My trip to Paris
From Sunday, October 19, 2008 to Saturday, October 25, 2008 I was in Paris, France. It was awesome. I didn’t really want to go home.
Here’s one reason why - Monsieur Eiffel’s Masterpiece:
Click me for a link to many MANY more pictures
Saturday, October 18, 2008Â
Up around 7a, finished some things around the apartment, then 11:40a left for the airport.
At the airport I started my vegetarian (non-vegan) diet early and had veggie cheese pizza from Mangia. I didn’t like it and don’t know why people rave about Mangia pizza. Additionally I had some ice cream from Amy’s. This was my first ever ice cream from Amy’s. It’s sacrilege that I’ve lived in Austin for 10 years and hadn’t done this sooner.
At Dallas-Fort Worth airport I stopped at a place called Blue Mesa (or something like that) for really crappy tacos. It was about $6 for grilled vegetable tacos which included zero grilled vegetables, only beans and rice.  One bite and threw them out. On with the show. Boarding and 5:20p take off about 15m late.
Seat-mate on the plane was from Arizona, either Tuscon or Phoenix. She works there for a French company as an accountant, or maybe a bookkeeper, and flies to France several times per year, but this time she was flying there to fill a position inside the company at their home office. She was excited about it, but not about the apartment they rented for her, she said it was going to be really tiny. I had no idea at the time how tiny ALL rented apartments are in France.
Attempted to sleep seriously with mask and ear plugs and partially inflated neck pillow but my head kept falling over or falling down and waking me up.
Arrive at Charles de Gaulle airport on Sunday morning…Â
Sunday, October 19, 2008Â
…and everyone on the ground crew and outside security detail is wearing heavy winter coats with clouds on their breath. It’s apparently cold out.
Deplane on the tarmac, load onto a bus for shuttle to the terminal, up some really filthy crappy neglected stairs and assaulted by a poopy smell.
Que up for the passport checkin, snake around, through and straight to the bathroom on the other side.
Let me tell you about the bathroom at the airport. There were only two stalls on the women’s side of this bathroom. There was little separation between the men’s and women’s restroom areas, no door for either side, and standing in line waiting for a stall at the women’s side I could look over to my left and see men standing at a urinal in the men’s side. Immediately I get the impression that French are more casual about toilet issues (later I’ll see a man peeing out in the open at Champs de Mars in front of the Tour Eiffel).
Let me tell you about this airport. It was created (decades ago, admittedly) for smaller non-obese non-american people and for much much smaller crowds. All the corridors and bathrooms and luggage points and doors and rooms are proportionally about half the size of those in comparably busy American airports like ORD or DFW. It’s just small and crowded and cramped and dingy and neglected and diry. The whole thing.
Past the luggage claim, through the security doors out to the ticketing/departures area. Walked one direction for a long time to the next ticketing area looking for ATM machine and didn’t find one. Spoke shitty French to a girl at the American Express counter, asked her for an ATM machine.  She pointed about six feet to her right. I walked right by the machine to the next restroom to get the ATM card out of my money belt (terrified of doing money belt transactions in front of anyone). Empty bathroom this time, but still smelling like poopy (as it turns out the poopy smell is a signal there’s a bathroom ten feet away or less because every bathroom in Paris smelled like poop and/or urine), work out an ATM card, and back out to the ATM machine. It was easier than I thought because the machine offered English. Fresh new Euros in hand I turn around and get coffee “Cafe Viennois” for 4 Euros (5.20 USD) which is just plain old coffee with whipped cream, kinda lame.
Sip coffee while wandering more to find the correct bus. Decide to stop moving for a minute and incidentally spy the sign outside for the correct bus. Go outside, get into the bus and pay the driver exactly 14 Euros (18.20 USD) for the one-way ride from Charles de Gaulle airport to “Etoile” (Arc de Triomph). Etoile, or “star”, is the nickname of the Arc because there are twelve streets radiating from the traffic circle around this monument.
Out onto the freeway. The bus ride was fascinating. The only cars larger than a Nissan Sentra were delivery trucks. There were NO suv’s, no large Buick-sized sedans, no pick-up trucks. Every passenger car on the highway was an economy sized hatchback or similar small car. We passed several gas stations that were advertising gasoline for 1.89 Euros (2.45 USD) which seemed reasonable at the time when we were paying almost 3 USD, but later I realized they sell by the LITER not by the GALLON so gasoline is actually 7.10 Euros per gallon, or $9.20 USD — OUTRAGEOUS! No wonder tiny cars were so popular!
The bus did a do-si-do around the Arc then dropped me at the far side of the monument on unnamed street.  Hopped out here and started a long walk clockwise back around the monument. See some video HERE. The traffic around the Arc was amazing. It’s non-stop, unmarked, chaotic and terrifying.  The walk brought me face to face with reality: homelessness and bag ladies are universal.
