A return flight to Paris would be little different than the trip from Paris.  We would need to return to Dublin, make our way to the airport north of the city, sit around the airport for a couple of hours, then stare at clouds from the tiny windows of a noisy plane, and finally fight our way from the airport into Paris.  It would take the better part of an exhausting day and none of us would be the happier for it.  Fortunately, there was a better, more civilized option - a journey by sea and rail.

This option was greeted with much enthusiasm by the children.  They been on planes before - but never a ship.  It also had the advantage of leaving our travel plans open to change since I could wait until the day of departure to buy our tickets without paying extra or running the risk of encountering a sold-out boat.

I decided to leave on Sunday the 17th.  This would allow us more time in Wexford but would also decrease the number of full days we would have in Paris.  Though I would have liked to have had more time in Paris, it seemed to me that our time in Wexford was more valuable.

That Sunday morning, we attended Mass at the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Wexford, packed our bags and headed to the Kierans' for another one of Anne's fine dinners.  Granddad and the girls ate quickly so that they could get to the Wexford Racecourse down the road to watch a few races before we left.  A couple of hours later they returned having lost as much as they'd won.

Then it was off to Rosslare in the van, after thanking the Kierans for their abundant hospitality.  At the Rosslare terminal, we dropped off the rental van and said goodbye to Granddad and Grandma Callaghan who boarded a bus for Dublin.  The ferry terminal building was almost deserted. The shops were all closed and only a few other foot passengers were still waiting to board. On board the ship itself, the situation was similar. Even with the car passengers, the ferry was only at a fraction of capacity.  We didn't quite have the ship to ourselves - but at times it felt like it!

The seas were extraordinarily calm.  For the entire voyage, the ship barely rocked.  My one regret is that I forgot to take any pictures while we on board the ship.  I suppose we were just having too good a time to remember to record the experience.  Fortunately, Abigail has a good memory and here she relates the details of our voyage.

From the Cherbourg terminal, we took a taxi to the train station and boarded the first train for Paris.  The train trip was a pleasant three hours through the French countryside.  We arrived after dark at the Gare St. Lazare.  It was rush hour in Paris and the station was jammed with commuters heading home.  We pushed our way through and finally found a relatively quiet spot from which to make a call.

I confidently dialed the number of the Hotel du Dragon where I had stayed the last time we were in Paris. It was the middle of November so it seemed a natural assumption that they would have a room available. But no. "Sorry, Monsieur. We have no rooms available." "No rooms available?" "No, Monsieur. None."

"What do we do now Daddy?" was the obvious question I heard next. "Well, this is a big train station, there's bound to be a tourist office here.  We'll just go there and have them find us a hotel."

It was a big train station, but it didn't boast a tourist office. "What do we do now Daddy?" came the familiar question. "Well, we'll just have to go to plan B.  I'll find a hotel in the tourist guide that I brought along."

"Wouldn't that be plan C?" was Abigail's sensible reply.  As usual, she was right and, as usual, everything turned out for the best.  We ended up at the Hôtel du Lys - a small, charming establishment in a better location than my original choice. The building itself dates from the 17th century and retains many original features such as exposed ceiling beams and a narrow spiral staircase where no two steps are exactly the same height. Our room was at the very top of that staircase and then up another short flight of stairs barely wider than my shoulders.

Since everyone was tired we settled for dinner at the large Italian restaurant around the corner.  Afterwards, we spent a pleasant hour reading Asterix and Lucky Luke comic books at the bookstore next to the restaurant.