Friday in Paris... When it Rains...Fri 22 Nov 2012

Was only going to stay in Paris for 2 nights and 2 days and leave last Wed night on the night bus to Amsterdam. But now with my schedule all messed up due to the ferry not going as planned and I was delayed 3 days, it brings me into the week-end and I'm not sure on opening times etc, so I just figured it's easier to stay until next Wednesday and do all the things in 6 days that I was going to do in 2 days!

I decided to stay for 6 nights and days, leaving Paris on Wednesday evening for Vienna... possibly.
Have to juggle things about a bit as my budget blew out over $100 this Paris stay, with the week-end rates almost doubling here and the ferry taxi thing and then buying the ticket at the counter for the train from Cherbourg last night.
It was all too dickie to plan this part of the rushed alterations as the ferry I had researched to go across on had a different schedule and luckily I didn't book those connections ahead, as I would have lost them all. Tickets on the really cheap fares are non refundable.

However, all is good and when I get to Vienna, I'll have 10Euro hostels, not 25E like here in Paris, so I'll be able to catch up and save and go from Vienna to Copenhagen later. It's a bit of an eye opener here before Xmas as nothing seems to be in low time mode except the ferry/ship from Ireland to Cherbourg!
This hostel is booked out and isn't too far from the heart of things.
It's only about 6 Metro/underground stations stop to the Garnier Opera House of Phantom fame and from there everything is just a walk away.

Can't get used to this dark mornings thing at 8 am. It was overcast and rained this morning and no one had to get up early, so everyone began waking after 10.30 am, missing breakfast and half the day!
Still, I guess the rest was good as it was a rough time crossing the sea and then walking in the dark behind the fish wharves to the train station in Cherbourg, then finding how to get someone to read my hostel directions in English here in Paris, then to point me to the right trains, jump on different train lines to get here...all after 10pm at night.

I need not have been concerned, as the hostel is right around the corner from Maccas and the neighborhood is a good one. Here are a few pics I took on a couple of hours walk in the rain this afternoon at 3pm....

The hostel coming down from the Maccas corner, 3 streets away...Short streets at that.

The creamy coloured building up the end is where you turn into the hostel street...This pic taken from the hostel door entrance.

The dorm room...This is a brand new hostel, purpose built/renovated and is quite smart. About $24 a night or so, with free breakfast, linen, even towels, WIFI, and many extras...

This is a little corner in the room...little corner too, I might add!

The stainless steel and laminate kitchen...very mod!

One of the staff preparing soup for the staff lunch...smelt delicious too! We can use this kitchen and fridge...

Two of the young kids from Quebec, who were in my dorm...having a real French breakfast...They went out and bought some French pastries, as we all rose far toooo late for breakfast this morning and made themselves a coffee!

One happy camper here...Have my plunger coffee, computer, camera and am in Paris when it's raining...what else can a girl ask for!

The all modern bathroom fittings...same floor in the bathroom as in the dorm rooms...Timber grain flooring even in the showers...

All mod cons, hair dryers, heated towel rails, heaps of power points everywhere to charge all the battery contraptions everyone has...More like a hotel...

Paris at 4pm on Friday in Nov. Crossing the road looking back to the Maccas store (will call in for a 30cent ice cream later on, hopefully)...

Rotisserie chooks on the footpath...then they put these tiny little potatoes in the drip tray where the chicken fats go and add some sliced onions and they roast from the heat from the cooking chickens. A great way to add value and utilize otherwise wasted resources. 5 Euro for a roasted chook... they even have veal cooked in there too. This is a butcher shop, by the way!

I bought a "tub of taters" for 2 Euro...absolutely delicious, walking along Paris streets, in the drizzling rain, eating hot roasted potatoes!  I had eaten half of them before I remembered to take a pic for you all...

Then, off again...hugging the edge of the buildings. there are no overhangs or verandahs here...

Then I came upon a little French pastry shop...I can't eat wheat products, but did indulge in the apricot slice, as it was a custard tart with the thinnest pastry ever, so I figured it would be safe enough...

Then next came all these shoe shops...So many shoe shops and these were all leather shoes. Amazing smell in the shop too from the leather...

More leather shoes...ranging in price from around 25 Euro up to 79 Euro...They probably had more expensive ones, but I was fascinated to see just all leather...Well, that's what the English speaking attendant told me.

The sign says "Populaire"...many places have that name after them. Even in Phantom they used it for the "Opera Populaire"

There are a lot of Real Estate shops here too. In USA and Ireland, I never saw one in my walks, but here, this afternoon I saw 4. This one had a TV screen with a loop video running...

I took this one as it's bright red and photographs well. Many apartments in Paris central from 150,000 Euro and up...from what I saw. They are bed-sitters or studio apartments as we'd call them, but never-the-less, an affordable home in Paris.

These tables out on the street, in the rain...people sitting there, having a smoke and a beer/wine under the semi-protected areas. I went into 2 bars like this for a glass of bubbly, but they don't sell it! They sell the large bottle, but that's it. So, no French bubbles yet.

More snack pastry specials...Check out the hot dog with all the real melted cheese! In USA they put this terrible squeeze "cheese"? on their food...here it looks like real cheese, melted down.

Another little pastry bar on the street. The area we are in is just out of the city centre and off the touristy strips, so we see what the locals eat and buy.

Off home now...it's dark and after 5pm...Will buy my weekly treat ice cream if I can at Maccas and call it a day.

What a nuisance...they only have sundaes...With nuts and chocolate.

That wraps up day 1 in Paris...
Early to bed to-night to hopefully wake up at 6 or 7 am to get out and amongst it. Some girls from Venezuela, one studying in England and the other working in Champagne area of France, went out this morning and visited the Eiffel Tower, the Champs D'eEllyses and some museum...and they left at mid day and arrived back here just then, at 6.30 pm, so it's an easy day to get to see so much.

xxx