Day 4 of the trip began with me waking up at 4 or 5am if I remember correctly. It was some ungodly hour where the sky is still dark and lazy Londoners are still enjoying their sleeps. Being in London and on a trip though, waking up at times like this is actually acceptable. You walk out into the cool morning air, sniffing in the oxygen in London, which is slowly starting to become familiar and very pleasant.
Well.... we get into a van which is like the local handler for the tour company in which we decided to take for this day trip. Anyway it's like 4 or 5 in the morning, I'm cheerful but still half asleep. We pull up at Holiday Inn I think and whoa, out comes 2 pretty hot ladies. One of which looks like a thinner version of Angelina Jolie. They were really friendly too, exchanging Hi's and what not as soon as they boarded the van. Turns out they were Canadians who were also on a trip of London, and also on this tour to Paris. By the way, if you 2 are reading this, I tried my best not staring at you the whole time, and believe me I did not.
So joined by another slightly older couple from the US of A, we were dropped off at the train station to board the Eurostar. Armed with a panini, which were starting to become my favourite form of food, we boarded the Eurostar, preparing for a 2 hour train ride under the sea into Paris. Oh and yes, I was sitting next to the Canadians. (What's with Canadians and trips with me? First girl guides and now Angelina Jolie?)
When we reached Paris, the Paris du Nord I think, is their "main" train station. Joined up with other people from London as well I think, including a young American girl in her 20s. No I am not a pervert reporting on every girl I see, it's just that, it's really surprising to see a young person travelling on their own. Well maybe New Yorkers are braver than the rest of the world?Started off right outside the train station with a very very cheerful and helpful tour guide which reminded me slightly of a young David Hasselhoff maybe?
We were all led onto a double decker bus with the top floor open-air. Lovely way to be brought around really. So the bus just got going and our guide told us what was going on as the bus moved, like any other tour. Saw the ballet theater which used to be a theater for plays if I'm not mistaken. Very grand place built by some king or something. Thing about France is, most of their buildings have these small details on the exterior which just adds that grandeur to it, making even the most normal buildings look solid and artistic in certain ways.
The tour continued with us going into the heart of France, passing their fashion street which boasts the biggest names in fashion, including the headquarters and flagship store of Louis Vuitton. Ah yes, another thing about France, or the French rather is that, everyone is dressed sharply. Unlike England or Malaysia where you see people loafing around coffeeshops or whatever in simple comfort clothes, the French are dressed very well whereever they go. Probably is what helps you tell the locals from the foreigners. They all look sleek in their trenchcoats, designer sunglasses, boots and what-have-you.
So then, gawking at all the nice cars along the way, we made it to that famous French arc that you see usually in French shows or promos.
The name eludes me but the detail on this thing is simply amazing. Even from the bus, I could see that the amount of detail on the arch itself, the designs on the nooks and crannies, the expressions of each and every soldier statue. Simply magnificent. Continued into the center of Paris, which has an Obelisk given to them by the Egyptians if I'm not mistaken. It's a sharp spear-like statue with the tip made of gold or something.After that we made our way to the Eiffel Tower.
I know we see it all the time in commercials and movies but when you're there, looking at it in person, it's simply breathtaking. Built so long ago, it's so symmetrical, just a wonder of joined steel. The gigantic size of it really just causes you to stand and stare it it, slack jawed. When we finished taking some pics from below, we took an elavator to the middle level. Which is adorned with the Euro stars because France is the leader for UN or something this term. The view from up there really is amazing. You have a panoramic view of Paris and I swear I felt the tower sway more than once due to the strong winds. Enjoying the view from above and taking some truly spectacular pictures, we decided to go down. Took the steps by the way, all 700 of them. Oh and we were one of the many tour-members who decided to forgo the lunch on the Eiffel. France's best chef was cooking that day and it cost up to RM300 per person to dine several hundred meters in the air.
When we were done, we proceeded onto a nice boat for a cruise on the river. There, we just took in the sights of beautiful Paris and listened to the translator on some phone-like thing. Very very beautiful with quaint little stories for certain sites. They have some sort of Beach, which is like sand poured onto one of the concrete river-banks. And there really are people just lying around there on deck chairs.
After the cruise, we went to the Louvre,
the famous museum that holds super artworks such as the Mona Lisa and made even more famous by The Da Vinci code. Unfortunately the Louvre closes on the day we were there, so we just walked around it, and even then like I said, the detail on the exterior of the Louvre is simply crazy. Every arch, every single bend or whatever is just filled with detail, carvings and everything. Then of course, we saw the world-famous Pyramid and the inverted one as well, which in the Da Vinci code is claimed where Mary Magdalene is.Refreshed by seeing the Louvre, our next destination was a Church. Once again I'm sorry but the name just escapes me. Our guide, being an excellent one, decides to forgo the bus ride and take us on a walk, from the Louvre to the Church. I don't know if he does this all the time but the fact that he was willing to take us through back-alleys and walk all the way, showing us the way of life in Paris from the groundlevel was really good. Our Angelina Jolie was wearing this fierce high-heeled boots and as soon as he suggested walking, everyone sort of looked at her. She of course, replied that she had shopped 6 hours straight in boots so it was a small matter to her.
So off we went, walking, we saw the house of some famous painter, once again I do not remember but I will when I see the picture. Just enjoying the small roads of Paris, the lesser known side-walk cafes and just their ongoings in general. You just get the feeling that they enjoy life a whole lot more than we do. They take time out to just sit down at a cafe, chat, have an espresso, smoke, you know, just relax and enjoy the moment for hours. If I get the opportunity, which I might, I would definitely not balk at choosing to live there, whether temporarily or for longer. The way of life is just so laid-back.
Reached the church and like the one in England, this one was enourmous. I think it was a gothic-styled church, so very high up, very strong, very menacing almost. It was pretty dark inside as well. Done with the church, we headed to La Fayettes, hope I got the spelling right. It's their equivalent of Harrods. Well, everything is nice to see but will cost you an arm, a leg and maybe more to buy.
After that, we bid our tour-guide adieu and headed back to London via the Eurostar again. Yet again, yes, I was sitting next to our "friend". I missed something though, when I was sleeping. Apparently there was an emergency on board the train and they paged for a doctor. Our sultry friend, responded to the call!!! And she managed to cure whoever was having difficulties because they then presented her with a bottle of Champagne!!! WOW! This is like when you see a proverb book and there is "Don't judge a book by it's cover". They should have her picture there next to the example!!! Who ever knew doctors dressed like French models?! Maybe Canadian ones?
As we reached London, we sorta just collapsed into bed and that was that. End of day 4!
Unfortunately, I have a lack of pics from Paris as my phone died midway thru. When I get pics from my digital cam though, I will post 'em up. Till then, hang in there and cheers.
The full album is available at http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=55535&l=05eb2&id=563730916 It's all from my mobile and all taken in Sepia.
Don't argue with an idiot,
The Spectators can't tell the difference.
The Spectators can't tell the difference.
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