Summer Vacation in Paris
Hello Everybody!
This summer we are going to Paris for two months. That is two whole months to explore the city and possibly other surrounding countries. When I tell my friends the fantastic news, they seem shocked. They also ask me to take them with me and send some pictures. I am so excited we are going to spend summer vacation in Paris. I still cannot believe it; it feels so surreal. Of course, I will miss my friends, but I am glad at the same time. Our last trip to Paris only lasted two days, and we did not get to do much due to protests. This time, we will have over 60 days to explore Paris and some of the cities outside of Paris. I have been packing for a few days because I do not want to leave anything behind. I have my summer clothes, computer, art papers, and camera. I get more excited as the date gets close. My parents have a rental lined up in the city. It is supposed to be close to the Eiffel Tower and the Champs Elysees. A two-bedroom apartment located just one block from a metro station. My mom receives a confirmation from Paris Attitude with last-minute reminders. Paris Attitude is the agency we used to get the apartment. The property owner will meet us at the apartment a little after noon.
Leaving Home
I am heading to the airport today because we will live in Paris for two months. So, go on this journey with me as I arrive in Paris, France.
I just put my bags in the car because we are heading to the airport. On the way there, I wonder how life will be without my dad for almost two months. It is hard to even think about it. In fact, I have never been anywhere without my dad for more than two weeks. Now I have to be without him for almost seven weeks. Luckily, he is coming to Paris to be with us. As I am thinking about this, we arrive at the airport. My dad takes our bags from the car but looks very sad. We all hug him and say goodbye. Now we are going to check in our luggage.
The woman that is checking us in is very nice. She tells us to take her with us, but we promise to take her next year. We all laugh. Now she is serious and says that we must pay to bring our suitcases into Europe because one of our flights is the basic economy, whatever that means. My mom is a little disappointed. It costs $300 for all four suitcases, $75 per luggage. She says it is European law and cannot do anything about it. Therefore, we pay so we can head to the gate. Paris is worth the $300. I think. I hate going through TSA because I always feel rushed, but when we get there, it is almost empty. Maybe because it is a small airport. I do not feel rushed at all. We finish going through TSA, and now we will find our gate. Surprisingly, there are only six gates. Therefore, it is easy to find ours.
Now we are boarding our flight to Atlanta, Georgia. This is my first time sitting in a window seat with no window. Maybe this is our basic economy flight. I am sitting in the very last row. I think it is hilarious but super dull. The flight attendant gives my brother and me a bag of two delicious cookies. Still, now she is returning to provide us with another bag. I am baffled. Maybe she thinks we are cute or just feels like giving us more, but I do not know. I think she is gorgeous, though. We just eat it and say thank you to her with big smiles. The rest of the flight to Atlanta is very smooth. Now we are landing. I usually like landing, but this one is very shocking. This one hits the ground so hard that it gives me a headache. We get off the plane, and now we are going to find our new gate for our connecting flight. Our next stop is Munich, Germany.
Heading to Munich, Germany
We find the gate, but we have about 30 minutes before they start boarding, so we are going to find a place to eat. Since finding some good food takes forever, we will just go to Mcd
onald’s. Of course, we all have to get a happy meal because it is cheaper. Now we are going back to our gate to eat the food. There is a family with two children who end up taking eight seats between them. One for sitting and another for their bags. I cannot find a chair, so I stand not too far from them. They pretend as if they do not see me. How inconsiderate. I end up eating only the fries and some of the burger. Now we are boarding our flight to Munich. The flight is delayed by almost an hour, so we will miss our connecting flight to Paris. I am not happy about this.
The flight to Germany is very smooth, in my opinion. It will take around 9.5 hours to get there. I sit between a teenage girl and her mother. I really like the mother’s rings and her Southern accent. She is also very pretty. There is a TV, but I do not use it. I fall asleep for short periods, then wake up again repeatedly. They are serving dinner, and I request steamed veggies melted with cheese that tastes like broccoli casserole. It is delicious. For breakfast, they serve an English muffin with eggs and melted cheese. It does not taste delicious, but it does not taste too bad. They also serve some fruits with it. Now it is time for landing. I like landings because you do not know when the plane touches the ground, but some people do not like landings. This landing is very surprising. The aircraft hit the ground so hard that some people even yell. Even I am surprised. Then we get off the plane smoothly.
