‘Kuuuuurrrplutt’. Yes, that was the first sound I heard as my mind, as well as half the passengers on the planes minds were buzzing when the pilot decided to probably have two too many shots of whiskey before we took off and landed like he was flying a plane full of chickens landing on a dirt road in the middle of Timbuck Nowheresville or possibly Columbia. So that was fun. Besides all that, the entire trip over here was absolutely easy and a little fun. Being boxed into a tin cylinder like a sardine wasn’t all that special but hey when you are given a half shot of orange juice and a Signorny Weaver/Jamie Lee Curtis movie life can’t get much better.
So we have officially been here a day, and I am already ready to cancel my ticket home! But before I get to the good stuff there are a few minor details that need to be hashed out…
1. Make sure your bank is aware of international travel or your card will be blocked. (We did but still had problems)
2. No matter what it will probably not work anyways because it doesn’t have a special Euro hologram that makes it usable anywhere other than an ATM (which will charge you 3% percent of your total withdraw )
3. Get a map of the rail lines or you will get lost, but getting lost is fun…sometimes.
4. The French are amazingly nice ! ( not being sarcastic )
So, now for a couple observations, Bill Byrson, said in his book ‘Here Nor There’ that the city’s outskirts are full of trash and people take pride in their lack of parking and driving skills here. I understand that this city has been ravaged by war more than a few times, but that left a defining mark that was difficult to ahake, but when I got into the city center, lets just say, it became an unimportant fading thought. Oh, and I will be taking a picture of the first truck I see here, just so you know there is one, but I am sure they are not that fond of them considering it does make it hard to park backwards and on the curbs with such a large vehicle.
So, we finally made it over to the hotel, and got acquainted with the room’s humongous spider, took showers and decided not to waste any time. We immediately headed for downtown.Our Paris Pass doesn’t start till Monday so we thought it would be best to just explore and get our bearings in the city. I then realized I could spend weeks just trying to soak in the exteriors of the buildings, they were so elaborate and exquisite. There were no tin buildings, that would blow over with a strong wind, anywhere the eye could see (yeah that’s a slight at you America.) So, after being conned out of two Euro's from a girl who supposedly couldn’t speak, but had to hold her mouth shut tight, I'm sure, to keep from laughing at the gullible American…we went everywhere. We walked by the woman trying to tell me she was from Bosnia and was going to die if I didn’t give her cash, but somehow found it important to hold on to her gold teeth, to the guy that somehow found an 18k gold ring on the ground and was just happy to give it to a nice face, but then two seconds later harassed the hell out of me till I gave him two Euros… God, get me to a new country and I become Mr. Easy... I guess you have to be jaded all over the world or everyone will take a shot at taking your money.
The Louve is a big as Orland California…maybe all of Glen County. One thing that I need to say though, is that currently they are doing renovations and it looks like they are doing it with a modern style on the exterior, and personally, I hate it, but I am sure it will look breathtaking when it is done. I know I have been kinda poking fun so far at our first day, but that’s what first days are, learning experiences, and since I didn’t give ALL our money away, I am going to take that as a win. Really though, Paris is amazing. So much true innovative art everywhere.. My intelligence and vocabulary cannot do this town justice. Only the hands of the sculptures, painters, and architects have come close, and I am none of them. I cannot wait to soak in 13 more days here, and identify with the grand city of Paris for more than a place where I became a tourist.
Itinerary for the day: work out, get lost, drink wine, and enjoy life.....
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