PARIS! Jour Deux!

Bonne soirée à tous!

Its been a 'fantastique' few days. I have learnt and seen so much. I am literally in love with Paris. There is so much to see and do. Each alley and lane way seems to have its own story and beauty...

Unfortunately i have no pictures because katy and I (leaving the apartment in a massive rush on Sunday morning to catch the Eurostar to Paris -- after getting home at 3am the night before!) left the cord at home. Actually, we were so unorganised -- particularly me. I stumbled out of bed trying to ignore Katy's yelling (apparently she'd been trying to get me up for ages), 20 minutes before i was supposed to leave. I realised that i hadn't yet packed or done any of the last minute things which are neccessary. So as well as leaving the camera cord behind, i forgot my headphones (biiiiig mistake), a power adaptor and because i had forgot to take my washing out of the machine the night before, all my clothes were wet... good one nick.

I just had to stuff everything into my bag - wet clothes and all (don't worry, i at least put them in plastic bags) before we jumped into the cab -- me still rubbing sleep from my eyes. It certainly didn't help that the night before i consumed a little too much of the old 'alcool'..

Speaking of the night before, (i know i did briefly in a post before) it was a deliciously enjoyable night. Not so much for Katy (who was still recovering from the night before); but the rest of us enjoyed the catchup.

The night got a bit blury after that...

And a bit more blury.

Until it was time for bed - which still didn't come for too many hours!

But anyway, we survived. And the trainride to Paris offered some opportunity for rest.

In the last few days though, Katy and I have had a pretty good overview of Par-ee. We are staying in a really nice Hostel -- St Christophers Inn for those playing at home -- which is in one of the dodgier ends of town (the 19th arrondissement i think) but it is still a nice area right on the canal. But all the sights and sounds of Paris is only a tube stop away. On the first real day (we crashed pretty heavily Sunday evening) we did a sweep of the major attractions - the Lourve, les rues petits, the Champs Elysees, the Arc de Triomphe, Notre Dame... im beginning to forget.

The highlight however, was a tour we took which focused on Montmartre. It is an amazing area of Paris and it was really worthwhile hearing about it's history. We only paid 7 or 8 Euro and we got so much more out of it than we would have. We saw all the Amelie film locations, saw the living area's of Van Gogh, Picasso and heaps of other artists whose name has escaped me, also the last vineyard of paris, the last windmill (on sale for 2.5million euros -- bargain!) and just heard about the stories which underline their significance. The tour started at 6 which meant that by the time we reached the top of Montmarte and the magnificent church Sacre-Coeur, it was dark and we had a fantastic view of Paris. It was a dream. Absolutely amazing. I wish that i could upload the photo's we take - but even they wouldn't give it justice,

After the tour Katy and I ate at a buzzing Parisian restaurant in the Place d'Artist in Montmartre. We had a beautiful, cheap meal in a packed restaurant with live music. It was a great evening.

It was only marred by our walk home, which after getting lost quickly became frustrating. Katy and I exchanged 'terse' words to put it nicely! haha!

But we made it home to tell the story.

Im getting tired of typing so i'll make this quick.

Today we went on this amazing 4 hour FREE tour of Paris. It truly was amazing, covering heaps - in way more detail then we could possibly have got from a guide book. The guide, Rowan, was really animated (so obviously a drama student!) and made it really entertaining. Even I felt like it was worth a significant tip!

Anyway, I'll go into more detail when i can be bothered. We've had a fantastic time so far though.

Looking forward to another day tomorrow!

Comment, keep in touch!

Nick