Paris, In The Spring Time
Ok.... not necessarily Spring.
Amsterdam
I left Amsterdam Tuesday morning. I thought I could take the 9:56 straight into Paris, but I found out it did not run on Tuesdays. I did manage to leave earlier on a train bound for Brussels. But when I got to Brussels, I got off at the wrong stop and got lost and then found where I was supposed to be; got on the right train to be told that I needed to reserve a ticket to ride this train; got off and ran to the ticket office to get the reserved ticket; had to pay an additional 11€ for my damn ticket and that is on top of my Eurailpass. Needless to say, I was in a dour mood only to get worse when I had to sit next to a woman who was taking up both seats. Luckily I was able to find a seat.
Paris-Not For Extremists Anymore
So I got to Paris... And you are all wondering what my little subtitle means. Well no sooner did I get off the Train that something happened. The funny things is; I saw it happening before it occurred. I looked up and saw 5 Security Men and one saw me and nodded to the others. One of them stepped toward me and said something in French. I thought he was asking for my ticket. So I showed it to him, and then he asked for my passport. Two of the Security were on either side of me... There was on escape! I was caught like a little caught thing,caught by catchers... Except I did nothing wrong, well except for the Cannabis tea I had but thats legal... honest!
They took my Passport and actually radioed in about me! I could not hear what they were asking but they were examining my passport very carefully. It really was unnerving. Meanwhile the first Guard was asking me questions, all friendly-like. 'What I did?'etc. I asked to put my knapsack down but he said I could not. Needless to say, they gave me my passport and said 'It was ok'. Delphine later told me that they were expecting an attack! Yikes!!!!!!
Delphine's Home
Is in the most amazing part of Paris. She is honestly 5 minutes from the Louvre!!!! Five minutes!!!!! She is also right across from the jardins des tuilieres. It was so weird being able to walk to the Louvre.
My first day, I thought I would just take it easy and perhaps sleep in late then just wander around. However glancing at the map changed my mind.
My Deep Dark Secret- REVEALED!
I am so grateful that only one person reads this journal because only now can I reveal my deep shame. As my one reader knows, I visited Paris 2 years ago. To my undying shame, I became the first tourist in the history of Paris to actually visit the city and not visit the Eiffel Tower! There! Now you too know my shame.
Champs D'Elysee
I decided to walk up the Champs D'Elysee. It is very nice. I walked pass so many Museums I lost count... ok not true, there were about 4 or so. the Arche De Triomphe was just spectacular! It is dedicated to all the wars the French have been involved in. It was haunting. I wanted to climb to the top but decided against it mainly because it was so cold! I spent about an hour there just soaking in the atmosphere and counting the Japanese tourists.
My Deep Dark Secret- REVEALED! Part II
I was finally able to correct this oversight by visiting 'La Tour Eiffel'. It is beautiful. One thing that surprised me was the colour. I thought that it would be grey because the girders were iron. To my pleasant surprise the whole structure was a brown. A nice brown. Whenever I saw any movies with the tower, I saw it grey.
The Louvre
A museum in a museum that should be in a museum. I spent the whole day there. exploring every gallery and exhibit. I realized that there is just so much that I could not fully appreciate the scope and breathe of the Museum and decided to purchase a Guide to the Louvre which gave an overview of the art and a perspective. Plus who knows when and if I may ever come back to Paris.
The Louvre-The Da Vinci Code
Of course I saw the Mona Lisa. It is beautiful. Serene. I stared at it for about 10 minutes. The room was crowded but the Mona Lisa dominated the room. The strange thing is that the painting is only 90 cm by 60 cm. the first time I saw it, I was surprised at how small it was. As you know, the Da Vinci Code starts at the foot of the Mona Lisa and then gets dumber and dumber. Well sorry to disappoint you but the painting was moved from where it was- as told in the book, to its new location. I was fortunate enough to have seen it in it before it was moved 2 years ago. And no, it is not a big deal.
Still being in the museum was just thrilling. Everywhere I went I saw Japanese tourists. And I would say 'Genki Desu-ka?' They thought it was funny.
The Louvre-Oh Ya, There Are Other Exhibits Too!
I also enjoyed the Venus De Milo and the Winged Victory. I loved the French impressionists! Seeing the paintings connected to the Revolution was really great. One of the best things I saw was a head from Easter Island.
Dinner
Delphine and I had Crépés last night. I really had not had them since I was a kid. It was good, mine was cheese, ham and salade, hers was mushrooms, egg and ham. Mine was good, hers better. Oh! I saw the Tour Eiffel lit up!
