Nothing could be finer than to be in Carolina

So as I've said, these days and for a few more days, I'm in North Carolina. That's an American state on the East (Atlantic) Coast about halfway between, say, Boston (New England) and Miami (Florida). North Carolina has a coastline that is 300 miles (500 km) long. For all that length, the "inner coast" — the edge of the mainland — is protected from ocean waves by a series of long, narrow "barrier islands" with "sounds"  (lagoons, Fr. étangs) lying behind them.

My family comes from and lives in Carteret County, which is named after the Anglo-Norman Carteret family. There's a little town (village) in Normandy named Carteret (kar-tuh-RAY or kar-TRAY) that is just across the water from the Isle of Jersey, where the Carteret family was from. Carteret County, N.C., is located at a point on the coast where two of the barrier islands, and therefore the beaches, run east to west, facing south. The warm Gulf Stream ocean current flows northward just 20 to 30 miles offshore.

Morehead City, my home town, is both a fishing port and a shipping port that can receive ocean-going vessels. It is one of the deepest ports on the U.S. East Coast, but it is also very small. The population of the town is about 8,000, and the population of the whole county (500 square miles, or 1300 square kilometers) is just 60,000. Until relatively recently — say 75 to 100 years ago — Carteret Country was an isolated area that was far off the beaten path.

Actually, there is a lot more water than land in Carteret County. Much of what passes for dry land is actually salt marsh or swamp or sand dunes. Two of the longest barrier islands, which belong to the chain of coastal islands known as the Outer Banks, are Core Banks and Shackleford Banks. Together they run for more than 50 miles (80 km) along the coast and are completely undeveloped. They're inhabited mainly by sea birds, ghost crabs, horse flies, mosquitoes, and wild horses.

The coast of North Carolina resembles the area of France around the Ile d'Oléron, on the French Atlantic coast, and the area running south from the city of La Rochelle down to the Spanish border. Extensive pine forests cover the land. Salt marshes, protected from ocean waters by barrier islands, line much of the N.C. "inner coast." 

The sky is overwhelmingly big, and the light is brilliant, intensified by being reflected off hundreds of square miles of sound and ocean waters. The climate is very mild — but hot and humid in summer and rainy in winter. Average annual rainfall is about 60 inches, which is nearly three times the amount of rain we get annually in the Loire Valley.

I finally got out to the beach today. My sister and I drove there from my mother's place. It's a drive of about, say, three miles, but today was the first time I've been across the bridge that links the mainland to the local barrier island, highly developed Bogue Banks, which includes 25 miles of sandy beach and gentle surf. It was late afternoon, and the setting sun was brilliant, making for very high-contrast images. My theme for today is sea birds.

Un hôtel sans ascenseur

When I was in Paris on November 1, I stayed in a hotel in the Latin Quarter, not far from the Sorbonne and the Cluny museum. It was a hotel I knew about but where I had never stayed before. Why did I choose the Hôtel Marignan? Well, because of location, location, location, and because it was not expensive. I'm not an extravagant person.

I knew the hotel didn't have an elevator. I didn't know how many floors it had. It turned out to have seven of them, in American terms. In other words, the front desk and breakfast room were on the ground floor, and there were six more floors above. The main surprise was that I was given a room on the top floor. Remember, no elevator. Oh, and heavy suitcase.

But the Marignan is in the Latin Quarter, and near the Saint-Michel RER station. The RER is the regional transit system, with trains that go directly out to Charles de Gaulle airport. That's how I would get out there — by RER train. A ticket costs 10 euros. That convenience was really important. I figured: for one night, how bad can the hotel be? Actually, it was fine, except... well, you know.

The Marignan is a friendly place. The man at the front desk speaks French and English. He's French and he's talkative — in a good way. He told me that is wife is an American woman from Connecticut. I think a lot of his clients might be younger Americans. They probably don't mind climbing up and down the stairs, even if their rooms are on a high floor.

The room was perfectly fine. In it were three beds: one single, one double, and one small child's bed. There was no TV, but my room had a private toilet and bath. Evidently, many of the rooms don't. There are showers and toilets located down the hall that are shared by all the people staying in the cheaper rooms on the floor. My room, the deluxe model, cost 89 euros for the night. Cash please, I was told. Breakfast was included, while in most hotels it costs between 8 and 15 euros extra.

Two cafés and a restaurant... in Paris

I've been here in North Carolina exactly a week now. I have taken very few photos. Photography was not the purpose of the trip. And besides, it's been pretty rainy (but very warm) on the days when I didn't have one commitment or another to honor. So I'm still posting pictures I took in Paris on Sunday, November 1.

After going to see a show (a play) late that Sunday afternoon, I walked back across central Paris from the grands boulevards to the Quartier Latin, through Les Halles and Châtelet. I crossed the Seine from the Right Bank to the Left Banks near Notre Dame cathedral, because my hotel was near there. I didn't expect these nighttime photos to be as good as (I think) they are. The one above shows a café called Les Deux Palais.

The photo here shows a restaurant (in the center of the image) called Le Bar à Huîtres (the oyster bar) and a café called Le Quartier Général. The street on the left is the rue Saint-Jacques. That Sunday evening was strangely warm and pleasant for the beginning of November. Click or tap on the images to enlarge them.

La Fontaine des Innocents at Les Halles

La Fontaine des Innocents dates back to 1548, the time of the French Renaissance. It's located on the Place Joachim-du-Bellay (a Renaissance poet from the Loire Valley) in the Les Halles neighborhood of central Paris. Henri II was king when it was built, and the architect was Pierre Lescot

The fountain was originally located in a cemetery, but the cemetery was moved to the outskirts of Paris long ago. There was a church nearby, but it was demolished in the 18th century. The fountain itself was relocated several times over the centuries. Below and at the top are a couple of photos of architectural details.

As always, click or tap on the images to enlarge them.