France 2012 - Paris (Part 1)

le 27 octobre

After a full day/night of travel, Habibi and I found ourselves deposited at one of the world's biggest cluster-holes:  Charles de Gaulle airport...

Once we de-boarded the plane, we were greeted with the typical hospitality of airport workers and government employees.  We made our way to a pay phone (only 50€ per minute!) and checked in at home before beginning the second longest leg of our day of travel by way of the Paris RER/Métro.

Fortunately, public transportation is France is to be commended, despite their confusing announcements about car closures due to rail work or the troubles one must undergo in order to ensure correct ticket purchase.  Although the trip from the airport to our hotel took longer than did our first flight of the journey (55 minutes to a nearby international airport), the RER/Métro functioned beautifully once we got our bearings.

Upon arriving at our luxurious (albeit somewhat pricey!) hotel in the 16e arrondissement (we bit the bullet for Day 1), we settled in and took a quick coma before carpeing the diem.  We decided that, although we'd love to get in a full day of sightseeing, it was more important to begin our trip well-rested and well-hydrated.  Once we woke up again (somewhat begrudgingly) we declared our first act of tourism:  a ride on one of Paris' delightfully charming Bateaux Mouches.

Top deck of the bateau

View of the city and another boat (different company?)

One great thing about these tours is their excellent introduction to the sights of Paris for new visitors.  What better way to get acquainted with all the gems of the city than by floating down the Seine?

But I'm getting ahead of myself.  As we exited our hotel to begin our oh-so-Parisian wanderings as two veritable flâneurs, I realized that everything around me in the Passy arrondissement (district) reminded me of La Belle Epoque in movies like Midnight in Paris or Moulin Rouge.

Passy, the 16e arrondissement 
(View from our hotel room)

Resisting the urge to order absinthe and bust my best can-can moves, I put on my big girl pants and settled for inwardly squealing with glee as a darling dog in a  coat strolled by.  I am completely bourgeoise.

Paris in the fall is magnificent.  The decreased number of tourists in the off-season is no small part of this, although it possesses its classic charm year-round.  After leaving the boat dock on the Seine, we rushed back to our hotel, stopping to grab a quick sandwich for lunch and a few croissants et pâtisseries for the next morning's breakfast.

Clockwise from left:  un croissant (above and beyond a crescent roll);
un pain au chocolat (a flaky dough wrapped around delectable chocolate);
un pain au raisin (a delightful pastry dotted with nature's candy:  raisins!)

Content to be "back home" and out of the cold, we settled in by our window with the scenic view of La Tour Eiffel peeking over the antique-looking rooftops.

See the needle of La Tour Eiffel?  This was from our hotel window!

 After a brief nap (the "coma" I mentioned before), we cleaned up and headed to a delightful dinner at the home of some very thoughtful friends.  Though Bernie and Rosemary are Americans, they spend about six months each year living in Paris.  One would guess that they were professional hosts after having had an exquisitely prepared multi-course meal (complete with champagne and the traditional French cheese course, sans doute!) in their inviting home.  Neither Habibi nor I could imagine a better welcome to Paris.

At the end of the evening, we sauntered back to our hotel, ready for a good night's sleep at the end of an eventful day.