riakaruda

Travelling and eating my way around the world

Tag Archives: Paris

Paris Pics

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This gallery contains 21 photos


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Au revoir

Apr 25th was my last day in Paris, and when I woke up, I realised the major flaw / overlook on my plans: I had forgotten about Versailles! Don’t ask me how, I chalk it up to travellers memory*. I had about a 10 min frenzy of trying to fit it in before flying out in the afternoon until I sadly realised it would be a tight squeeze (read: impossible) so I decided it was for “next time” and headed out for Sacre Coeur after bidding farewell to my hostess.
I had be warned about all the stairs leading up to Sacre Coeur Basilica, but I have it no thought until that morning when I remembered I’d be doing them with my full backpack on. Oh well, gotta walk off those crepes 😉
I decided to count the steps, because I’m a masochist like that. So, 330 steps later, I arrived at the front door. I walked in single file along with the plethora of other visitors. At the end, I snapped my “no pictures allowed” picture, then headed back out and around to enter the crypt and dome portion (which cost €8). The crypt was not nearly as scary as the name would suggest. It resembled the upstairs, without the lights on.
Beginning to wonder if I’d be taken for €8, I headed towards the dome (tower) and noticed the sign indicating it was 300 stairs to the top. What they neglected to mention was that the stairwell is not for the claustrophobic. Or, say, people carrying a big backpack.
Three hundred spiral steps later, I reached the top, glowing** like a neon light and a little dizzy. And that’s when I realised that I had gotten a steal of a deal with €8 and 630 stairs – the view was AMAZING! It was a clear day, and I could see to the Eiffel Tower. I walked around for a bit, taking pictures from every angle, before starting my descent. The views were so beautiful, Ilost track of time and had to pick up the pace to get to the airport. All told, I climbed and descended 1260 stairs with a 12 kg backpack and 3 kg front pack.
On the train heading to CDG, I realised I didn’t know my terminal (and there are three). I figured I had better odds with the Terminal 1 & 3station and luckily it paid off. I found my check-in and got in the REALLY long line. I tried to do web check-in but it wouldn’t allow me, so I waited in line. And waited. And waited. And panicked, as I mentally did the math on the time remaining versus the tasks remaining (security, find gate, food, bathroom run, change to warmer clothes, etc). And waited. (panic)
Time I arrived in line: 12:35
Time I arrived at the counter: 1:30
Time plane was scheduled to leave: 2:15
Time of boarding listed on info screen: 1:50
Rumoured time to get through security: 40min (panic)
When I got to the counter, I was informed that my 12 kg bag was considered “oversized” due to the straps! Meaning, I had to take it to another area to drop off before heading to security (more panic). To add to the fun, their computer system had decided to revolt after the long line and wouldn’t print my boarding pass (yup, you guessed it: panic). After waiting the longest 10 min of my life, (time: 1:45) I got my boarding pass and full-tilt RAN to drop off my “oversized” backpack, (time: 1:48) then on to find security and my gate! Got to security, (time: 1:53) gulped down half a litre of water in under 2 min and went through the security drill (which luckily I have down to a science now!)
Time: 1:57
I rush out of security, ready to run for my gate, when I look up….. And see my gate RIGHT THERE. It was then I realised that the security drill had gone abnormally fast. No wonder: it was just for that small wing! My plane was still not boarding, so I:
– bought some pastries for the plane
– bought an orange juice at another shop
– did a bathroom run
– refilled my water bottle
… and then I sat down and waited for boarding. Which happened at 2:05
(we didn’t leave on time…)
The flight itself was pleasantly uneventful as I headed for my final destination: Reykjavik, Iceland. In my shorts.
* since every day is a holiday, you quickly lose track of which day it is, how much time you have, sometimes which country you are in, and which tourist attractions you still need to do.
** Horses sweat, men perspire, women glow.


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Do I <3 Paris?

