Me

Je suis en Paris (Je nais parle pa Francais..)

adric, phonebookoftheworld.com (Paris), 20 July 2002, 0:53 CET

(no subject)

Arrival, 23:50

• baffled by the Metro ticket kiosk and these green
  things


• a Francophone helped me buy two green slips of
  paper for 20 EUR, one got me into Metro, and pointed me to correct
  train for Chatelet


• more field repairs on watch in Metro


• right outside Metro, once I found my way out,
  is


• Cyberc@fe Paris (phonebookoftheworld.com)


• AccessX ?? 5 hours (less 10), 2-7, (down the street
  from listed 24hour
  c-cafe sign: closed 000-07:30)
  
  
  
  • custom gui menu shell on top of Win2K, nice
    flatscreen boxen
  
  
  • first few missions of Warcraft III (in
    French), gorgeous, amazing, seems a worthy sequel to one of the
    best video games ever
  
  
  • first few steps of RTCW (in French),
    cool, but hung the box
  
  
  • first few steps of Max Payne (in French),
    kept getting shot
  
  

Walking Tour of Paris

• Chatelet


• Notre Dame (Crypt A-- wouldn't open until 10
  ;( )


• Palais Royal??


• Louvre


• Egyptian Obelisk, environs


• breakfast at Cafe Recrument:
  
  
  
  • a real continental breakfast
  
  
  • French menu w/ english subtitles
  
  
  • crossaint (sp!), jam, buttered bread, cafe,
    orange
    juice: 6.60 EUR
  
  
  
  • check price at St. Dominique 85 EUR +
  
  
  • Tour Eiffel
  
  
  • check price at Hilton (300-230 EUR!!)
  
  
  • back to R. St Dominique
  
  
  • room, breakfast : 100 EUR
  
  
  • lunch Cafe A---: cheese topped ham pizza,
    lemonade
  
  
  • wander about, including grocery store
  
  
  • check in at 14, head upstairs
  
  
  • fail to lance blister :(
  
  
  • crash out to music videos: 14:00 -- nap -- 20:30
    
  
  
  • breakfast is until 10, ask for wake up call at
    900
  
  
  • look in luggage shop: very nice versatile rolling
    bag/pack for 55 EUR
  
  
  • Arc d'Triumph
  
  
  • head south
  
  
  • le Tour (sunrise, moon, lit up)
  
  
  • frozen yogurt (?) cone: 3.50 EUR (ow)
  
  
  • linger under tower, eat melting cone
  
  
  • ~ 22:00: pint, chips, peanuts at Irish Pub
  
  
  
  
  TV:
  
  
  
  • Silk Stalkings, dubbed in French
  
  
  • followed by Flipper (1990s version), ibid
  
  
  • FX: the Series, dubbed French
  
  
  • EuroSport: ,cycling
  
  
  • mostly English music videos
  
  
  • MTV: Madonna (subbed), Lounge (yowza!)
  
  
  
  
  Observations:
  
  
  
  • the center (map 2 in my book) is quite small: I
    crossed it on foot in just a couple hours
  
  
  • no trouble with French or their English (save
    metro tickets)
  
  
  • seem to be better understood here than Britain
  
  
  • peole here seem to speak American English, rather
    than British (HRH's) but many guessed or assumed I was from England
    ??
  
  
  • all prices in UK and France include applicable
    taxes, much better system than U.S.
  
  
  • lots of Brits, Yanks, and a few Germans, Russians,
    et al in Paris
  
  
  • more regular exposure to alien languages seems to
    be helping my language skills, or dredging up memories: I am remembering
    lots of Spanish and German, and I am getting the sound of French (if
    still lost on the structure, pronounciation, etc) better through
    exposure to it
  
  
  • (hasty) One does not need to know any French to
    get by in and enjoy the center of Paris, but if you don't speak
    English or French it will be tricky