Vacation- Last installment.
France:
We got to Paris in the evening and walked to our hotel from the Arc de Triomphe. I was pretty excited to be there... I'm not sure why, I guess because it was so different and I'd never really thought I would ever go there. As soon as we walked into the hotel a huge deal was made that there were 3 of us. I agreed to a 40 Euro room upgrade without seeing any of the rooms. The Bathroom was huge and lovely (as a bath lover, I appreciate things like that) with a cool old window that opened all the way and had a little juliet balcony. (There was one in the room too. That was lovely.) It was ok. Not my standard of hotel room, but ok. (As a side note L learned a little german watching Tv there and would say all of these random things.) The first night we went off in search of food and found a lovely, and posh restaurant with very attractive waiters and sat outside there. (The weather was beautiful the entire time we were in Paris) It was really good. I like the French way of eating very late. T was quite annoyed at the cost and there began her golden arches decree (which I filed in the great garbage bin of my brain.)
The next morning the hotel manager wanted to talk to me. When I went down there on my way out she informed me that there would be an additional 60 Euro per night charge... And there was the line... I flatly refused to pay it: "I'm not paying that."... and we argued for about 20 minutes. "I'm sorry, but I just can't allow myself to pay that amount for this hotel." I just kept flatly refusing - I mean I'm not a cheap person, but this felt like a fleece. She said "We have rules!" and I said "Do you have any rules against extortion?" So that was unpleasant.
I mastered the Metro quite easily. (I have a good sense of direction... a little 6th sense. T & L kept calling me GPS.) I dragged those two to the louvre. Neither were too enthralled, although L was the more receptive of the two... It could have been a shoe insole museum for all they cared. Saw the Mona Lisa
It was smaller than I thought. (I bet everyone says that). It was kind of an odd experience, It wasn't as if you could stand there and contemplate... It was like a kind of mob scene/paparazzi thing. T wasn't a bog fan of the louvre and objected to the amount of time I spent there. "Most of this stuff isn't even art... Like that- why do we care about the phoenix de milo? (I kid you not) It's not even finished... It doesn't even have arms!"
Dragged those two to the Champs Elysses and to Laduree
where I semi-begged (i'll admit) L & T to have dinner, or at least a drink in the bar
Since it wasn't a McDonald's, T excersized veto power and I was forced to console myself by purchasing six of the most lovely macarons in existence (esp. Salted Caramel one, although the Rose and Lavender ones were ok too.)
The cost of things in Paris was a little point of contention among the group. T hated every place I suggested and I refused to eat at McDonalds. I'm not sure how much of a compromise it was, but I basically tried to pick 'reasonable' places and T basically complained, hardly ate and never ordered a drink (even water.) That kind of sucked as it made both L & I feel guilty and obligated to share - Even though we were trying to keep the 7 Euro 5oz. glasses of 'Coke Light' (horrible) in the single digit numbers ourselves.
Went up the Eiffel tower (In the original elevator)
Also went to Pere LaChaise to find Edith Piaf's grave, and saw Jim Morrison's. It's interesting the things people do. EP's looked quite well loved and and kept up. There were some fresh flowers and I left a postcard of her, Jim Morrison's was regularly visited (and had a lot of people when we got there.) Lots of candles and unlit cigarettes. Pere LaChaise was huge and had a lot of famous people there (Oscar Wilde, Yves Montand, etc) but I didn't want to look for anyone else... It was too creepy.)
Paris was beautiful
L asked me if I would ever go back and I said not unless we broke up and my next GF or BF wanted to go, or if wee Viv wanted to go when she was a teenager. Partly the hotel thing tainted it (and the sense of foreboding every time I entered there.) but partly it was everyone else... Like pretty much everyone else. There was kind if an elitist you vs me vibe there that I have never encountered anywhere else before.
Amsterdam:
Arrived in Amsterdam via train and it could not have been a more different experience than Paris. I tried to get a taxi to our hotel from the train station and the taxi driver said "Oh, that's too close, it's just over there. Here..." (And he called a guy over and asked him to walk us there- and the guy did, pulling my suitcase!) The hotel was lovely (Marriott- a 2 minute walk from the train station, with tiny little packages of Haribo gummi bears strategically placed everywhere!) I was able to drag them out of the hotel without prolongued getting ready rituals that first night and we were wandering around looking for someplace to have dinner. This lady came out and talked to us and brought us menus so I felt compelled (by the fact that she was so nice) to eat there, and she could not have been nicer... She explained what all of the things on the menu were (I'd never had Schnitzel before) and which were light bears/dark beers (nothing L or T recognized.) She spent so much time talking to us and making sure we understood things, then at the end she gave us little glass shoes! I am very touched by things like that.