It’s amazing how refreshed and ready for the day you can be when you get 10 glorious hours of undisturbed sleep! The lady made me some toast & coffee while I showered and got ready, then we ate together and attempted to have a conversation. I spoke my best Frapanese (french japanese mix) because apparently my brain lumps all foreign languages into one area. I hit the road by 9am with a detailed plan, but not a detailed map. I looked for the Opera house, but it was so amazing, I walked right padt without noticing it. No worries, I thought, I’ll just continue on to the Louvre. A street artist asked me if he could have the pleasure of drawing me, no cost. I told him he could have the pleasure of drawing me from memory instead! I took my pictures of the outside, then paid for a one-day pass on the Batobus (water bus). Once cruising the Seine, I started to enjoy Paris. I saw the Eiffel Tower from the boat, and hopped off. I got in line at 11:40, and 10 min later decided to buy a croissant & juice for the wait. We were entertained by a guy in plain clothes wearing a mask, inconspicuously coming up behind people and scaring them. I was not as entertained by the Gypsies who walked around asking if you spoke English. I planned to speak in Japanese if they asked me, but they didn’t. I’m not sure if I was happy or sad about that – haha.
After 45 min in line, a family tried to butt in line near me and another family. I told them where the end of te line was, and the man replied in French that they were just very tired. Surprisingly, my French came back enough for me to retort “moi aussi fatigue mais…” Myself and the family made sure they were at least behind us 😉
Start time: 11:40
First security check: 12.35
Ticket window: 12:47
(At which point they informed me that the top was no longer open, highest was 2nd floor only! Grrrr…)
In the entrance: 1:01
Walk around the 2nd floor, took pictures.
Entered second line: 1:17 (to see if I could get to the top)
Left second line: 1:24 because it wasn’t moving at all. I had too many other things to see that day. Turns out the window wasn’t even open for business.
Started down the stairs: 1:44 because the line for the lift down was even longer!
When I got to the bottom, my legs were wobbly because of so many freakin’ stairs! What was I thinking??
I hopped back on the Batobus, and got off at Musee d’Orsey. This is my new favorite place in Paris. Why? Well, for one, there was NO LINE! And secondly, it had a lot of cool stuff in it! Such as
Paul Cezanne‘s Portrait of Gustov Geffroy
Monet’s Harmonie blanche / bleus / grises , nympheas bleus
Alfred Sisley‘s la neige a louveciennes
Van Gogh’s Starry Night
Seurat’s garden scene

When I felt sufficiently cultured (read: tired feet, sore back), I left the museum and walked to Champs-Elyees. It had every store you could imagine, and you could even drive a Lamborghini for 30 min for the low low price of £85. Somehow I resisted, but I couldn’t resist the Kashmi Tea shop. But when I went up pay, my visa said declined! I paid with cash, then went on a panicked hunt for wifi or a phone. There should have been no reason for the decline, and I needed the visa for Iceland yet! All the payphones required a visa, but finally I located a McDonalds that had free wifi. So I used the last little bit of Euros on my to buy something so I could use their wifi and Skype visa. Turned out it was the store’s fault and my visa was fine – phew! Crisis averted. Took advantage if the wifi and skyped my mom & Esme, then headed back out. I saw the Arc de Triomphe, and something that resembled a very small version of a Remebrance Day celebration, complete with vets and a military band. I’m not sure why they were there, but it was cool all the same.
I headed back down to the Seine, and caught the Batobus again, this time using it to see Paris at night. I got off at the stop closest to my place, and walked another 20 min home. I said a brief goodnight to my hosts, and fell into bed at 11:00pm.


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An ungodly hour…

I have a personal rule of never waking up before 6am for any reason. So I have NO idea what I was thinking when I booked my early-morning ticket from Dubrovnik to Paris. I had two options for buses: 4:55 or 6:00 (arrival 30 min later). I planned on taking the 6am just for the extra sleep, but then decided to catch the earlier one, just in case. I ran up the stairs of the city to find my bus stop, worried I’d be late. The arrival time came and went, then a taxi stopped and offered the same price to the airport prividing he took a full car. Seeing as there was no bus in sight, four of us quickly agreed to those terms, and we hopped in. I watched the directions like a hawk to make sure we were REALLY heading to the airport 😉
Turned out it was a good thing I choose the earlier time because my flight was at 6:20, not 7:20! They had us board a bus to take us to the airplane, which literally lasted 1 min. Why we didn’t walk is beyond me, but whatever. Maybe it’s a make-work project.
My next concern was my 45 min connection at Zagreb, but I shouldn’t have been concerned. After getting off the plane, going through a passport check, visiting the ladies room, and finding my gate, I still had 30 of my 45min connection left!
After being in such tiny airports, I was overwhelmed when I got off the plane at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris. And then trying to figure out the transit system almost made me want to turn right back around. After coming around full-circle twice, I managed to get myself on the right train heading the right direction. I found my station and my airbnb house. It was a little awkward at first as she knew little English and my French was more than a little rusty. Managed to get things figured out, then went outside to wait for Cameron, an old coworker, to arrive. I had to change where I was waiting / standing, though, when I realised I was getting the evil eye from a few other “ladies” also standing on the street. Cameron arrived shortly after that, and off we went. We caught up over a leisurely lunch, then walked down to Notre Dame. He left to catch his train back home, and i set out on my new adventure. I went to the Luxembourg Gardens and the Latin Quarter. Of course I had to have a crepe for dinner – Nutella banana. I walked back to my place, and headed to bed by 10pm. it was a litle awkward because their place was small, especially for a family of four, and I’m pretty sure I had the couple’s bedroom. oh well. I paid good money for it, and I’d had a very long and tiring day, so I popped in my earplugs and hit the sack at 10pm.