This week folks have the pleasure of reading two blog entries. One about my reentry into Tenkodogo, and this blog entry about the 10 hours that I had running around the streets of Paris.
Paris is in a word, beautiful. Even in freezing cold temperatures and being completely unprepared for them, it is still an incredible and lively city, with years of history following you everywhere you go. It's also f***ing expensive!
When one takes a flight from the USA to Burkina, it is normal to have a long day's layover in Paris. Transatlantic flights typically leave IAD in the evening, arriving in Paris at around 6AM the following day. And since Air France runs only one airline to Burkina daily during the evening, travellers are left with two choices, to wait around in an airport for 10 hours, or to venture into Paris. So like any good traveller, I said, “Bring it on Paris.” I went downstairs and paid the very INEXPENSIVE price of €8.70, about 12 dollars, to board the subway to Paris. I knew I was in for an expensive afternoon when I asked a man politely to help me with the ticket machine only to realize that the price given was not a mistake as I had previously thought.
I descended the train at the Eifel Tower and looked up because the station deposits you literally right next to the Eifel Tower. It is something that I have only seen in pictures and movies, and none of that, nor the weather of a 7AM January morning, takes away from the magic that is the Eifel Tower. I attempted to take an elevator up top deciding that the elevator line was so short that I could not refuse. While standing in line I met a nice family from LA, who were so generous in giving me a pair of hand warmers after they realized that I was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Subsaharan Africa who had forgotten what real cold weather feels like. Finally the elevators opened up, and realizing that one has to pay €10 just to take the elevator half way (the top was closed for repairs) decided that my money was best spent somewhere else, like a nice warm coffee. Only €4-score!
Proof that I was there!
After the Eifel Tower I began my power walk through the streets of Paris. I crisscrossed many of the bridges that span La Seine on a route progressing towards Le Pont Neuf and the island that contains the lovely Notre Dame. During the route I took a side journey down Avenue des Champs-Elysées towards L'Arc de Triomphe. I noted that every single item on that famous street had a price of more than the forty or so Euros I had in my pocket, and that includes the hamburgers at McDonalds.
L'Arc de Triomphe
I continued to walk down Champs-Elysee until the road ends at Le Louvre. Unfortunately I did not have time to enter, but given that the line was 504 hours long I thought it best to continue on (rumors are that it can take 23 years to get inside the Louvre during summer time). I decided at this point that I was hungry and chose to eat at one of Paris's finest restuaraunts, a döner shop that also sold wine - the French fries in Paris are absolutely fantastic! In all serious though, even the table wine at €5/spoonful is way better than the boxes of wine served in Burkina Faso.
Le Louvre-Everyone always said this place was big, now I believe them.
The smaller version of l'Arc de Triomphe outside le Louvre.
My final stop was the grand cathedral of Notre Dame. This was perhaps my favorite place as it was actually FREE to enter. So like any good Peace Corps volunteer, I went inside. And sat. Because outside it was freaking freezing and I still had an hour to kill. Despite no hunchback greeting me at the door, I walked around and just stared in awe at the history and beauty of the place. It is a gothic cathedral, but even the dark cathedrals of a thousand years ago still remain some of the world's most beautiful structures. Sorry DC fans, but as lovely as our cathedral is, one such as the Notre Dame which has seen visits from almost every single pope and European historical figure since 1100 AD reigns supreme.
Notre Dame, complete with a Christmas tree, or un arbre de Noel.
Alas, I finally boarded a train back to airport. The train was easily the warmest part of the trip and I managed to get some sleep as well. Somebody forget to tell the local government of Paris to turn the heat on in the city—hey, if Vegas can carve pools resembling tropical rainforests, Dubai can make islands that look like palm trees, and Qatar can convince FIFA to play the World Cup in 2022 in the "cold wintry" months of January in the Arabian Peninsula, than why can't Paris have heated streets?
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