Viva la France...

Day 56

Slept through my alarm so didn't leave the apartment until a bit after midday. Given that my Musuem Pass expired today, I dedicated today to mainly museums, as well as a few attractions which were covered. Climbed up the towers of Notre Dame to check out the view as well as the stone chimeras. Apparently gargoyles are used for water drainage and since these beasts were purely for decoration, they were chimeras. I was also up there when Quasimodo rang the bells which was quite an experience.

Paree 'olds ze key to your 'eart...

 Day 51

Another travel day. Honestly it is so draining after a while. At least today was only a 90 minute flight (as opposed to train or bus), but throw in all the airport procedures and the time drags out. But hey, I should just be thankful that I even get to travel. And my destination was Paris, one of my favourite cities, and be surrounded by so many people speaking French!! Sexy. And I would get to see Tash and Aniqa again which was even more exciting!!

For me, Bruges shits all over Amsterdam...

Well it's been a while since I've posted, and I would like you all to know that I'm still alive lol. I haven't been able to post since I've been having so much fun in Bruges to type up a lengthy post, and plus I haven't had access to internet to do anything besides the occasional email check and facebook status update. Anyways, I'm now using free internet in Amsterdam's library so I can take my time and give an account of the last week.

Day 33: Last day in Paris, and all I did was some souvenir shopping and Wii tennis during the day. For my last night, I went out with my cousin and her friends and had an awesome dinner with lots of wine. I'm not usually a fan of wine, but I couldn't say no to alcohol lol. Anyways, pretty much just a nice little night out with alcohol to celebrate my last night in Paris.

Let it snow...

Day 30: The original plan was to go to Musee D'Orsay but I woke up to see a bright blue sky, and knew that I needed to take advantage of it. So without even having breakfast, I rushed straight over to the Eiffel Tower and was surprised to see that the line wasn't that long. Odd. It was ridiculously long the other few days that I had walked past, and those days were miserable. Guess I was in luck. After waiting in line for 20 minutes, I was on my way up!! However, apparently they don't have a lift which takes you all the way to the top, which is really disappointing. Had to get out on the second floor to wait in line for another 20 minutes for another lift. But then it was only up from there!! And when I got out of the lift at the top, the wait was definitely worth it. The view is gorgeous from up there. I never knew Paris was such a white city. Everything looks white from way up there. They were also selling ridiculously overpriced champagne up there (20 euros for a flute). I guess they were trying to take advantage of the lovers up there who were desperate to toast their love for each other. Anyways, I did laps around the top of the tower taking photos from almost every spot to capture the entire scope of awesomeness that is the top of the Eiffel Tower. It seriously is breath-taking, and it is one of the highlights of my trip so far.

Eye-opening day...

Day 27: So I didn't end up going outdoors that day. It was raining, and it was a perfect day to spend indoors just watching TV, eating and sleeping. Really. I did nothing that I couldn't have done back in Sydney. I started watching Amelie so I would have an idea of what to expect when I visit Montemarte, but I fell asleep halfway through (not because it was boring, but rather cos I was lying on my bed). Also watched Friends in French. Because of my extensive knowledge of the all the episodes, I was able to dub the French version back into its original English version in my head, so technically I was able to understand the French version lol.

So much food everywhere...

Day 25: Did the New Europe Paris tour. I realise that I don't actually remember where I go on these tours. I just like to hear the history and the stories behind them, but I don't remember where I walk so I usually don't know how to get back. Tour ended at the beginning of the Champ Elysees, which used to be the most expensive shopping street in the world. It's still quite overpriced, and it's still home to all those high-name brands. Even Maccas is more expensive on the Champ Elysees - a meal was 60c more expensive!! Walked down the Champ Elysees to the Arc de Triomphe. Did you know that you are not insured if you have a car accident on the roundabout around the Arc? It has 12 roads leading into it, and has 10 "lanes", but there are no line markings in the roundabout. An accident occurs every half an hour apparently, but I assume a lot would be minor accidents.

I'd rather walk than wait...