K had somehow convinced L & T that tourists in Amsterdam couldn't buy or smoke pot, so they kind of disbelievingly followed me into a coffeeshop where I asked for the best kind... I am not a huge into drugs person. I try not to be against anything, but my own experience is limited. I have never rolled one before (but seen my mother and knew you needed scissors, which I didn't have.) I just kind of divided the bag into two very fat and massive J's, and lit up. I liked the darkness and the chilledness of it... T & L wanted to drink, so we went to a bar next door and I had a few strongbows, and then we went back to the coffeehouse... and back and forth (the bar had wifi, so I called my mother, but then I couldn't hear her.) One of the bars had a jukebox and I made the mistake of choosing songs before I felt out the vibe... It was mostly middle aged people and I thought the traditional German music was a fluke, but it was a rule... when I figured that out I leaned in to L & T and said "Something tells me they're not going to appreciate 'It's raining men.' We laughed for a long time about that. (might have also been the marijuana.)
Were v. drunk & high going back to the hotel and T managed to fall into the middle of the road in front of oncoming traffic. Face first. I jumped out in front of her and put my hand up in the universal stop fashion whilst L tried to help T up. I thought she'd knocked herself out and all of her teeth out. Her mouth was bleeding like crazy and near her eye (where her glasses pushed up). It was pretty gross.
It was kind of raining the next day. I dragged those guys around the red light district and shopping, but they both wanted to go back to the hotel and nap at about 4:30 (!). Anyway, I figured their boringness was the perfect time for me to indulge in some mushrooms. By the time they woke up I was ... quite affected. For some reason the white duvet made me really cold and feel like it was winter. T & L wanted me to go out to dinner and they wouldn't leave me in the hotel room... I just kept repeating "why do we have to go outside, it's way too cold out there... it's going to be way too cold... it's too cold, it's going to be really cold." and giggling because everything was funny. There were about 6 other people in the elevator and I was kind of telling myself not to laugh but I couldn't do it. Also couldn't hold up menu, eat, or be out in public. We ended up in the hotel bar for a few hours, all dark... I was pretty sure I had superhuman hearing and could isolate different conversations in the room, so I was ok to lean forward, shiver and entertain myself. Did the same the following night, only T partook as well...
We got to Paris in the evening and walked to our hotel from the Arc de Triomphe. I was pretty excited to be there... I'm not sure why, I guess because it was so different and I'd never really thought I would ever go there. As soon as we walked into the hotel a huge deal was made that there were 3 of us. I agreed to a 40 Euro room upgrade without seeing any of the rooms. The Bathroom was huge and lovely (as a bath lover, I appreciate things like that) with a cool old window that opened all the way and had a little juliet balcony. (There was one in the room too. That was lovely.) It was ok. Not my standard of hotel room, but ok. (As a side note L learned a little german watching Tv there and would say all of these random things.) The first night we went off in search of food and found a lovely, and posh restaurant with very attractive waiters and sat outside there. (The weather was beautiful the entire time we were in Paris) It was really good. I like the French way of eating very late. T was quite annoyed at the cost and there began her golden arches decree (which I filed in the great garbage bin of my brain.)
The next morning the hotel manager wanted to talk to me. When I went down there on my way out she informed me that there would be an additional 60 Euro per night charge... And there was the line... I flatly refused to pay it: "I'm not paying that."... and we argued for about 20 minutes. "I'm sorry, but I just can't allow myself to pay that amount for this hotel." I just kept flatly refusing - I mean I'm not a cheap person, but this felt like a fleece. She said "We have rules!" and I said "Do you have any rules against extortion?" So that was unpleasant.
I mastered the Metro quite easily. (I have a good sense of direction... a little 6th sense. T & L kept calling me GPS.) I dragged those two to the louvre. Neither were too enthralled, although L was the more receptive of the two... It could have been a shoe insole museum for all they cared. Saw the Mona Lisa
It was smaller than I thought. (I bet everyone says that). It was kind of an odd experience, It wasn't as if you could stand there and contemplate... It was like a kind of mob scene/paparazzi thing. T wasn't a bog fan of the louvre and objected to the amount of time I spent there. "Most of this stuff isn't even art... Like that- why do we care about the phoenix de milo? (I kid you not) It's not even finished... It doesn't even have arms!"
Dragged those two to the Champs Elysses and to Laduree
where I semi-begged (i'll admit) L & T to have dinner, or at least a drink in the bar
Since it wasn't a McDonald's, T excersized veto power and I was forced to console myself by purchasing six of the most lovely macarons in existence (esp. Salted Caramel one, although the Rose and Lavender ones were ok too.)
