Day 12 - ParisAuthor: jawapro
Date: Sat 31/01/2009 09:08 AM
Today was a day in Paris. Possibly the shortest recap post to date - as we didn’t do all that much.
First stop was a perfumery called Fragonard - which was as boring as expected. Even Emma wasn’t really interested.
Next stop - the Louvre. After having an argument about how to find the Inverted pyramid and the sneaky entrance our tour guide suggested (no queues) we gave up and went in the main entrance - under the glass pyramid. Turns out I was right about the inverted pyramid being inside and under the ground - but don’t mention that to Emma, she gets mad because she was sure it was outside somewhere.
We went to the Louvre because Emma wanted to - and because it’s famous. Apparently if you spent 1 minute in front of every item on display, you’d be there for 6 months or so. We didn’t have that long - and to be honest, weren’t that interested. Emma just wanted to see the famous parts.
First up, it’s an armless statue of Venus. Not sure why it’s so famous - but apparently it is.
And then there’s a painting of a girl called Lisa.
Not sure why this one is famous either - it’s just a painting...
This Japanese tourist seemed to be confused, and was taking a picture of... nothing. Just an empty wall. So I took a picture of him.
Next we braved the insane French Metro system (stupidly complicated - even the Italian one looked easy in comparison) and made our way to the Eiffel Tower - so we could take photos in the day time. Sadly it was still just as tall, so we still didn’t climb it.
Surrounding the tower are these guys. They sell mini Eiffel Towers. They carry them around on a large metal loop - and you can hear their jingling as they approach. Last night, as the bus arrived, we were swarmed by at least 4 of these guys trying to flog light up towers. I did barter with 1 of them and get some souvenirs a lot cheaper than the legal shops. Apparently it’s illegal for them to sell it, but you’re ok buying it. Stupid French legal system.
After another mind-bending trip through the metro - we went to Notre Dame - but as much as we tried - we couldn’t see any hunch backs.
We went back to the Arc De Triumph to see it in the daylight too. Traffic was a little more sane today (no strikes on the Metro).
This arch was made for the victorious French soldiers to march through on their way home. I wonder if it’s been used yet?
By the way - apparently "sortie" means "exit" in French. All the metro signs and things talk about ‘sortie’ as being the way out. I find it amusing that in English, a sortie is a minor battle. I suppose if you’re French, exit and retreat mean the same thing.
We found some lunch in the Latin Quarter (nice Baguettes) and disproved Mum’s fears about French public toilets (they aren’t just a communal hole in the ground).
We also found the largest department store in France - and headed to the toy section. Being France - I wanted to find some Asterix and Obelix figures. Asterix and Obelix predate France (they were Gauls) but they come from what is now France, and the comics are made in France etc. I wasn’t disappointed either - lots of Asterix and Obelix stuff. Spent quite a bit of money here....
They also had some absolutely brilliant model dinosaurs - if only I had more room and weight to play with in my suitcase....
We made our way back to the hotel via the metro (starting to get our heads around it a little) and spent a quiet evening doing some laundry at the laundromat and getting some stuff at the supermarket for tea. Half the tour is off at Moulin Rouge - but at 130 Euro a pop - we weren’t at all interested.
France might not be terribly exciting - but they do have an awesome toy shop.
Comments: 2
Maelstrom Fansite
