France Day 2:

We overslept this morning, but still managed to hit all the sights we had planned for today. Riding the Metro here in Paris is exceedingly easy. We're navigating our way across town like Parisians already.

I put up a few select photos HERE that show a taste of what we're up to. I have tons more but I want to edit them before I share them with everyone.

I am suffering from a bit of information overload! It's so amazing here and I'm learning so much about Paris and the people that live here. My French is getting better already and I'm more confident about asserting various things in my travels (like getting tap water instead of mineral water) and I've already had a few occasions where French people asked me a question in French, and I answered in French and they responded back in FRENCH, not English. Maybe they're just humoring me, I don't know, but it's a fun adventure and a wonderful learning experience.

There are so many little things I want to write about, but it's all just too much to share at this point. I will say that yesterday while we were sitting at a cafe, I told Tim that so far, I was disappointed with the Parisian soundtrack. It sure doesn't sound like any French movie I've seen. Lots of techno... Anyway, when we got on the Metro this morning, there was a fat Frenchman who was busking in our car, playing the ACCORDION! :D It was this totally cheesy Parisian movie moment. I took some video that I'll try to upload to Youtube later.

That's all for now! Tomorrow we're going to Luxembourg Gardens, Rodin & Orsay Museums and Rue Cler... Abientot!

France Day 1:

After the longest flight is the history of my LIFE, we finally landed in Paris. We met other people with Go Ahead on the plane and they filled us in on their past adventures with what they affectionately refer to as "Slow-Ahead, Snow-Ahead, Blow-Ahead Tours". They also got me hooked on crossword puzzles, which I thought wasn't going to happen until I was at least 60, but hey, it was a good way to pass the time. Well, that and the gin. ;)

Our transfer assistant was almost 40 minutes late picking us up, so it took quite a while to get checked into our rooms. We dropped our bags off at the hotel and wandered around the Eiffel nabe. We found a cute little bistro and had some lunch. We attempted our French with the waiter who seemed pretty unimpressed.

Tim: Parlay Vooz ONGLAY?
Waiter: grunt
(we place our order, he walks away)
Erin: I think he likes us.
Tim: Yeah, I think he wants to hang out later.
Erin: He loves us Americans, and he thinks our crappy French is charming.
Tim: Totally. I think he wants to make out.

When we got back to hotel,some of our party (who kept yelling HAPPY BIRTHDAY every time they saw me) bought us some mimosas at the hotel bar. We chatted a bit and finally got settled in our room. SURE it has two twin beds instead of a full (we just pushed them together, no big deal) and sure this internet costs more than my computer. But the point is, that we are here and everything, even the small things are magical because it's Paris.

We are off to Ponte Neuf tonight for a boat tour on the Seine and then off to dinner at Alcazar. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go walk down the hall to the IRONING ROOM. Why yes, the French prefer to iron in a community environment. Thank you France for that fascinating lesson in our cultural differences!;)