Time for a quick post

We're still in Paris and we're still having a blast discovering all this city exposes to you.

I really thought I would have time to post a few pictures and make a few comments on our daily adventures.  Silly me.

Here is a quick rundown on what we have seen/done so far.

 Discovered Hotel de Ville

 Had our 30th Anniversary Dinner at le Café Marly on the terrace overlooking the courtyard at the Louvre.

 Had to visit Paris Harley-Davidson to pick up some shirts.

 Paid my respects to Oscar Wilde at Pere Lachaise cemetery.  Absolutely beautiful.

 Attended mass at Notre Dame.  We went on Sunday at 10:00am for the Gregorian Chant Mass, very beautiful and moving.

 Found our way to the flea market at Saint Ouen.  Definitely get off the main alleys and go deep inside this market for the best selection of stuff you didn't know you needed.

And of course, le Louvre.  How can you visit Paris without visiting here.  We went on the first Sunday of the month which is free.  Yes, it was crowded but manageable.  We may go back as there is no way to see this museum in one day.

I may not get too many posts up while I'm here but I am gathering large quantities of good blog stuff for when we get back to the States.

Until next time Bon journée!

Bonjour Paris!

We made it!

My last post was simple, we are outta here, well, not so fast.

It all began when we arrived at the airport, checked in, checked the one bag we planned to check then found out our departing flight was running late.  How late? About 20 minutes late.

Not to fear, we originally had an hour layover in Chicago O'Hare to change planes, now we would have about 40 minutes.  But wait, it isn't over yet.

As we waited in the lounge area beyond the security checkpoint (which we surprisingly breezed through) an announcement was made that our flight was further delayed.  Looking out the window, we saw no plane at our gate.  Somewhat concerned, my wife asked an attendant how late the flight would be as we had a connection in Chicago we really didn't want to miss.  She was told not to worry, we should make Chicago in time for our change over.  Naturally, this made her feel better, me, not so much.  I figure the attendant is going to say whatever she feels will put you most at ease and hope you move on.

Finally, our flight arrived.  I do credit the flight staff for unloading, then loading, passengers rather quickly.  We were finally in the air although, at this point we were 50 minutes late, our one hour layover was now reduced to 10 minutes.  But, we were on our way.  Smooth flying from here, right?

No.  We arrived in Chicago at 5:20pm, 5 minutes after our Paris flight began boarding!  We made a mad dash through Chicago's airport, had to stop for a restroom call (there was no way to avoid that) found our flight, boarded, and off we went ... we were now, officially, on our way to Paris.

Once we arrived in Paris (40 minutes early) we had to navigate the RER to Gare du Nord, then change to metro line 4, go four stops, get off and walk a couple of blocks to our studio apartment.  While that is easy for those familiar with subway and/or metro systems, it took my wife and I few minutes to figure it out but, I can say we survived the system without getting lost.

So, here we are in Paris, in  a cute little studio apartment in le Marais and so far we couldn't be happier.

I will attempt to post updates while we are here but, the computer in the studio (yes, the studio came with a computer for our use) is a mac.  I have never used a mac, and couple this with what I can only guess is a European keyboard layout, I am struggling to get this typed.  But, never fear, I will persevere and do the best I can.

Now, we are off to discover our neighborhood so, until next time, au revoir mes amis.

AND WE ARE OUTTA HERE!

Today's the day, in one hour we head to the airport and off we go! Hopefully, I'll be able to post pictures while we're there, if not, I'll have a ton to post when we get back.

Au revoir mes amis!

Almost Gone

Yes, it has been over a month since I posted anything.  However, in the last month we have been extremely busy finalizing everything involved with our trip.  I even made a dry run to the airport and talked to one of the airline attendants to make sure we had everything we needed to get on the plane.  As it turns out, we do.

So, we have our tickets, passports, a few Euros for when we land, and our bags are packed.  Not much left to do but wait until Saturday, just 4 days and 17 hours away.

Once we arrive I hope to update this blog with thoughts, impressions and pictures of Paris.  However, we are not taking a laptop or tablet with us but, there is a computer in the apartment we've rented and it does have internet access.  Whether I will be able to upload pictures from my camera will depend on the age of the computer and the types of connections available.  I'll play that by ear when we get there.  If nothing else I should be able to continue my narrative.

Until Paris, everyone take care.

To carry on or not to carry on ...

Recently I managed to ensnare another follower to this, my blog thing.  Jodie, over at Can Do Mom unexpectedly arrived and introduced herself; naturally being the curious type I went to her blog to investigate and read her musings, celebrations, heartaches and laughter.  I wholeheartedly recommend you take the time to read her postings.