Further around the monument and found the stairs to the metro. Navigating the metro is SO EASY! But without some grasp of French, the ticket vending machines are NOT so easy. Did not immediately understand the word “rouler” so pushing, pounding, tapping, and caressing the bar to get cursor on the screen to move did not work. Walked away frustrated, got about five steps and turned around to watch some locals ROLL the bar (duh!) to move the cursor on the screen to select English instructions. Whew! That was the hardest part of my entire six days in Paris, figuring out the metro ticket machine.
The tour company’s walking directions from the metro to the hotel were excellent. The hotel lobby was shockingly small. Checked in and got into a very very shockingly small elevator about the size of a bathroom stall. Later in the week we had four people in that elevator! Found my room and opened the door to discover my roommate had already checked in and was asleep in the darkened room. Crap! Dropped my crap and went back out again. The Eiffel Tower had been calling my name for a week, and it couldn’t be put off any longer. Took a walk. See video of my first trip to the Eiffel Tower HERE.
Europeans are very casual about nudity and bodily functions. This was first evident in the lack of screening from the men’s room at the airport. This was further evident in the man peeing in the park. Not behind a bush, not hiding or covering himself behind a tree, just standing in the park (granted with his back turned toward us) peeing. European. You’re a’peein.
It was my intention to go up into the observation decks of the Eiffel Tower but the crowds were heavy duty and my afternoon was evaporating. See video HERE.
Back at the hotel, my roommate was out so there was opportunity to see the room and freshen up in private. Tiny room, tinier bathroom. After face washing, teeth brushing, etc. my roommate came in. She turned out to be very nice. She is my age (give or take) and works for the promotions department at a Shakespearean theater in Orlando. Very cool!
Down to the lobby at the assigned time to meet the rest of our tour group and our tour leader, Patrick. Out to the street to get a walk around the neighborhood with our group and leader, we went over to Rue Cler and had a nice chat about how to navigate Paris streets. From there we walked to Rue Basquet to get on our tour bus, the only time as a group we didn’t take public transportation.
The bus ride was great, but the sun was setting and low in the sky so every time we turned in any westerly direction, the sun was blinding all of us. We rolled around to every major sight in the Metro 1st and 2nd zone and got the narrated history from Patrick.
The bus dropped us where it picked us up. We walked back to the hotel street and stopped at a restaurant called Phillipe’s la Varangue. It was (shock!) also tiny. Tiny space, tiny tables, tiny chairs. They were serving beef bourguignon for the omnivores, and steamed veg with creamy mashed potatoes for the vegetarians — all two of us.
After supper a handful of us walked over to the Eiffel Tower which was lit up blue in honor of the French President Sarkozy being the six-month head of the E.U. Chatted with some tour members there. At 9pm the line to go up was still pretty long but Shannon and Katie decided to do it anyway. For ten minutes every hour the tower lights up with flashing strobe lights. From a distance it looks like it’s sparkling (video of this later). Shannon says from close up, like right on the tower, this strobing is spasm-inducing and a little frightening because it’s so bright you can’t see to walk around the deck.
Back to the room. Really don’t remember what happened here I was so stinking tired.
My roommate has night terrors and talks in her sleep LOUDLY! Didn’t sleep well the first two nights.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Up at 6:45a and out for a walk at 7:00a. Â Breakfast (petit dejeuner) is served in the hotel lobby after 7:15a so there was time to kill. Â Sat down with Alexa and Jackie. Â 8:30a the group walks to the metro for the first time. Â Downstairs there’s a lesson by our guide on how to navigate the Paris metro. Â It’s very helpful. Â Onto the train and off at Hotel de Ville.
