DAY 268 - THE PANTHEON TO THE EIFFEL TOWER: 2.8 MILES (5,600 STEPS)

Sunday 15 January, 2012

2.8 miles (Total: 2569.5 miles)– 5,600 steps (Total: 5,807,201 steps)

This was another very good day – the third in a row. It started with being reunited with my Blackberry, which my sister Alison, her husband Neil, and son Dan had driven down to Paris for me over the weekend. I was so glad to see them but I have to say I was also extremely glad to see my replacement Blackberry.

I had pondered what had had the greatest negative impact upon my walk; my broke arms for the past ten weeks or the loss of my Blackberry phone for the pass three and a half. I concluded that it was the loss of the Blackberry. It is not just being out of contact by phone, but the inability to see emails as they come in, the inability to use the GPS function to detect where I am when I am lost, the contact details for people I harass along the way to advance the cause of the truce, and the loss of the notes function whereby I record places, thoughts, names, and details for the blog entries.

For those mystified as to why it took O2 three and a half weeks to get a replacement – I share your puzzlement for I have passed numerous O2 stores along the way. However, the SIM card needs to be activated in the UK before being sent out, hence the delay and my gratitude to my little sister coming to the rescue yet again.

The main reason why this day was so memorable was because of a great walk organised by James Barr of the British Embassy in Paris, which was joined by a dozen other members of the British team in Paris to make our way along the Left Bank from The Pantheon to the Eiffel Tower. There was a great atmosphere from the start and many fascinating conversations along the way.

I am always hugely impressed by the way that British diplomats and embassy and consular staff overseas immerse themselves in the local culture and community during their typical three year posting. Their enthusiasm for discovering new things about Paris was as eager as mine, and they lived there. It must be so easy, especially in as large a mission as Paris, to drift into a British enclave. Yet, the desire to absorb as much of the place of their posting is I am sure what makes the British diplomatic corps amongst the finest and most respected in the world.

We were also blessed with a wonderful tutor along the way in the person of my friend Daniel Haber, who is a respected international economist and specialist on China and Japan and, for the purposes of this walk, a native of Paris and graduate of The Sorbonne. It is impossible to have a conversation with Daniel and not come away educated and informed.

The weather was wonderful when in the sun, but when in the shade from the buildings the temperature dropped to a chilly 2-3 degrees. That said, we only really noticed when we stopped for photographs along the way, which was fairly regularly because of the demands of a certain website (www.walkfortruce.org) for additional content.

As I reflected upon how much I enjoyed the walk, I pondered the interaction which is lost in walking alone. There are few sporting activities as conducive to good conversations as walking – running, not really; swimming, certainly not; cycling, a bit dangerous and competitive sports, virtually impossible. Moreover, it is possible to have, as we did, a walk involving an age spectrum from 16 to 60. During my walk of over an hour and a half, I had discussions about the French economy, presidential elections, military cooperation between France and Britain, aircraft carriers, trade and investment flows, international development and NGOs, childcare in France, British and French influence in the Middle East, the origins of the French secular state, the workings of consular services, and the alleged golfing prowess of Kim Jung II along with numerous insights into the magnificent city of Paris, which must be the ‘Jewel in the Crown’ of all European cities. Conversation is key to understanding and understanding is the key to peace. I began thinking of how collective walking activities could foster peace and understanding…

We concluded the walk appropriately at the Mur pour la Paix, a platform and sculpture in front of the Eiffel Tower, which has the world ‘peace’ written on it in 49 different languages (see pic.). We parted knowing Paris, each other, and perhaps even ourselves just a little better. A good afternoon well spent.