The cost of things in Paris was a little point of contention among the group. T hated every place I suggested and I refused to eat at McDonalds. I'm not sure how much of a compromise it was, but I basically tried to pick 'reasonable' places and T basically complained, hardly ate and never ordered a drink (even water.) That kind of sucked as it made both L & I feel guilty and obligated to share - Even though we were trying to keep the 7 Euro 5oz. glasses of 'Coke Light' (horrible) in the single digit numbers ourselves.
Went up the Eiffel tower (In the original elevator)
Also went to Pere LaChaise to find Edith Piaf's grave, and saw Jim Morrison's. It's interesting the things people do. EP's looked quite well loved and and kept up. There were some fresh flowers and I left a postcard of her, Jim Morrison's was regularly visited (and had a lot of people when we got there.) Lots of candles and unlit cigarettes. Pere LaChaise was huge and had a lot of famous people there (Oscar Wilde, Yves Montand, etc) but I didn't want to look for anyone else... It was too creepy.)
Paris was beautiful
L asked me if I would ever go back and I said not unless we broke up and my next GF or BF wanted to go, or if wee Viv wanted to go when she was a teenager. Partly the hotel thing tainted it (and the sense of foreboding every time I entered there.) but partly it was everyone else... Like pretty much everyone else. There was kind if an elitist you vs me vibe there that I have never encountered anywhere else before.
Amsterdam:
Arrived in Amsterdam via train and it could not have been a more different experience than Paris. I tried to get a taxi to our hotel from the train station and the taxi driver said "Oh, that's too close, it's just over there. Here..." (And he called a guy over and asked him to walk us there- and the guy did, pulling my suitcase!) The hotel was lovely (Marriott- a 2 minute walk from the train station, with tiny little packages of Haribo gummi bears strategically placed everywhere!) I was able to drag them out of the hotel without prolongued getting ready rituals that first night and we were wandering around looking for someplace to have dinner. This lady came out and talked to us and brought us menus so I felt compelled (by the fact that she was so nice) to eat there, and she could not have been nicer... She explained what all of the things on the menu were (I'd never had Schnitzel before) and which were light bears/dark beers (nothing L or T recognized.) She spent so much time talking to us and making sure we understood things, then at the end she gave us little glass shoes! I am very touched by things like that.
K had somehow convinced L & T that tourists in Amsterdam couldn't buy or smoke pot, so they kind of disbelievingly followed me into a coffeeshop where I asked for the best kind... I am not a huge into drugs person. I try not to be against anything, but my own experience is limited. I have never rolled one before (but seen my mother and knew you needed scissors, which I didn't have.) I just kind of divided the bag into two very fat and massive J's, and lit up. I liked the darkness and the chilledness of it... T & L wanted to drink, so we went to a bar next door and I had a few strongbows, and then we went back to the coffeehouse... and back and forth (the bar had wifi, so I called my mother, but then I couldn't hear her.) One of the bars had a jukebox and I made the mistake of choosing songs before I felt out the vibe... It was mostly middle aged people and I thought the traditional German music was a fluke, but it was a rule... when I figured that out I leaned in to L & T and said "Something tells me they're not going to appreciate 'It's raining men.' We laughed for a long time about that. (might have also been the marijuana.)
Were v. drunk & high going back to the hotel and T managed to fall into the middle of the road in front of oncoming traffic. Face first. I jumped out in front of her and put my hand up in the universal stop fashion whilst L tried to help T up. I thought she'd knocked herself out and all of her teeth out. Her mouth was bleeding like crazy and near her eye (where her glasses pushed up). It was pretty gross.
It was kind of raining the next day. I dragged those guys around the red light district and shopping, but they both wanted to go back to the hotel and nap at about 4:30 (!). Anyway, I figured their boringness was the perfect time for me to indulge in some mushrooms. By the time they woke up I was ... quite affected. For some reason the white duvet made me really cold and feel like it was winter. T & L wanted me to go out to dinner and they wouldn't leave me in the hotel room... I just kept repeating "why do we have to go outside, it's way too cold out there... it's going to be way too cold... it's too cold, it's going to be really cold." and giggling because everything was funny. There were about 6 other people in the elevator and I was kind of telling myself not to laugh but I couldn't do it. Also couldn't hold up menu, eat, or be out in public. We ended up in the hotel bar for a few hours, all dark... I was pretty sure I had superhuman hearing and could isolate different conversations in the room, so I was ok to lean forward, shiver and entertain myself. Did the same the following night, only T partook as well...