A lot of firsts and a lot of repeats

Me and Bridge on the Arc de Triomphe
see all photos »

Feb 28, 2007

Well, I got to Frankfurt after many flights, and then got a train from there to Paris. After another marathon travel day, I arrived in Paris, and checked into our room. Bridgette had not yet arrived, and I was starving, but I didn´t want to leave in case she arrived while I was out. Needless to say, I fell asleep instead. There was a knock at the door, and was I ever HAPPY to see a familar face.

Today was a very exciting day for a number of other reasons too...I got to drink TAP WATER, brush my teeth with tap water, drink milk, and eat a real, raw salad. I was very happy to be able to do all those little things again.

The Arc de Triomphe
see all photos »

Mar 1, 2007

Today was a full day of sightseeing. We started at the Arc de Triomphe, walked the Champs Elysees, toured the Louvre, and ended with a sunset on the Eiffel Tower. It was fantastic, and wonderful to have someone to share it all with.

Walking down the Champs Elysees, I felt very out of place. EVERYONE in Paris is dressed up, and there I was, in my baggy travel pants, windbreaker and messy hair. I´m not sure how they do it, but the Parisians all look put together, even when walking in the wind, they never looked mussed.

Venus de Milo
see all photos »

The sights were the same, yet different then I remember them being. It was really interesting comparing my memories from visitng in gr. 12, and my very different point of view now. I liked Paris a lot more this time, it was much nicer now (not sure how much has to do with me growing up and how much it has to do with Paris having changed...)

Mar 2, 2007

Another full day. While eating breakfast this morning in our Hostel, I got a feeling of familiarity. I think it may be the same hostel that my class stayed at when we visited here in 1997. I´m  not sure for certain, but I have the feeling it is the same place.

Today´s itinerary included The Musee des Moyens Ages, the Pantheon, shopping for a fleece (it´s COLD here), Notre Dame, and finally, Sacre Coeur and Montmartre. This was all done in my sandals. Yesterday, the day of walking made my knees hurt like they haven´t in months, so I decided to wear my sandals and see if that helps, cause they never hurt while I was in Asia. So, my toes may be permanently blue when I get home, and not just from nail polish. But my knee is feeling better, so maybe it´s not such a bad thing.

By the time we arrived at Sacre Coeur, it was clouding over, and just as we got to the market, the rain started to fall. The first rain I had seen in a long time (other than the thunderstorm on Ko Chang), and it was COLD rain. Ugggg. I´m not so sure about this part of things.

Mar 3, 2007

This day is crazy. We had to check out of our hostel, so we carried our bags all day. First, to the train station, where we then went to Versailles. Here, we were lucky to find a bag check, so we could put down our packs. The palace was as amazing as I remember. We started looking around without a guide, but after one hallway, I was about to cry without having any info about it. I made Bridgette go back and rent audioguides, because I couldn´t stand the thought of touring without learning what it was all about. That was much better, and we were able to see a large portion of the palace. We also checked out the gardens before heading back to Paris on the train and then immediatly out again towards Mont Saint-Michel. It was one of the places in all of Europe I really wanted to see. The train trip took most of the afternoon, and we finally arrived at almost 8.00. It was late, and raining (again). We were lucky to find a room in a little hotel near the train station in the village of Pontorson. That will be a story for another day.