Paris

Paris (July 11-12) 

The flight from Calgary to London was a disaster. I was in between two babies and beside two lesbians. The lesbians did some funny things under blankets. I didn't sleep the entire flight. I did the heathrow express into town. I did a bit of London but I have seen it all before. I fell asleep by 4 pm by accident. I got up at 3am which was a hassle because nothing was open and I was hungry. I took the tube to meet up with my contiki group by 6 am in some strange part of London. 

The first day was a cluster storm of chaos. Twelve tours left from the same location at the same time. The bus ride was a long one. We took it from London to Dover then hopped on the ferry over to France. I saw the white cliffs of Dover which were very unimpressive. The ride was even longer to Paris. Paris is extremely dirty in my opinion. the first night we took a bus tour of Paris and saw most of the important buildings. I tried escargot and nearly puked. I hate the feel of them going down my throat. I will never eat one again. Later that evening, I visited and climbed to the top of the Eiffel tower. There is 789 steps plus a short elevator ride to the top. My calves are going to hurt by the end of the tour. I did the Eiffel tower in sandals which was a huge mistake. I got to see the sunset over Paris from the top. Spectacular views. The light show on the Eiffel tower is cool as it sparkles and is red white and blue for their national holiday on Saturday. 

Day two of Paris started early with a horrible traditional French breakfast of just coffee and apple sauce. They don't seem to eat here at all. I walked to a bakery and had a chocolate croissant. We all got dropped off in town at the Arc de Triumph. I climbed it and swathe Eiffel tower from there and the sprawl that they call Paris. The weather held for the morning. I did a tad bit of shopping down the Champs de Elysses for a bathing suit and a pair of runners. I forgot both on this trip. I had several cups of French coffee all day. 

My afternoon was very artistic. I walked to the Louvre. I saw Monna Lisa which was significantly smaller than I thought it was going to be. The last supper is massive and covers about 60" squared. I wandered through the Spanish, Greek, Italian, and Egyptian art works. I spent about three hours in the Louvre mostly because I got lost and couldn't get out. I walked then to the Musee d'Orsay which has the Van Gogh exhibits. Starry Night is spectacular to see but I left after that as I am not much of an art buff. 

Night two of Paris was a traditional French dinner (French onion soup, cheese,beef bouillon, chocolate moose, and espresso). Very good dinner with entertaining conversations. This tour is mainly Australians and Kiwis with the majority from Perth funnily enough. I don't think I hung out with that many Perth kids whilst living in Perth as I do this trip. After dinner everyone was ushered to a Moulin Rouge show. It was amazing - I loved the costumes. The men were stunning and the women were just skinny. I wish that it was a little bit more exciting but that's fine. It isn't like the movie which was a bit depressing. 

AFN