Traveling to Paris

I knew traveling to Paris would be an adventure. Two hours of driving to London, and two hours of train ride to Paris.  We had to drop the car off in central London, because it seemed like a good idea at the time to avoid the delays caused by weekend maintenance on the Tube.  Although avoiding delays was a good idea, it was extremely stressful driving around central London.  We both survived (maybe with a couple of additional white hairs to show for it).

Me driving before London:

From the rental car drop, we took a cab to St. Pancras station. Taxis and their drivers in London are the BEST! We got our tickets for the Eurostar train, and we only had about a 20 minute wait before departure.

Greg on the Eurostar platform:

On the train:

A picture while under the Channel:

We arrived at the Gare du Nord station and stepped into France for my first time.  It was a bit chaotic--so many people, so many languages! After drawing out some euros at an ATM, we exited the station. At this point, we very nearly got taken for a ride (literally and figuratively).   It can be a real disadvantage to not speak the local language. Someone asked if we were looking for a taxi. After we said yes and showed him the address and instructions, he took us to two other guys, who led us to a private car.  The whole situation did not feel right.  After a couple of questions about being licensed and the lack of a meter, they told us that they charged straight rate, 25 euro.  I knew we were not that far from the apartment, and we declined the ride.  We found the taxi stand and took a professional taxi to the apartment (10 euro).

The taxi driver was very nice, although he spoke little English.  We managed to communicate, although we had trouble when he asked us about the mayor of California.  I just could not understand what he meant.  He then took his phone, did a search and showed us a picture of what he meant--a picture of Arnold Schwarzenegger.  The Governator did his part for international relationships that day, although we had to inform the cabbie that he was no longer governor. 

We were met at the apartment by Yetunde, the property manager. She gave us an orientation of the apartment and the appliances, and was extremely helpful with our questions.  We were then on our own in our rented apartment in the neighborhood of Montmarte.

The apartment living room:

View of Eiffel Tower from living room (without zoom):

View downhill from apartment:

View uphill from apartment (Sacre Coeur is at the top of the steps):

Bedroom of apartment and view from bedroom:

We unpacked a bit, and got settled in before heading out to find some food.  I was really in the mood to just relax at the apartment, so we went looking for a grocery.  Unfortunately, being Sunday, most things were closed. However, there were plenty of cafes and crepe stands open for the tourists near Sacre Coeur.  We found a place selling wine, grabbed a hot dog at a stand, and bought some crepes, and walked down the steps to the apartment for a relaxing evening.

View of Eiffel Tower at night with zoom lens:

Today we are planning to relax and explore the Montmarte area where we are staying. One of my favorite movies, "Amelie" was filmed here, so I am planning to track down some of the film sites.  It should be an interesting day!