HDV walk to Palais du Justice to see Saint Chapelle - 10:30a
Sainte-Chapelle church with exquisite stained glass upstairs
Walk to Notre Dame cathedral - long lecture outside - short walk around inside - long lecture on a bridge
Noon - walk to Latin quarter - let loose for lunch - Hagen Daaz tiramisu & bottle of water = 8E — Falafel lunch (lovely girl) — moaz aubergine 4.20E - Stocking hat “Paris” w/poms = 10E
Walk to Cluny museum — two kids groups inside — tepidarium excavation was too dark to see — lady with unicorn was exquisite — lots of lectures
Walk to City bus back with the Plankas, Nandini, Patrick 3:30p — SuperMarche G20 — hotel 4:30p — Chill, regroup, rest, eat potato chips — out at 6:40p w/Marichelle, Nandini & Shannon to Tower to meet Fat Tire Bike tour — walk 10m to bike shop — Andrew “Drew” from Philly went to UW Madison — Mark from Houston went to LSU — bike to Notre Dame — Bike to Ile St. Louis — La Glace — Bike to Rive Droit to pick up bateaux — 45m boat ride w/wine - very cool - ride bikes back to shop - walk back to hotel
What was for supper? (I think it was snack food from supermarket)
BICYCLE TOUR and boat ride with Nandini, Marichelle, Shannon — AMAZING — the meeting at tour eiffel, the bike company, the ride, the louvre pyramid, the boat ride, the wine, the bike guide, the walk back
Back to the hotel late
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
THE SHORT VERSION:Â Â Â Â
7:30a breakfast with Chris & Paul & Ana. 9a leave for the metro to Montmarte. Guided tour by Brad from L.A. End at Sacre Couer 11:30a. Lunch at a creperie with the girls. Meet back at Sacre Couer then back down the hill in a funincular. Metro to the d’Orsay museum. Wait in the rain to get into the museum. Really glad I’ve been carrying around an umbrella for three days. Inside the museum attempt to get caffeine in a hot cramped small “express” cafe w/really long line.  Coke zero was hot. Ugly American was holding up the line (thankfully no one I knew). Ran into Alexa and we toured the 5th floor impressionist paintings. Returned to regroup and leave to walk to l’Orangerie. Closed on Tuesdays. Nice. Leave for Place de la concord metro to Ecole Militaire to the hotel.
THE LONGER DESCRIPTIVE VERSION:Â Very rainy all day — the steady annoying type, just heavy enough to require an umbrella, so very glad I brought one — Three Advil in the morning was not enough to cut through the pain of walking Sunday and Monday, then biking Monday night — Pain up and down the hills of Montmarte and the rain was trying to piss me off — our guide was smart and funny but was not speaking loud enough to be heard more than two feet away — additionally caught unprepared for a post-period day — generally a bad day — stopped at the top of the hill, Sacre Couer — fixed myself up in the bathroom — back out in the rain to a creperie but went inside and there’s all my biking buddies plus Alexa — had french onion soup and cheese crepe for lunch and a bucket of water — felt much better — took the hermunculus down the hill — the Orsay museum was lovely but still in pain and hard to walk anywhere — NO FUCKING WATER FOUNTAINS IN PARIS — attempted to get a glass of water and some caffeine at the stop and go cafe, but the line was trebled on itself and out the door of the closet-sized take-and-go place and HOT HOT HOT — the bottle of carbonated crud I picked up wasn’t even cool — and no where to drink it but to stand alone like a fool in the croweded eating area — shut it up and went back out in search of my friends not feeling too much better at all — ran into Alexa at the top of the building in the Impressionist’s area — photo of me in front of blue room by Van Gogh — out of d’orsay and a long walk with Alexa and Nandini across the river to the L’Orangerie to see the water lillies but the museum was closed — down to street level where we’re confused about where the metro station is located — others too shy to ask, so I do it — down metro and ?????Â
This is the night I did laundry while everyone else went out to a nice supper. Marichelle helped me get started while she was waiting for everyone else. A young American girl was there to help as well. Put in clothes to wash and walked out to get veggie chop suey from the take out Vietnamese place around the corner. American girl leaves and the place is empty until a stinky woman my age comes in to get her wet clothes out of the wash and into the dryer. She said good night to me, so did the weird sockless guy as he was leaving.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Out very early - 5:45a? - to catch a train. Metro stop Ecole Militaire train #8 to #14 Madeleine to Gare Lyon. Some confusion over the breakfast menu. What the hell is a Viennoisserie? Settled for plain black coffee & croissant which was less money than the combo meal. A strange man asks me in French for directions which was cool - did I blend in that well?Â
Sat in my assigned seat next to a lady even though tere were plenty of empty seats (didn’t want to risk getting kicked off the train in cow-town France). Very long train ride in the dark.Â
Geneva was cold and damp. Very large train station. ATM then a grocery store inside the train station to break 50 franc bill for the toilet.  Cleanest toilets ever but had to pay two Swiss francs, about $1.50. Walk around outside tram and bus transit areas. Purchased a public transit ticket for 7 francs ($5.80) which was never looked at or asked for by any driver on four rides. Picked up a small calzone to go from a bodega and walked back to the #14 tram stop and rode to Avanchet bus #56 to CERN.Â
There was the kid’s style museum type display at the visitors center and a very tiny gift shop but I didn’t see any other display indoor or out.  Killed time by people watching employees and tourists come and go in the visitors center. Sat through the 45m introduction/lecture by a bitter old German dude followed by an hour and a half tour of some inactive nuclear particle experiments led by the bitter old German dude. Waited in the rain for the bus to take me back to the train station.
The brightest spot of this whole day was my trip through H&M because we don’t have one in Austin.