Now, we are in Munich, Germany. A lady is standing outside the plane’s door with new boarding passes. She hands us our new boarding passes to Paris because our original flight has already left. We are not happy. We go outside the airport so we can see Munich. It’s beautiful, and the weather is similar to San Diego. Lovely, sunny, breezy, and refreshing. It makes you want to stay there forever. We have to check in again and get our boarding pass for our flight to Paris. There is a long line that scares us, but it’s not our line. We are relieved. The Air France line is not that bad. We check-in, and we now have boarding passes. We visit a small café and buy two sandwiches and drinks while we wait for our flight to start boarding. The sandwich is delicious, but the mustard is different. We also buy a croissant.
Flight to Paris
The flight to Paris is about an hour and a half. I board the plane and go straight to my seat. I have a window seat. Just a few minutes later, it is time for food. They give us a ham sandwich with nothing else and a water bottle. The landing is smooth.
We are now waiting for our luggage. I am scared it may not be there, and my fear becomes a reality. If you read my post about my trip to Europe in the Spring, you would know we spent the whole trip in a pair of clothes. So, I am traumatized. Unfortunately, our bags do not make it to Paris. So, my mom is going to put in a complaint. While waiting, a man helps us with the complaint. We take the opportunity to practice some French with him. He is nice. He gives each of us a small clear bag with a white t-shirt, a toothbrush, and travel-size toothpaste. He also tells us we can purchase necessities for up to 100 euros per person.
We are in Paris
Now we are going to take a taxi to our rented apartment. Our last taxi ride was nice, but it cost 99 euros. We find out that taxis are regulated in Paris, so it is cheaper. A man approaches us and offers to take us to our apartment for 95 euros, but we refuse. We get in the taxi line and take a taxi to our apartment for 55 euros. That is a 44 euro saving. I can eat nine crêpes with that money.
Our four-story apartment is located on a quiet street not too far from the metro. It was built in the early 1700s. It has a beautiful courtyard with good security.
The cost is $2,600 a month including utilities. Surprisingly here, the second floor is called the first floor. We have to climb around 70 stairs to our apartment. We like it. The lady who meets us here is charming and really lovely. The apartment is a fully furnished two-bedroom with a living room, bathroom with a separate toilet, and a small kitchen. The property owner is super friendly. He brings us a Praluline, which is pretty much a round cake with pink-flavored nuts. It is delicious.
Sightseeing
The goal is to see something new every day this summer. The next day, we go shopping for groceries and metro cards. We will get the monthly Navigo card for nearly 90 euros per person; the card costs 5 euros for non-residents. The card allows us to go everywhere in Paris and some cities in Ile de France. Our next stop is the Eiffel Tower; one can never get too much of it. As we stand there trying to figure out our map, an ex-pat from Britain approaches us and offers a better option, the Citymapper. The Citymapper app helps you get around by walking or public transportation. Think of it like a GPS for public transit. This app has been wonderful because we can now go everywhere in Paris without asking for directions. We visit the Champs Elysees and then walk without knowing where we are
going. We end up at the Eiffel Tower and have the best vanilla ice cream ever. We visit the Ponts des Art, the love lock bridge. Although the government removed all the locks for safety reasons because they became too heavy, people still put locks on the bridge today, which is against the law. We see Le Petit Palais, which we will visit another day. We will visit Disneyland Paris and Brussels, Belgium, in the next few days or weeks.
So far, the food has been amazing. You can go to the grocery store and squeeze fresh oranges for orange juice. A liter costs less than five euros. A freshly baked croissant costs less than 80 cents at the grocery store and tastes like gourmet food. The passion fruit and guava juices taste like homemade juice. The French eat desserts with tiny spoons that look like baby spoons. In another post, I will have to tell you more about the best pizza I have ever had.
This week we will visit the Louvre Museum. We walk several miles daily, and it is fun. We stay in and relax when we feel like it. We have been learning French words as we go. Every now and then, we stop for crêpes and a Gratin, which is a slushy. My favorite is the strawberry and tropical blue mix. Come travel with me as I explore Paris this summer.
Au revoir and See you on my next adventure!
