.

Just magical.

Picture of the Day: Sunset over Pacific Northwest

The sun setting as we flew over the Pacific Northwest

When we were flying back to Vancouver from Palm Springs, the sun was setting in the west. I couldn't help but go over to take a picture when the flight attendant exclaimed behind me, "What a nice picture!"

I took another one and turned around to see her with her phone so I got back to my seat so she could take a photo too.

She came over to apologise for butting in, but I had taken the pictures that I wanted

Who could resist taking a picture of this view?

Palm Springs: Joshua Tree National Park at Sunset

A gorgeous sunset over the mountains at Cholla Cactus Garden

I've been in Palm Springs for a few days and am enjoying the sun and blue skies, slow-paced lifestyle, not much traffic and friendly people. I'm still trying to get used to the massive American portions which are shocking and overwhelming. We've been taking home a lot of doggie bags.

An ex-colleague who happened to be in Los Angeles asked if I had visited Joshua Tree National Park and I hadn't. He was keen to do some night photography there so we gave it a shot. 

Around 4pm the sun started setting

From Palm Springs we went east on Highway 10 for about an hour before arriving at the south entrance of the park around 3pm. It took us another 20 minutes to get to the Cottonwood Visitor Center to pay the admission fee (US$30).

We asked the park ranger where to take pictures. He suggested Cholla Cactus Garden for sunset (at 4.38pm), and then two other places for night photos White Tank and Jumbo Rocks. If there was time he said we should check out Barker Dam.

But it was already around 3pm, and since there is only one main road through the park, we decided to head to the first stop, the cactus garden. The ranger warned us to be careful about standing too close to the cactus as the needles are not pleasant. He said they are called jumping cactus, but really it can be easy to stand too close to them.

Not many people were there to watch the sun set

It took us about half an hour to get to the destination where we saw lots of people parked along the roadside. And yes -- lots of cacti. We were so excited to take pictures that my friend howled in pain -- he mistakenly stepped on an old cactus ball and it was stuck to the bottom of his shoe. 

He had to take his shoe off and manually pick out the needles which was tedious to say the least. 

Then a few minutes later he yelped again -- stepping on another cactus ball that had fallen off a branch. 

Across the street was a mountain range where the sun was starting to set around 4pm. This place was safer -- there was a purposely cleared path to walk around in to ensure we would not encounter anymore prickly balls.

People were starting to leave then, but they were missing out on the real sunset across the valley, where the sky was starting to turn into a dusty pink glow. We couldn't stop taking pictures as the sky kept changing colours.

The sky constantly changed colours

It was a glorious sight being in an open space and watching the sky gradually become night.

Picture of the Day: View from Cambie Street Bridge

The view looking west at False Creek as the sun was setting

Today is another day in Vancouver at 29 degrees, which is a delightful temperature in Hong Kong, and lower humidity at 59 percent.

After work I had a dinner to go to on Broadway between Cambie and Oak streets. So from downtown I walked across the Cambie Street Bridge, which I haven't done in ages. It took just over 10 minutes to walk, and parts of it were shaded by trees which was nice. There was also a breeze to make me feel less sweaty.

While at the middle of the bridge I stopped to snap this photo, the sun still blazing hot at 7pm, and boats gliding effortlessly in False Creek.