| Oct 26, 2005 - Paris
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 | | Eifel Tower at dusk | | side view of Notre Dame |
| Bon jour from Paris!
This city is just as beautiful as I remembered. I am cutting my time here short by one day as all the trains heading to San Sebastian are full both Friday and Saturday. I arrived without a hitch, getting on my standby flight in business class with no problem. I even managed to sleep a little on the flight which was a first for me, but the jetlag is still kicking my butt. I arrived around noon yesteray and immediately went for a 3 hour walk through my neighborhood and down along the Seine. My hotel is in the Latin Quarter, not far from Notre Dame, on a cute, little square full of little cafes. To say that the room is small would be an understatement. It's also smokey and noisey, but very cheap, only 30 euros a night. You get what you pay for, right? Right now I am exhausted. Between the jetlag and noise, I have had very little sleep.
After dinner I walked from my hotel to the Eifel tower, arriving right at dusk. It was a beatiful night, warm and clear. I just sat in a park and stared up at the Tower, covered with twinkling lights. It was truly beatiful site. I then walked back along the river and took one of the evening cruises along the Seine. After all that walking, I thought I would sleep pretty well, but no such luck. Because it was warm, and to be able to breathe throught he cigarette smoke which permeates up the stairway and under my door, I slept with the window open. The partying in the square didn't die down until well after 3 am.
Today I walked through the Marseille neighborhood and back to the Eifel tower, Arc de Triumph and then spent the rest of the day riding the subway and sitting in little cafes drinking cafe au lattes and taking in Paris. The temps have been in the low 70's, and I am in jeans and a t-shirt while the Parisians walk around in sweaters, jackets and scarves. I don't know how they can do it without sweating buckets. I also don't know how the women walk down these cobbled streets teetering on high heels. It's surprising they don't break their necks! Tomorrow I catch a train at the crack o'dawn for San Sebastian, so I am now off to plot my route on the subway from my hotel to the train station. |
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