Today was Day 24 (well technically yesterday since it's now 2am). I left the house quite late today, since there was a big commotion about Honours grades being released/emailed so I stayed for that, and chatted to all my psych friends who were online. Plus my clothes were still in the dryer so I needed to stay until that was done too. Didn't end up leaving the house until 1pm, which by then, the free tours had already begun so there was no point heading over there. Instead, since my cousin's place is very near the Louvre, I thought I'd go and check that out. Didn't go in though since the line was so long, plus I decided I should wait to get a museum pass so I can have entry into several museums for a cheaper price. Did the usual tourist thing and took some photos of those awesome glass pyramids.

Wicked way to leave London...

Day 22: Went to line up for Wicked tickets at the Apollo Theatre. Got there at 8:30am and was surprised to see two people sleeping at the front of the box office. I was thinking that they must have been real big fans to be sleeping there, until I saw the security guard shoo them away. Then I realised that they were hoboes. But I didn't need to be there so early. I could have shown up at 10am and still have gotten front row tickets. But anyways, after walking around the block  few times, I noticed a few people show up around quarter to, so I decided to stay put. Luckily the guard had told me which door was for the box office so I sat there whilst the other losers were waiting at the wrong door. As the doors opened, I was first in, and managed to get the best ticket. Front row, dead centre. All for the low low price of £27.50!!

Out of Marseille and into Madrid...

Thought I'd mention this here since it doesn't really relate to anything. At the French railway stations, before they make a PA announcement, they always start off with three tones. Now to me, those three tones sound exactly like the three tones that start Soulja Boy's "Crank Dat (Superman That Hoe)". As a result, every single time there's an announcement at the train station, I'm so tempted to yell out "NOW WATCH ME YOUUUU" and do the corresponding "interpretive dance". Fortunately, I have been able to resist humiliating myself in public, but in my head, I'm doing it.

Not loving Marseille...

Since my last post was a bit short, I will take some time now to describe Nice. It was awesome!! So beautiful!! I will definitely be coming back here one day. Just sitting in Messina Square or on the beach makes you just forget about all your troubles. Nice is definitely a haven for old people. They're everywhere!! And they're so active. I don't think I've ever seen so many old people in spandex jogging. And they love to tan too. So many topless old people sunbathing. Quite disturbing. Even though it's winter, the weather was surprisingly warm. I guess it's more towards the south so it's still a bit warm. But I really wish I had packed some shorts. Had an amazing dinner with the two American girls that I met. Snails, lasagne, dessert and champagne for 14 euros. Absolute bargain!! And it tasted so good. It was a nice way to end my time in Nice.

Nice is nice...

So I'm in Nice now. Gonna keep this short because the French keyboard is really different and it takes forever to type something. Here's a summary of what's happened so far (Days 1-3).

Planned my awesome route
Ticket selling person took too long to validate my rail pass thus making me miss the train I had orginally planned to get
Took her option which was to go via Milan
Italian train broke down
Missed the last connecting train in Milan
Got knocked over by a pickpocket running away
Had to wander the streets looking for a relatively cheap place to stay
Finally found one for 50 euros but was a double, but had to take it
Left for Nice the next morning but French strikes cancelled almost all of the trains
Stuck in the little Italian town of Ventimiglia for 4 hours
Finally got a train to Nice
Found out that bed had been given away
Forced to wander again looking for another place to stay
Explored Nice
Forgot all about my troubles just admiring the beauty of Nice
Met two awesome American girls in my dorm
Explored more of Nice
Hoping to be able to get out to Barcelona tomorrow if the trains are running

Anyways must be off now. More detail later.

HBL signing out from Nice, France. Bonsoir!!

Route decided...

So I've been spending last night and today planning my route across Europe. It's been giving me a massive headache since it's so hard to plan things out properly when you have no idea what you're doing, where you're going, and how long you're staying. I'm no longer travelling with the Texan because his route is pretty inconvenient. Have looked up hostels in each location, and will hope to be able book each one a city in advance, cos right now, I have no idea where I'll be at any given point. The only thing I do know is that I'll be flying into London on 3rd of November. Quite disappointing really, because I was planning on training it from Madrid to Paris and then going to London. That way, I could explore the French countryside, but due to all the strikes going on, it seemed like too much of a risk to rely on so many French trains. I'll be staying at Nice and Paris in France, which isn't nearly all that I wanted to do. However, maybe I can explore France more fully on my next trip. I was told that driving around was the best way to see France. Guess my next trip, perhaps in a few years, will be a France trip.