We arrived in Paris through the arse end, so it was appropriate that we moored at a marina called Port de l'Arsenal. Fate sometimes does that.

When I say 'arse end', I don't mean to be unkind to the city, but it is by all accounts much prettier and more awesome to cruise into Paris on the Seine from the north. Which of course we didn't do, since our position meant we had to approach the city of romance from the south.

It wasn't all bad by any means, but it was hardly romantic. With around ten kilometres left before reaching the marina the environment on both banks became more and more industrial, to the point where I - in my naivety - asked Liz when we would see any landmarks. I was expecting the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, etc. 'We probably won't,' she said. 'We're entering the wrong way for that.'

This through mildly-clenched teeth, because for the first time in almost a full year of cruising the waterways of France we didn't have a 'guide fluviale', a canal and river guide book. I wasn't too worried since we were definitely heading in the right direction, but Liz likes to know exactly where we're going in detail, and the final approach to Paris was a bit more complicated than I'd thought. 'If we overshoot the entrance to the Arsenal we end up in a complicated one-way system, which we don't want to do,' said Liz.

She was right. The river was increasingly busy with commercial boat traffic - large peniches, sometimes two barges end to end pushed by a big tug, passenger boats (bateaux mouches), RIBs - as well as boats more our size; there was no room for error.

As it happened, navigator Liz spotted the entrance to the marina and the pontoon for waiting for the lock without too much trouble, and by early afternoon we were moored in the Arsenal Marina. The advice of Klaus, June, Tony and Sue the previous day had been correct - there were indeed places available, and even better, at a reduced cost now that the peak season was over. Where else can you stay in central Paris, within coo-ee of the Bastille, for €33 a night, including showers, WCs, wifi and security? It was a bargain, and we booked in for three nights.

There have been many times in our year-long voyage when the pop of a Champagne cork has been heard on our aft deck - birthdays, welcoming friends on board, reaching journey milestones, surviving hazards - but no occasion to date has seemed quite so appropriate as arriving in Paris, so within a very short time of tying up we were toasting our successful arrival with the clink of Champagne flutes.

To add to our welcome, two cats came on board to check us out, one white with no ears, the other a cute but wary tabby. Being cat people we felt even more at home. They didn't stay long, though whitey was brazen enough to go below and check out the accommodation. It was nice to be trusted. We felt special.

Even better, the sun was shining and it was warm, with a sunny outlook for the next few days. We decided to explore the local environment, so set off late afternoon on foot, without a map, and wandered ad-lib through the hectic rush-hour streets, drinking in the sights, sounds and smells.

As evening descended our meanderings took us through the Place des Voges where we spent a happy half hour browsing art shop windows, wondering how much some of the works cost. There were no prices, presumably on the premise that if you have to ask then you can't afford it. We couldn't anyway, we know that. Having spent twice as much as planned on buying Liberty, and a third more than budgeted on the apartment, our money was starting to run out, and we both knew that within a month we would have to be in Liverpool looking for work.

But we weren't destitute yet and were determined to have dinner out on our first night in Paris. In the Le Marais district, where we'd stayed en famille in 2007, we found a little Thai restaurant, so capped off our arrival with a nice meal.

Returning to Liberty - our cheap inner-city accommodation - we settled down for the night, feeling very satisfied that we'd made the decision to come to Paris, and that it was a lovely way to end the year's boating.

As we went to sleep we had no indication that the next day would involve a thief, armed police and worse: a French language test...