Paris in less than 48 hours
Another of my British friends here in Germany is getting married, which meant yet another hen night. We didn't have nearly as much time to plan this one, only since the trip to Barcelona, but things went off without a hitch, and it was a great time. Half the group flew over Friday night, but I couldn't make the flight that early, so I opted for the overnight bus, which left Stuttgart at 9:30pm and arrived in Paris at 7am (real times : 10pm to 6:45am) The bus trip was quite amusing itself. There was another american couple and their 20 something daughter on the bus too, so we had a good laugh together as... we sped down windy roads to a middle-of-nowhere town where we filled up on gas at the random EuroLines garage; side-swipped some bushes trying get out of the town; someone in the back of the bus lit up and the bus driver had to pull over in some forest to tell them that you can't smoke on the bus (flash back to my plane ride back to SF for Christmas) as you can tell the trip was off to a good start, haha.
Good news is that I arrived ontime to Paris, and made it to the hostel ok, only to find out my friends were not away and I couldn't check in til 11 - it was 7am. So I changed, and headed out and walked through an open air produce market under the metro near the hostel, and grabbed a coffee and croissant for breakfast (when in France...) I headed up to the Montmarte area and the Sacre Coure next. It is such an enchanting area of the city. The streets are great to look at, there are lots of trees, cute restaurants and stores. I finally got a call from my friends saything they were up, and to head on back. There were 8 of us on this trip, which was a little more difficult to coordinate with, but we managed quite well actually. We made it onto the metro to head closer into town for a meal, and walked to the Orangerie Musuem. My need to pee and the fact that i would have to pay 7.5 euro to see something I had seen before, resulted in me sitting this one out, but it was ok. We walked to a cafe next and I stopped in the Grand Palais to see the amazing glass ceiling. There was an exhibit going on, but the guard was actually nice and let me walk into the entry area to get a better look and take some picts. On the way to the cafe, it started CRAZY raining which caused a good laugh, and me to think (yes, this is the way my life works, and I love it) Not to mention I was almost run over by a smart car as i was crossing the street because i thought it was parked!! 
This incident was preceeded 5 mins by my friend saying "If we're hit, it's our time" HAHA. Well, i guess it wasn't my time :-) After that we went to the Rodin Museum, quite possible my favorite in Paris. I went there with my Dad when we took a family vacation to Paris 10+ years ago. That was the day my sister got sick, and I got to spend the whole day with just one parent - Dad in the morning, Mom in the afternoon (little did my sister know that would turn out to be one of the best vacation days of my life, sorry laura :-) As a sibling it's not very often you get to be in a new special city, with just you and a parent. Ok, well back to this trip, the Rodin museum was actually updated since the last time i was there, and they were setting up for some event that evening, but it was still great and very special. 
I made a point to take a photo in the same position with 'The Thinker' as the first time I was there. It rained more on our way back to the hostel, causing us to stop along the way for an evening drink, and then back to the hostel to get ready for the night. The theme this time (definitely not a US tradition) was Cop and Convicts. My friend Sian and I had made the decorations and were very crafty, so everyone had a 'convict #' on the front and a sentence and crime on the back. Very amusing along with Eleanor (bride-to-be) dressed as a British Bobbie. We did dinner, followed by a stroll down the the Moulin Rouge for photo opts and drinks at a nearby bar. Good times.
The next morning we had to check out by 9am! Amazing that we all were able to get up again after only 5 hours in bed. We had breakfast, and then I separated from the group because I wanted to see some specific things. I went to the Musee d'Orsay, which I had been to before but didn't remember so well. It is such an amazing building with a GREAT collection of art work, specifically impressionists. The views from the roof were beautiful, and there was a student discount to boot :-) After that I went to the Eiffel Tower, way touristy I know, but I hadn't been in so long, I really wanted to see it.
My intent was to go up it as well, but the top floor was temporarily closed, and the lines were WAY long, so I settled for some picts instead. It's such a nice area anyway, with lawn areas and a people sunning and enjoying the nice day, it was great to re-visit. I sat down for an ice cream and decided to go to the Champs Elysee. Just walking on the street and seeing all the stores, cafe's, trees is a special experience in itself. Some stores were even open, good for me because it started downpouring. I was in my cute little sun dress, seeing as that the weather forecast did not say rain on Sunday! This is one of the moments I realized the many uses for a pashmina (to cover one's head while caught in a sudden downpour, as a shawl on a cold night, scarf, barrier between one and the airconditioning on the over night bus, cushion on the overnight but between say your knee and the window/chair infront of you, a blanket) yes, it is good to carry one of the multi purpose items with you at all times. So the reason I was walking in the rain was to actually find a covered phone booth get in touch with Johannes, from the past weekend. Because the way my life works is that i got to Paris, made a couple texts, and ran out of minutes on my phone! Anyhow, it all worked up and we decided, because of the weather, a movie would be great. Lucky me that most movies are shown original language with subtitles. Judith came too and we saw Zodiac, which was good, partly because of the SF Bay Area location. After the movie, they metroed with my all the way to the bus station and saw me off. It was great to meet up again, even though only for a short time.
