The ankle-twisting cobblestones of Paris...
The Greenwich Mean Time line (really)
We are home. It's now 10:35 pm in Seattle, 7:35 am in Europe. My poor tricked body is wide awake, ready for another day hoofing it around Paris.
We landed in Seattle the same time we left Paris-- same day, about 11 am. We almost made it through the early TV news, which was 3 am in Paris. But after 4 hours of sleep I was up. Everyone says east-to-west jet lag is the worst.
What an adventure. We learned so much, not just about the places we went but about ourselves. Our vacations tend to be laid back and relaxing, like California, so this trip was something completely different.
Getting around European cities alone requires tremendous stamina and resourcefulness (Good for you, Dan and Rebecca!) We feel pretty good about how much ground we covered in just 10 days. In retrospect, of course, I would have planned things differently, but we still made wonderful memories. And I got my Eurostar to Paris train that I'd been looking forward to for so long.
A few observations:
1. London is exciting (if you like that sort of thing) but exhausting. Millions of people travel from around the world to literally mob the famous sites, like Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey. I'm glad I saw it way back in the 1970's.
2. Be prepared to stand in line for a long time, whenever you go. We managed only a couple of the big attractions in London, and our best day was in Greenwich, which actually felt like a real English town.
3. I realized I can walk much further than I thought! This is good. And if you walk 14,000 steps a day, you can eat Brie and chicken pastry pie, sausage and mash, chips and pints of beer and not gain weight. In fact, you might even lose some.
4. England has some catching up to do with home appliances. Especially washing machines. However, they have mastered the little electric kettle, that boils your tea water in 3 minutes flat. I want one.
5. Paris is lovely. Paris is intimidating. Google Translate is not particularly helpful. The men are sophisticated and tailored, the young people beautiful, the women all wear pretty shoes on the street with flowing summer dresses and tailored linen outfits. Everyone is well groomed and they can spot Americans a block away.
6. When it comes to public transportation, most American cities suck.
7. My husband is excellent at figuring out public transportation. I followed him around like a puppy. Uber is indescribably helpful in a pinch. Ditto iPhones, which can even direct you to exact graves in ancient Paris cemeteries.
8. When time is limited, be more thoughtful about what you choose to do. Impulsive is not always a good thing. You can't see everything. Avoid guided tours, unless they involve food and wine in Paris.
9. Whatever you take along to wear in Paris, it won't look right. Get over it.
10. It is almost impossible to get a bad meal in Paris, but dining out is another new culture to navigate. Food service doesn't even begin until about 7:30 in restaurants, late for the weary tourist. I'm only slightly ashamed to say we ate hamburgers and drank wine one evening looking out on our private balcony.
11. But most of all, I was just grateful for the small and important things, like staying healthy, making tricky connections, flights and trains that left on time, hotels and apartments that had a key waiting for us. But most of all, the steady companionship of a (mostly) uncomplaining husband. We had a good time.
Massive Charles de Gaulle Airport, gateway to Seattle
via Delta Airlines, non-stop 10 hour flight
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