I ate a cheese tomato baguette sandwich at the station, got on the train and rode a long dark train ride back to Paris, took a long hot shower and fell into the hotel bed about midnight.
Oh and my roommate twisted her ankle going down the stairs on her way to supper. But I wasn’t there when it happened.Â
Thursday, October 23, 2008
VERSAILLES DAY
Breakfast as usual - out after breakfast, and before the tour, with Shannon to look for an ace bandage for her ankle. To a Pharmacy where we discover they only put out the non-medical or impulse items, everything else must be asked for at the counter, which was difficult because how do you say Ace Bandage in French? Turns out you say Ace Bandage. Who knew.
Out with the group to the regional rail stop at Pt. D’Lalma VICK. Train to Chateau de Versailles. Short walk past a Starbuck’s, a Tex-Mex restaurant and a Buffalo Grill to Golden Gates (not McDonald’s). Hard to believe we’re still in France.Â
We met our guide outside the external gold-leaf gates of the palace. The place seemed very crowded to me, but the guide assured us it was a very light crowd.Â
After the guided tour, outside the house at the start of the gardens, Alexa, Nandini, Marichelle, and I buy a mini train ticket at the top of the hill and walk through the garden. We stop for sandwiches and sit halfway down the hill to eat and watch tourists.  Walk to the Mercury pool. Walk to Petit Trianon and house. Walk to the Petit Hameau. Walk back to Petit Trianon for potty and gift shop. Here is where I bought a very nice, very expensive scarf. Then we stand and wait for mini train to take us back to the top of the hill which was worth the wait and ticket cost - we were all beat down.Â
Wander the courtyard in front of the big house looking for another gift shop. Then we shopped. Walk back to Starbuck’s and my Starbuck’s card gets me 30% off two chocolate donuts and a half-caf soy milk latte. Nice! Â
We cactch the train back in to Paris and on the ride I recounted the final episode of Sex and the City for Marichelle (because it took place in Paris). Chill at the hotel for a while and walked out for supper w/Marichelle & Alexa.Â
Walked up to the Seine, Rive Droit, George IV for supper at a Pizza Pino (French equivalent of Olive Garden). Walked the Champs Elysses to the Arc de Triomphe. Walked around the arc, walked up the arc, STAIRS = PAIN, all the way to the top for the best nighttime view ever because it includes a view of the Eiffel Tower. The Eiffel Tower lights up for ten minutes once an hour with sparkly lights. It completely twinkles and looks like a lady wearing a sequin dress!
Back to the hotel, blah, blah, blah.
Friday, October 24, 2008
LA LOUVRE
Breakfast w/??? — set up Flickr and Yahoo this morning — email to hotel and printed and cut up right before we leave for metro — metro to #1 to #? louvre stop - meet local guide @ downstairs by fortress foundation (see vids) - more cool headsets - English guide in france 25 yrs - CROWDS - MONA LISA - a lot of us do lunch @ museum cafeteria - MOST EXP $$ meal the whole week @ 24E for two plates of salad, water bottles, bread, cheese, other — book shop, object d’arts upstairs (I tell the American couple the shop will ship anything they like) - boutique around the corner - out to Tuilieries & outdoor modern art - to D’orsay w/Monet waterlilies and Renoir - out to Rue Rivoli and Angelina’s chocolat chaud a emporter - split from Marichelle to Opera Garnier - split from Alexa to Bouchara/La Fayette galleries - Bouchara closed (for good) - spin thru galleries - out to Opera steps to wait for Alexa and eat leftover baguette w/cheese from lunch - walk to opera metro and back to hotel - relax & chat w/shannon - fresh - walk to rest Nebudchanessauer w/group - chevre app, ratatouille w/carrots & zuch entree, tourte amande w/glace desert - glass red - stop @ shop for souvenirs - back to hotel - type everyone’s email and send around - to bed, pack, shower, sleep
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Travel day - up and breakfast as usual - decide to forgo the cab to catch the van pool ride w/Katie which is leaving an hour earlier than the cab planned for w/Alexa - arrive at the airport and it’s almost (relatively) empty - quick through check in - quick through security, though I forgot and left one water bottle in my carryon bag - coffee at an upstairs a emporter cafe - listened to some bagpipes and ukelele playing in the baggage claim downstairs - watched some ugly americans do their thing - watched some beautiful french do their things - and at the gate with record time to spare and to shop - through duty-free for some toblerone and some chanel perfume - late takeoff of course - sat next to a semi-bratty girl wearing a velour tracksuit and who couldn’t sit still longer than 15m - ate everything that was put in front of me by the airline - photos of greenland (or new foundland?) - trip through DFW airport was ok but convoluted - more stuff - more stuff - more stuff - arrived home shortly after 8p and the cat was starving!
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