That's Interesting…

Dear Reader, We are back from our Paris mini break to celebrate my Honey’s 30th bday. Here are some random observations by yours truly…

1. Paris is expensive. We blew through our budget on our first day. A small glass of soda is 5 Euro which is about $6.25. The worst thing is that at 95 F you are actually begging the waiters to take your money. There are no grocery stores in the center and the water in our camel backpack was boiling by noon.

2. We devoured more croissants and crepes than I feel comfortable admitting. Good thing we don’t have a scale. I love being in denial.

3. Everyone smokes. I have never seen so many people smoking while walking. There is nothing like a romantic walk through early morning Paris eating croissants, holding hands, and indulging in heavy second-hand smoke.

4. The metro system is beyond confusing–not the lines, the ticket machines. We never knew if our ticket would work, if they would even require a ticket to get in/out. Sometimes we were able to reuse our tickets, sometimes it would not take our tickets. In any case, most Parisians simply jump over the ticket machines.

5. Our hotel was in the Latin Quarter by the Luxembourg gardens. It was a perfect and beautiful setting.6. We saw it all…Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, Champs des Elysees, Louvre, Versailles, La Defense, Notre Dame, etc. Everything a proper tourist in Paris is supposed to.

7. The weather was really hot with gorgeous sunsets. 8. There is trash everywhere. “French maids” only pose with feather dusters but heaven forbid they should do some actual work outside of bedrooms. Cathedrals are clean up to eye level but my trained eye noticed inches of dust on anything above 6 feet. It was horrifying. Notre Dame should hire me and 10 sprightly Mexican ladies and in a week tourists would need to keep their sunglasses on inside–it would be so shiny clean.

9. Every other street smells of pee. I am convinced that they hire whole legions of people to pee all over Paris streets at night. I cannot fathom achieving such horrific smell without an organized effort. BLEACH. That is all I can say.

10. Parisians know how to party. Every night, work day or weekend, they are out on the river banks, cafe, on bridges having cheese and wine parties. It is such an amazing atmosphere. I absolutely loved it.

11. There is a bridge connecting the left and right bank right by the Louvre where lovers attach key locks on the fence and throw away the keys into the Seine–to lock their love forever. David and I, of course, did that…while cutesy and giggly to an extent that would make you all sick. So, I will refrain.

12. I am happy to report that my quiche is better than any of the ones I tasted in France. I am absolutely addicted to French onion soup and David is addicted to creme brule.

13. The cheese that we bought for my cheese party that I was going to throw today in the office was confiscated at the Paris airport because it was too ripe. No idea what that is supposed to mean. Does ripe cheese constitute a biological weapon????

14. I sat next to a man with some horrible skin condition on our plane ride home. His whole body was covered in dead skin and bloody blisters. Needless to say, I was so cuddled up to David it was indecent. The man was either scratching himself all over vigorously or tapping his head violently the whole ride. I was really freaked out.

But the truly horrific experience came when I was waiting for David to get through immigration…it turns out that he was blind and an extremely elegant lady that was a stranger to him, came up to him, took his arm, and helped him get his luggage. I just stood there absolutely stunned. I did not feel bad, horrible, terrible, or even like a scum–I actually felt like I ceased to exist for a moment I was so ashamed of myself. I felt like Dorian Gray seeing himself for what he truly is.

15. This whole European experience has made me so very grateful for our life in the US (and remember I was born here). I really have felt overwhelmed with the abundance, space, efficiency we have in the US–even with Obama (forgive me, Joyce).

16. Love you all. You all mean so much to us and I am grateful for everyone of you. You have blessed our lives greatly, forgiven us many indiscretions, and supported us through thick and thin.More later…