Today
The weather has been terrible. Cold and windy and now today, wet. I will grab lunch and then see the Notre Dame Cathedral. then off to meet Sven
Amsterdam
I left Amsterdam Tuesday morning. I thought I could take the 9:56 straight into Paris, but I found out it did not run on Tuesdays. I did manage to leave earlier on a train bound for Brussels. But when I got to Brussels, I got off at the wrong stop and got lost and then found where I was supposed to be; got on the right train to be told that I needed to reserve a ticket to ride this train; got off and ran to the ticket office to get the reserved ticket; had to pay an additional 11€ for my damn ticket and that is on top of my Eurailpass. Needless to say, I was in a dour mood only to get worse when I had to sit next to a woman who was taking up both seats. Luckily I was able to find a seat.
Paris-Not For Extremists Anymore
So I got to Paris... And you are all wondering what my little subtitle means. Well no sooner did I get off the Train that something happened. The funny things is; I saw it happening before it occurred. I looked up and saw 5 Security Men and one saw me and nodded to the others. One of them stepped toward me and said something in French. I thought he was asking for my ticket. So I showed it to him, and then he asked for my passport. Two of the Security were on either side of me... There was on escape! I was caught like a little caught thing,caught by catchers... Except I did nothing wrong, well except for the Cannabis tea I had but thats legal... honest!
They took my Passport and actually radioed in about me! I could not hear what they were asking but they were examining my passport very carefully. It really was unnerving. Meanwhile the first Guard was asking me questions, all friendly-like. 'What I did?'etc. I asked to put my knapsack down but he said I could not. Needless to say, they gave me my passport and said 'It was ok'. Delphine later told me that they were expecting an attack! Yikes!!!!!!
Delphine's Home
Is in the most amazing part of Paris. She is honestly 5 minutes from the Louvre!!!! Five minutes!!!!! She is also right across from the jardins des tuilieres. It was so weird being able to walk to the Louvre.
My first day, I thought I would just take it easy and perhaps sleep in late then just wander around. However glancing at the map changed my mind.
My Deep Dark Secret- REVEALED!
I am so grateful that only one person reads this journal because only now can I reveal my deep shame. As my one reader knows, I visited Paris 2 years ago. To my undying shame, I became the first tourist in the history of Paris to actually visit the city and not visit the Eiffel Tower! There! Now you too know my shame.
Champs D'Elysee
I decided to walk up the Champs D'Elysee. It is very nice. I walked pass so many Museums I lost count... ok not true, there were about 4 or so. the Arche De Triomphe was just spectacular! It is dedicated to all the wars the French have been involved in. It was haunting. I wanted to climb to the top but decided against it mainly because it was so cold! I spent about an hour there just soaking in the atmosphere and counting the Japanese tourists.
My Deep Dark Secret- REVEALED! Part II
I was finally able to correct this oversight by visiting 'La Tour Eiffel'. It is beautiful. One thing that surprised me was the colour. I thought that it would be grey because the girders were iron. To my pleasant surprise the whole structure was a brown. A nice brown. Whenever I saw any movies with the tower, I saw it grey.
The Louvre
A museum in a museum that should be in a museum. I spent the whole day there. exploring every gallery and exhibit. I realized that there is just so much that I could not fully appreciate the scope and breathe of the Museum and decided to purchase a Guide to the Louvre which gave an overview of the art and a perspective. Plus who knows when and if I may ever come back to Paris.
The Louvre-The Da Vinci Code
Of course I saw the Mona Lisa. It is beautiful. Serene. I stared at it for about 10 minutes. The room was crowded but the Mona Lisa dominated the room. The strange thing is that the painting is only 90 cm by 60 cm. the first time I saw it, I was surprised at how small it was. As you know, the Da Vinci Code starts at the foot of the Mona Lisa and then gets dumber and dumber. Well sorry to disappoint you but the painting was moved from where it was- as told in the book, to its new location. I was fortunate enough to have seen it in it before it was moved 2 years ago. And no, it is not a big deal.
Still being in the museum was just thrilling. Everywhere I went I saw Japanese tourists. And I would say 'Genki Desu-ka?' They thought it was funny.
The Louvre-Oh Ya, There Are Other Exhibits Too!
I also enjoyed the Venus De Milo and the Winged Victory. I loved the French impressionists! Seeing the paintings connected to the Revolution was really great. One of the best things I saw was a head from Easter Island.
Dinner
Delphine and I had Crépés last night. I really had not had them since I was a kid. It was good, mine was cheese, ham and salade, hers was mushrooms, egg and ham. Mine was good, hers better. Oh! I saw the Tour Eiffel lit up!
Today
The weather has been terrible. Cold and windy and now today, wet. I will grab lunch and then see the Notre Dame Cathedral. then off to meet Sven