And that was it. The bus trip back, proved to be yet again amusing as the same bus driver took us back to the same small town, not only to fill up on gas, but to wash the entire bus! I'm talking professional portable car washing machine moved around the bus manually. A good laugh again with the couple in front of me who was also on the Friday night ride with me (oh ya, this all took place at 7am when I was supposed to be back in Stuttgart) But I finally made it home and started my week. I think I definitely made the most of my time in the city, and came away with some good stories. I saw the things i wanted to see, and am so happy to have been back.
picts at: http://ucdavis.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2154625&l=b298e&id=3206990
Good news is that I arrived ontime to Paris, and made it to the hostel ok, only to find out my friends were not away and I couldn't check in til 11 - it was 7am. So I changed, and headed out and walked through an open air produce market under the metro near the hostel, and grabbed a coffee and croissant for breakfast (when in France...) I headed up to the Montmarte area and the Sacre Coure next. It is such an enchanting area of the city. The streets are great to look at, there are lots of trees, cute restaurants and stores. I finally got a call from my friends saything they were up, and to head on back. There were 8 of us on this trip, which was a little more difficult to coordinate with, but we managed quite well actually. We made it onto the metro to head closer into town for a meal, and walked to the Orangerie Musuem. My need to pee and the fact that i would have to pay 7.5 euro to see something I had seen before, resulted in me sitting this one out, but it was ok. We walked to a cafe next and I stopped in the Grand Palais to see the amazing glass ceiling. There was an exhibit going on, but the guard was actually nice and let me walk into the entry area to get a better look and take some picts. On the way to the cafe, it started CRAZY raining which caused a good laugh, and me to think (yes, this is the way my life works, and I love it) Not to mention I was almost run over by a smart car as i was crossing the street because i thought it was parked!! 
This incident was preceeded 5 mins by my friend saying "If we're hit, it's our time" HAHA. Well, i guess it wasn't my time :-) After that we went to the Rodin Museum, quite possible my favorite in Paris. I went there with my Dad when we took a family vacation to Paris 10+ years ago. That was the day my sister got sick, and I got to spend the whole day with just one parent - Dad in the morning, Mom in the afternoon (little did my sister know that would turn out to be one of the best vacation days of my life, sorry laura :-) As a sibling it's not very often you get to be in a new special city, with just you and a parent. Ok, well back to this trip, the Rodin museum was actually updated since the last time i was there, and they were setting up for some event that evening, but it was still great and very special. 
I made a point to take a photo in the same position with 'The Thinker' as the first time I was there. It rained more on our way back to the hostel, causing us to stop along the way for an evening drink, and then back to the hostel to get ready for the night. The theme this time (definitely not a US tradition) was Cop and Convicts. My friend Sian and I had made the decorations and were very crafty, so everyone had a 'convict #' on the front and a sentence and crime on the back. Very amusing along with Eleanor (bride-to-be) dressed as a British Bobbie. We did dinner, followed by a stroll down the the Moulin Rouge for photo opts and drinks at a nearby bar. Good times.The next morning we had to check out by 9am! Amazing that we all were able to get up again after only 5 hours in bed. We had breakfast, and then I separated from the group because I wanted to see some specific things. I went to the Musee d'Orsay, which I had been to before but didn't remember so well. It is such an amazing building with a GREAT collection of art work, specifically impressionists. The views from the roof were beautiful, and there was a student discount to boot :-) After that I went to the Eiffel Tower, way touristy I know, but I hadn't been in so long, I really wanted to see it.
My intent was to go up it as well, but the top floor was temporarily closed, and the lines were WAY long, so I settled for some picts instead. It's such a nice area anyway, with lawn areas and a people sunning and enjoying the nice day, it was great to re-visit. I sat down for an ice cream and decided to go to the Champs Elysee. Just walking on the street and seeing all the stores, cafe's, trees is a special experience in itself. Some stores were even open, good for me because it started downpouring. I was in my cute little sun dress, seeing as that the weather forecast did not say rain on Sunday! This is one of the moments I realized the many uses for a pashmina (to cover one's head while caught in a sudden downpour, as a shawl on a cold night, scarf, barrier between one and the airconditioning on the over night bus, cushion on the overnight but between say your knee and the window/chair infront of you, a blanket) yes, it is good to carry one of the multi purpose items with you at all times. So the reason I was walking in the rain was to actually find a covered phone booth get in touch with Johannes, from the past weekend. Because the way my life works is that i got to Paris, made a couple texts, and ran out of minutes on my phone! Anyhow, it all worked up and we decided, because of the weather, a movie would be great. Lucky me that most movies are shown original language with subtitles. Judith came too and we saw Zodiac, which was good, partly because of the SF Bay Area location. After the movie, they metroed with my all the way to the bus station and saw me off. It was great to meet up again, even though only for a short time.And that was it. The bus trip back, proved to be yet again amusing as the same bus driver took us back to the same small town, not only to fill up on gas, but to wash the entire bus! I'm talking professional portable car washing machine moved around the bus manually. A good laugh again with the couple in front of me who was also on the Friday night ride with me (oh ya, this all took place at 7am when I was supposed to be back in Stuttgart) But I finally made it home and started my week. I think I definitely made the most of my time in the city, and came away with some good stories. I saw the things i wanted to see, and am so happy to have been back.
picts at: http://ucdavis.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2154625&l=b298e&id=3206990
posted by emily at 5:18 PM
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