We are now just about half way through our first whole day in Paris. We are resting up before touring the Louvre in a couple of hours and we won't be back until fairly late tonight. Good time to catch up on what has been going on and get it down on to the blog.
Our journey went about as well as you could expect from a 10 hour flight in economy on a budget airline. The first leg from SFO to Dublin was uneventful (which is a good thing) and we were able to entertain ourselves with movies, magazines and other distractions. Not much in the way of sleep however. The second leg from Dublin to Paris was full of excited soccer fans on their way to the tournament that France is hosting. I must say that the Irish fans are a happy group in general and not a single soccer hooligan was seen. They tend to be super friendly as well.
Paris is awesome, but we are still in the "deer in the headlights" stage at the moment. I think all of us are still just a little rummy from the flight, but at least we feel pretty good. We slept in this morning and had to wake ourselves up at 10 so we could go have our breakfast. The day is hot and humid, but still comfortable. Today has been spent getting oriented with our surroundings. We took the metro to the Louvre so we knew were we were going tonight. Sort of a test run. It took some time, but we finally figured out how to purchase a 5-day metro pass so we can take it as much as we want.
Paris is a busy place! Buses, cars and motorcycles zip by on the streets and people crowd the side walks. The place is full of activity. But as busy as it is, we have found that people have been very kind and helpful. When we were having trouble with our metro passes, several people stopped to help, with one even going as far as to buy our tickets with his credit card (we paid him back in cash). So much for the snotty Parisian stereotype! The recent flooding that hit Paris has left almost no trace except for a fast and muddy Seine. The landscape is lush and very green, which is a nice change from our dry and dusty conditions at home. There is a very large police presence here, but I believe that it has more to due with the previously mentioned soccer tournament than it does with terrorism or crime. You can hear chanting from wandering groups of soccer fans as you walk the city. The fans are easily identified by their jerseys representing their home teams. One moment you are swarmed in a sea of red, then the next yellow or green as you past through one group and then on to the next. All are laughing and seem to be having a great time.
Our tour tonight will last three hours and I am pretty excited to go. The Louvre is very impressive from the outside and I can hardly wait to see what the inside is like.
Check out our photos using the link in the upper right of the page.
- Scott
Our journey went about as well as you could expect from a 10 hour flight in economy on a budget airline. The first leg from SFO to Dublin was uneventful (which is a good thing) and we were able to entertain ourselves with movies, magazines and other distractions. Not much in the way of sleep however. The second leg from Dublin to Paris was full of excited soccer fans on their way to the tournament that France is hosting. I must say that the Irish fans are a happy group in general and not a single soccer hooligan was seen. They tend to be super friendly as well.
Paris is awesome, but we are still in the "deer in the headlights" stage at the moment. I think all of us are still just a little rummy from the flight, but at least we feel pretty good. We slept in this morning and had to wake ourselves up at 10 so we could go have our breakfast. The day is hot and humid, but still comfortable. Today has been spent getting oriented with our surroundings. We took the metro to the Louvre so we knew were we were going tonight. Sort of a test run. It took some time, but we finally figured out how to purchase a 5-day metro pass so we can take it as much as we want.
Paris is a busy place! Buses, cars and motorcycles zip by on the streets and people crowd the side walks. The place is full of activity. But as busy as it is, we have found that people have been very kind and helpful. When we were having trouble with our metro passes, several people stopped to help, with one even going as far as to buy our tickets with his credit card (we paid him back in cash). So much for the snotty Parisian stereotype! The recent flooding that hit Paris has left almost no trace except for a fast and muddy Seine. The landscape is lush and very green, which is a nice change from our dry and dusty conditions at home. There is a very large police presence here, but I believe that it has more to due with the previously mentioned soccer tournament than it does with terrorism or crime. You can hear chanting from wandering groups of soccer fans as you walk the city. The fans are easily identified by their jerseys representing their home teams. One moment you are swarmed in a sea of red, then the next yellow or green as you past through one group and then on to the next. All are laughing and seem to be having a great time.
Our tour tonight will last three hours and I am pretty excited to go. The Louvre is very impressive from the outside and I can hardly wait to see what the inside is like.
Check out our photos using the link in the upper right of the page.
- Scott
1 comment:
So cool that you are there! I cannot connect to any photos, though. Is it me?
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