The gate only opens about 20 minutes before train time, and people arrive as late as two minutes before it departs. We are in first class, which has wide seats and a huge table between us. There are several stewardesses in our area.
All announcements are in English and French.
Later came a full lunch with real silver service. The ride was very smooth, and we were in Paris, at Gare du Nord in three hours time. We walked off the train, and there was no immigration check, no customs check. We won't see another one of those till we go to board the ship in Genoa. It was raining, and the queue for the taxis was long, so Jerry asked a limo driver how much it would be.