I travel for the people, not for the sights. I can see why Paris is a place to travel for the sights, not the people. Although I must say not every experience I have had in this city has been bad. It is just the bad parts are so significant that it weighs on me in a negative way. Then again the ups have been incredibly high as well. I hope you are getting the idea here, I am torn between loving and hating this city. As I type this I am sitting in the basement of my hostel in the bar area because it has wi-fi and a plug, both very important.
My trip here was not so convenient. I bought a first class high speed train upgrade so I would have time and space to type in the blog entry. I got shoved into a cramped cabin with a family of small children and no access to a table or plug. Then after talking to the conductor, he was super cool and set me up with a great place to get work done. He even made sure I had my food brought out to me. The food dude did not want to give me the food (cause I look like cheap travel scum, I admit it) but I showed him my ticket and got some R E S P E C T, yeah baby!!! I got into Paris which has 5 train stations around the city and figured out where I needed to be to get to my hostel.
FYI, in Europe the metro doors do not open on their own. You have to actually push a button or lift a latch for the doors to open. I was thankful to have watched others do this. Otherwise I may have been stuck on a train as it left my station. Funny, as a child I visited Paris, I was 9. I remember the feeling of finding the trains though the myriad of tunnels connecting the surface to the rails. I felt at times and looking back it still feels like I was descending into the bowels of hell. The smells and filth only served to accentuate that feeling. Now as I am older and have experienced other metro systems and well just a lot more things in my life, this metro seems so insignificant. The signs are clearly posted and the directions seem to make sense to me. Funny how our perspective changes over time. I am not saying it is not like descending into hell just that for me now hell has a new meaning.
The directions both online and in their email were less than helpful. Every other place I have stayed has had great directions from all different means ingress to the city. This place just gives a metro stop and good luck after that. I saw a sign outside of the metro pointing to the hostel’s general direction. That was a bonus. Then as I walked, that was the only sign. I stopped and asked two boys in broken French if they knew where the street was. At first they seemed like they would help, then one ran inside and when he returned they said something to each other. I caught the word in French for American and then they just ignored me like I was not there. Closed the gate and stood there. Hmm, can we say mean? Turns out the street which I showed them in writing was 50m away. It was the very next street!!
Made it in and it is a crappy place in a not so safe neighborhood. I took out what I would need for my three days here and the rest went into my large backpack and into the lockers downstairs for safe keeping. I have met two people here from the states: Cici from San Antonio, she graduated with a degree in photography; she spent a semester here working at a hostel, and Andrea from cal poly Moreno valley studying Spanish for a semester.
This was not the highlight though of my trip to Paris. The best part about my trip actually starts several years ago with Heather in high school. Heather went to Paris to stay with a friend she made through an exchange program. Sophie also came to the US to stay with Heather. They two left lasting impressions on each other. As you may have guessed, I sent a message to Sophie and her husband Jean Philippe when I realized I was coming to Paris.
They were just returning from a trip the day I arrived and still wanted to meet me as soon as possible. We had a wonderful evening talking and signing and talking and just discussing everything. We spent 5 hours together but it seemed like only minutes and a lifetime all at once. They had their little one with them as well. Little Mr. Emile was a pleasure and a handful. I am getting the impression that Paris is a city of duality now that I type all of this. I had the best time with Sophie and Jean Philippe. They even took me out to dinner. Much to my chagrin as I was planning on paying but I did appreciate it greatly. Sophie even kissed me by the hotel de Ville. According to Jean Philippe, this is a significant event. For you evil bad-minded people out there, the kiss was on each cheek. I leaned also that in France only children make sandwiches with bread, the grownups put their cheese or butter or jelly on one side of the bread and eat it open-faced. He told me this after I made several sandwiches and the waiter giggled. Thanks or the heads-up man.
I spent today going around taking pictures and video and seeing some major sights so that I would have something other than words to put here. I also saw the Movie “Kung Fu Panda” in French and I totally understood most of it. I was stoked at that. FYI I do not speak French, but I know communication. I watched some guys playing bocce ball as well. All in all a very tiring (from walking) and relaxing (not much happening) day for me. There is that duality again.
I hope you see I have a love hate relationship with this city. I will probably come back here again and again just to love to hate it. Maybe that is why the people here are so mean they are just in constant flux.
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