Day 16: Paris to DC

We slept in a little, enjoyed a leisurely breakfast, and looking back that was mistake. We thought we would have plenty of time to make a 12:30 flight when we left before 9 but only just. I really wanted to fly out of Orly (it's a smaller and better airport), but the better flight was Charles de Gaulle. You have to take 2 metros, 1 train, and a tram for an hour and 15 minutes before you even get to the terminal. Then you have to check in, then go to border patrol (this was an absolute nightmare) 2 people checking everyone and we were barely moving for 20 minutes, 30 minutes... Our flight was already boarding and we hadn't even made it to security. We wait, everyone's tempers are flaring and people are missing flights right and left. Yelling occurs, police don't care of course, and we're down to the line. A large group of us are going to DC so we do the very thing I hate doing and skip the line (everyone else is, after all this is France). We barely get through and run to security up the stairs, security wants all of my liquids in an actual baggie (who does that anymore?) and they have to search my bag of course. Anyways, we make our flight and the plane takes off 30 minutes late thank goodness (also, if we hadn't skipped the line and been "those guys," we would still be in France). Oh and security had to check my purse and Joel's backpack at the terminal, but didn't want to search my duffle or his carry on- huh? Apparrently only bad things come in small packages. So very French of them. The French do certain things very well; they cook good food, they build beautiful buildings and gardens, and they sometimes make great art and music, but when it comes to efficiency and security, they fail miserably. They seriously need some left brain in that country.

Anyways......

For those of you who plan on visiting Paris someday, these are the things that I'd recommend:

1. Notre Dame early in the morning and walk around the ile de la cite
2. Louvre (and visit again at night for strolling and pictures)
3. Night boat cruise from the eiffel tower
4. L'Ami Jean restaurant (it's expensive, but worth it)
5. Macarons from everywhere
6. The flea market on the weekend (so wish we could have done this)
7. Musee du Cluny
8. Musee du l'orangerie (just monet's lillies)
9. Concergerie (if you have time)
10. Walk to the top of the Arc du Triumphe in the evening
11. Shopping in the Marais district

Joel and I set out to fully visit these 3 cities. I don't feel a need to return to them right now, so I think we accomplished what we set out to do. After all, there are many more countries to visit in the world. Also, for the record, this trip cost less than you might think. We didn't penny pinch and it still came in under budget and comparable to our Maine trip a few years back. Traveling overseas these days is within reach for nearly every budget (use an airline travel reward credit card and airbnb and cook your own meals). It's totally doable. The only thing that got in our way was time off so we made time between jobs. Oh crud, jobs. Reality is going to hit me like a ton of bricks in the next couple of days. We've lived longer in Edinburgh, London, and Paris than we have in Roanoke. We were there for 48 hours before we left. One thing I know for sure, I'll appreciate the clean air and ample space more than I would have otherwise.

Hope my blog has been entertaining and perhaps useful for any future travels you have in mind. Also, I apologize for all of the spelling errors. This app doesn't auto-correct and I write this before going to sleep so I'm not really caring at the time. Now, for the next adventure...

Peace out cub scoutRead more