Wednesday April 15, 1998 11:58pm CET
We arrived in Paris ahead of schedule. As a result, we got treated to the bus-to-the-terminal routine at Orly Airport. Man I hate American. This was a really nasty flight. After calling Roger, I was able to get some French money. It doesn’t matter how many times I travel, foreign money looks wierd in my wallet. We opted for the Taxi rather than the Metro and Bus because it was windy and cold and no one wanted to lug their stuff in the rain. Made it to the hotel in one piece after three close calls with other motorists. Makes me yearn for that rental car! When we got to the hotel, our room was not ready yet and we stood around trying to decide what to do. As we were standing around, Rick Steves, the author of my travel book, walked in the door! He was working on the updates to his book and went over some of them with the guy behind the desk. After I snatched his autograph, he posed for a quick picture. Truly a highlight!
At this point I should mention that our trip has already begun to unravel. Our original itinerary called for a few days in Paris and then we were to jet over to Budapest, Hungary for a day and a half, and then jet over to Munich. Wesley informed us on the flight that he was unable to secure the tickets required. I managed to get the hotel reservation, but with no flight it was going to be difficult to get there. We decided to think about our options and we headed out for lunch. We settled on this bistro place around the corner that was OK at best. Mental note – Chicken and Fries at a French Bistro is very different than Chicken and Fries at Kentucky Fried Chicken. We made it back to the hotel, and got our rooms. Nice, a little small, but excellent bathroom. We chose to lay low for awile. By the time we headed out to the Eiffel Tower, it was around 5.
Wesley and I decided to brave the winds and go to the top while Mom and Gary hung out at the bottom. I got some great photo ops, and we were fortunate that it cleared up. We saw the sunset, and then headed down. It was but cold by the time we got down and headed back to the hotel for quick redress.
We then headed to the Hard Rock Café, but there was an hour wait so we decided on TGI Friday’s. Another okay meal but free soda refills!! We made a quick stop for souvenirs at the Hard Rock and then metro’ed it back to the hotel. I did manage to pick up a new Hard Rock Paris T-Shirt for my collection. We have to get up early tomorrow to catch the train to Rennes to visit Le Mont-Saint-Michel. I still am battling stomach cramps that make it seem like I have to pee all the time. I hope they clear up soon.
