My Second Home

CDG
My first day starts miserably. Winds and rain make the landing and subsequent walking outside the airport very uncomfortable. Train to the center, metro, wrong way walking through a market. Tents and trash blowing everywhere, I fear my life in a cinematic sort of way. I am soaked, but having a nice time now.

PARIS, 18th, 9th
I spend the rest of the first day inside with Mathilde and her friends. They are all very nice, I feel welcome in their home. Eating and drinking and talking occupies us until sleep.



The next day I get my bearings on foot. I am terrified of where the French in my brain has sunk away. Up and down and up Montmartre, taking a wander. "Le Pain Qui Parle" for my first café and croissant.

Saly's book turns out to be amazing. I cannot understand plenty of it, but finding everything is a great deal of fun. I make my way through the 18th and 9th most of the day.







I was right. I could definitely live here. After strolling around only one day in two quartiers, it is obvious. It is a feeling and you just know it. Mexico City is now in third place.



MARAIS
It starts raining again, but finishes by the time we park. The Jewish district of town is really not so ethnically separate, but I guess my standards are too high. Dinner is good but too expensive for what it is. I am thankful for the addition to our group of an Australian guy who also has poor French.

8th
A very short jaunt through the posh 8th arrondissement. Too fancy for my tastes, but some nice public spaces. Me and the metro ticket lady have absolutely no chemistry and she tries to send me packing. Thankfully I buy one ticket and am on my way.

4th


The 4th is nice and provides a great afternoon. More of Paris's "must-sees" and lots of little goodies. I have the most fun discovering the oddities and smaller gems of Ile de la Cité. It is filled with tourists, but even they do not venture off the main streets and plazas. The alleys remain mine!

Notre Dame is quite wonderful inside and out and is just one of those places that invoke a wowamireallylookingatthis kind of feeling.







Parisiens are nicer than their reputation. Maybe it is not tourist season, so they are kinder. Maybe it is because my accent is not so terrible. Maybe it is my smile.

Oh, did that girl really not know how to ride a bicycle, or was she just trying to get my attention?



Paris is really so massive like New York that the tourists do not bother you. There are so many things to see and do that everyone is not on exactly the same path like many other cities (Roma and Firenze come to mind).

2nd
For dinner, nine of us go to a small French restaurant where I take many photos. We sit there for three and a half hours, and even though most of the conversation is in French, I do not feel left out or uncomfortable. I would have liked to go with Alex and Carole to a bar after, but go with Mathilde to avoid missing the metro and have to take a taxi.



3rd
I Wake up after 10am today, terrible. Quickly I make my way through the 3rd before meeting for lunch. This is the best district so far with so many little treasures to discover.





1st and 2nd
More districts not really for me, much poshness, a nice pause at the Louvre to look around and end the no bathroom emergency.



10th
Another night with friends, this time at the home of Bruno for making crepes. What a fun time watching others and making them myself.

On the way home I give Mathilde and Pierre plenty of space and try to enjoy Paris by night in my own world.

6th
RAIN. It becomes the story of the day. I pass by the Medical University and Jardin du Luxembourg on my way to the 5th from Montparnasse. Getting very wet and it is not comfortable in this cold.

My stop in a quiet café does not work out the way I think, as a group of eight loud, chain-smoking girls come in just as I get my coffee.

5th
Nice district, with plenty of nice little things to see, but I am getting further soaked and the water line on my jeans has almost reached my knees. I am basically just killing time until Alex texts me, but that never comes and I head home at 4pm, an undeniable retreat. The rain has won today. Juliette is the only one home in the evening and I have a nice relaxing chat with her.



LA DEFENSE
After washing clothes and picking up the book for Mathilde, I start doing a couple of the things I have missed so far. That starts at La Defense, which is even better and more impressive than I expected. I grab lunch here as well from some sort of market for Christmas shopping that also has plenty of food.





LA TOUR EIFFEL, 7th



I finally make it, and have perfect timing for weather. I am more impressed with it also than I expected, and enjoy hanging around and taking in the scene. The dance of tourist and tout. A brief rain requires cover for 20 minutes, then I walk to explore the 7th a little since I have time. Leila bails on our plans, so I quickly make it to the metro to catch some other sites.

19th
It is starting to rain as I walk down the canal and search for more of hidden Paris. I am on my way to Buttes Chaumont for Saly, but see the nice neighborhood along the way too. Discovering orthodox St. Serge is probably the most interesting part of the walk, and I discover the park is closed just as it starts raining hard.

SUBURBS
That night I join Mathilde and Pierre to meet a friend that she met while in Florida. I am pretty much left out of the conversation all night, but the food is good. A type of fondue that you first melt a slice of cheese and then put it on your food. No dipping.

TRAFFIC and TGV
The ride to Gare de Lyon was doomed from the very beginning. Paris traffic was at a standstill all week, and with the rain I figured today to be no different. I was unable to politely decline the offer, so I went along with the ride with them. 20 minutes laterwe had hardly moved, and I get off at Gare du Nord for some nervous transfers on the metro to Gare de Lyon. Made it in plenty of time though.

This time I will stay awake, unlike my last ride almost 20 years ago. The speed of the train is cause for pure fun. The countryside is beautifully hilly and green as the train gets closer to Lyon. I even spot the Alps in the distance to the east. Paris is well behind me now.