Bruges had come highly recommended to me by Jeanette. And it was very beautiful.
However.
It was not really my day. I did some walking around Bruges, picked up a couple of souvenirs, saw some of the gorgeous architecture. But then, all of a sudden, I was in the POURING RAIN. And I do mean pouring. I was soaked bone to bone, and I threw in the towel.
I figure, in writing this, that throwing in the towel for the first time in 76 days does not make me imperfect! I headed back to Jeanette’s and we started preparing for dinner.
Around 8 pm we started dinner with her boyfriend Pierre and diplomatic friend Diana. It was all nice chatting and everything but I only found some energy around 10 pm when we started playing a rousing game of Hearts. Diana, bless her, was gracious in becoming the “third runner up” in the game of Hearts. We reassured her that if the winner, or the other two runner ups, could not fulfill their duties as Hearts champion, she would assume the post. I don’t think that will be happening however.
The alarm went off at 6.40 am on day Septante Sept. I got up, packed, showered, breakfasted (?) and after Jeanette called me a taxi, we had a nice hug and then I headed off. The taxi driver thought I was insane trying to get to the Gare du Midi in Brussels during the rush hour; not being 100% fully aware and healthy, I tended to think the 20 Euro fare was a steal.
Train, Brussels to Paris Nord (on Thalys), uneventful, GOOD. I got to the station and for the first time in two days, felt like I actually wanted to eat on my own volition. A pain au chocolat never tasted so good.
After dropping my bags off at my hotel around noon, I was told that I could check back into my room at 3 pm. I decided to go exploring. My hotel in Paris in in Montmartre, the 18th arrondissement (Paris is divided into twenty of these, which start in the middle and go out and around like a shell), is also the same place where they filmed that delightful movie Le Fabuleux Destin D’Amelie Poulain which I first saw when living in France in 2001 and pretty much is my high water mark for movie watching. So I was happy of course to see once again Le Tabac des Deux Moulins (just up the road from the Moulin Rouge) as well as the Cathedrale Sacre Coeur.
I was feeling slightly better around dinner time so I decided to venture out a bit… if nothing else to get in some fresh air. I picked up a Panini and then headed over one metro stop and watched a play called La Salle des Profs. It was actually quite entertaining, and it was my first experience of theatre in Paris. I got back to my room around 9.30 pm and then just chilled for awhile, before hitting the hay.
Day Septante Huit was again a sleep-in day… I have been able to get to 8.30 am most days in the last little while which I am most enjoying. Where I am staying is a low key hotel – I have a room, but there are hall toilets and hall showers. So just after nine I jumped in the shower and then got some breakfast, before heading out for the day.
For the first time in about five days, I felt great, so I was going to take advantage of the situation! My first stop was the Eiffel Tower. It was a bit windy out and a bit rainy, and since I have previously climbed the stairs, I decided to pay the few extra euros and take the elevator all the way to the top. Surprisingly, it wasn’t that cold at the top.
It does tend to get a bit busy, but actually it wasn’t that bad, considering it’s the middle of November. I grabbed a few shots, including the harsh reality of how far away from home I actually am…
… before heading back down. You have to take the elevator between the 2nd and third floors, however, between the ground and floor two you can do what you please. I decided to take the stairs back down just for something different.
On the way down before the first floor I met a nice couple from Edmonton and we swapped stories for a bit.
At the bottom there is a post office where you can mail off postcards and have them stamped as proof you were up the Eiffel Tower! Which I took full advantage of!
The next stop was the Champs D’Ellysees. This is the major mucho expensive shopping street in Paris, with the Arc de Triomphe as one of its anchors. I decided to save the Arc climb for one of my evenings here in Paris, but did a bit of window shopping and actually bought a book at the Virgin Megastore (it’s about Fort Boyard – surprised?) before heading off to my fave Montmartre internet café (1,50 Euro for one hour – what a steal!) to check up on some messages.
I was kind of tuckered out at this point so I just decided to head back to my room to have some downtime. Yes, I am having fun on this trip but I needed some time to remove myself from it so that I would still have enthusiasm for the entire rest of the run.
Which, after some downtime, I do!
Cheers,
Vick.
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