Morning (sightseeing) runs

One of what I most look forward to when traveling is the morning run in, especially, a new city. It's by far the best way to get to know a new place, sometimes intimately. It's better than riding a bicycle--nothing to get in between the place and me. I see details that would be mostly missed if I were driving. It's almost always early in the morning, so I get to see and hear and smell the early stirrings of local life, from the fresh aromas of a bakery to the whirling sounds of a street sweeper truck. And, what's so very interesting is that I always find myself running more effortlessly and running longer; time seems to fade into the background.

Recently, on a visit to Lille and Paris, France, I did a couple runs with, for the first time, a camera (in a plastic bag to keep the sweat away) in my hand, which did detract a bit from the runs but compensated with photographs of sights without the tourist crowds. Here are some examples:

Lille: The narrow cobblestone street where I was standing and taking this photograph curved around to my right. From the map, I knew, as I was running around the curve, that this Cathédrale Notre-Dame de la Treille was coming up. The gradual revealing of the cathedral, the transition from the narrow street to the open square, in the serenity of the early morning, was quite something--regardless of whether one goes to church or not.

 
Lille: Créperie de la Vieille Bourse (best dinner of the trip!) at night (left) and morning (right), immediately after the street sweeper truck had passed by.



Paris: An 8-mile run that covered the Tour Eiffel, Arc de Triomphe, Avenue des Champs-Elysees, Grand Palais, Hotel des Invalides, Jardin des Tuileries, La Rive Gauche, and more. Here's a crowd-less Tour Eiffel.


Have map (and camera) - Will travel!