As you can see in the comments section of my last post, Jodie posed a much debated question, am I traveling carry on?  For those unfamiliar with this phrase, it simply means packing everything you are taking in one carry on bag.  In today's climate of charging for every bit of <ahem> comfort during your flight, financially it makes sense to not check any luggage.  You also have the advantages of not worrying about luggage becoming lost or rifled through and you can exit the airport quicker since you are bypassing the baggage claim carousel.

Several of our friends stated quite simply they could not travel without a checked bag, even if they were just traveling within the states for a short time, they feel the need to carry so much with them it would never fit in a single carry on suitcase.  However, I know it can be done.  I have traveled for work a few times and each time I manage to carry everything I need in one bag, with room left.  As we are staying in Paris for three weeks, I knew there would be no reasonable way to carry three weeks of clothing.  My wife understood this as well and since the apartment we rented comes with a washer/dryer there is no need to carry more than a few changes of clothes.  The key will be to coordinate what we take, shirts and slacks that can be paired with each other.  A sport jacket can double as a lightweight jacket against the chill of a midnight stroll along the Seine as well as being just "dressy" enough for any restaurant that may require a jacket to dine.  For my wife, she is planning on pairing her outfits as well.  Slacks and skirts that can be worn with different shirts and blouses.  Each with our own bag plus my wife's purse and possibly a messenger bag for me would be ample luggage for our trip.

With all that said, we are going to check a bag.

A realization set in about three months ago when we began talking about what we would purchase to bring back as mementos.  Of course we have to visit the Harley Davidson dealer and buy ourselves shirts (we're big motorcycle riders and fans), while we're there we could pick up a shirt for our boys.  Then maybe one for C, a friend of mine who also rides.  Naturally, if we buy a shirt for C we have to get something for his wife who is my wife's best friend.  Oh, we can't forget our youngest son is getting married next Sunday so we probably should plan on buying something for his wife.  The next thing you know, we're looking at each other and saying the same thing, "how are we going to bring all this back?"  So, we are going to check a suitcase.

The plan at this point is to pack one carry on with a couple of days of clothes for myself and my wife, just in case our checked bag gets lost.  The remainder will be packed in another bag that will be nested inside a third suitcase, instead of having two carry on bags, we will be taking one set of three bags. 

It may be overkill, but this way we'll have plenty of room to bring home mementos and gifts, and should we decide to bring home a bottle or two of really great French wine, we can. 

We will just pray our luggage doesn't get lost when we change flights back in the states.

47 days 17 hours 44 minutes 20 seconds

As I start this post, that is the amount of time left before we leave.

All is chaotic.

It has been over 35 years since I traveled abroad, even longer for Betty and a lot has changed.  We've made ourselves a list in order to make certain we have crossed all our "t's" and dotted all our "i's" before we leave.  I wish I could say we've thought of everything and we are prepared but, as proven in my last post, nothing is ever so simple, especially with me.

I'm certain we will forget something, hopefully it isn't something that proves critical to our trip.  Minor issues can be fixed or forgotten.  Leaving a toothbrush at home just means a trip to the local drugstore to purchase a new one.  Should I pack for rain?  I've given this some thought and my answer is no.  Yes, I have no doubt it will rain however, even here at home, I do not own rain gear.  I have an umbrella which I can purchase cheaply in Paris so, why pack an umbrella?  As it appears Paris is experiencing a late arrival of Spring, as are we, I would venture July will probably be unseasonably cool, I'll make sure I wear a sport coat.

Overall, we are prepared and waiting.  Anxiously waiting.

It is now 47 days, 17 hours, 23 minutes, 17 seconds until departure time.

Not that I'm watching the clock, you understand.

Missed meeting

Today was our monthly travel get together and we missed it.

As the weather has (somewhat) changed from winter to spring I needed to make sure my lawn equipment was prepared for the upcoming mowing/gardening/fighting the annual weed war season.  It has been over a year since I had performed a tune up on our lawn tractor and this year I just didn't feel like doing it myself.  So, we loaded up the beast and took it south to a reputable small engine repair business.

All of that appears straight forward but, this is me and nothing is straight forward for me.

You see, to load the great mechanical marvel that shears my tender grass (weeds) I have to back the pick up truck into a culvert in front of my house.  This effectively lowers the bed of the truck to just about 8 inches from street level.  Obviously, this makes loading much easier.  For those that will ask the inevitable question, "why don't you just use ramps?"  The answer is simple, I don't have any and I don't load the beast often enough to warrant having any.  In fact, this is only the second time I have loaded it in the truck, the first being when we brought it home a few years ago.

A week later, the reputable small engine repair business called and said they were done.  My wife and I have both been a tad under the weather so we waited until last night to bring the beast home.  Once home I maneuvered the truck back the culvert to unload our cargo, being careful not to go too far in the culvert as I didn't want to risk getting stuck.  I should mention, while Betty and I were feeling under the weather, the weather was doing its part to provide natural moisture to the ground.  I'm sure we've all heard the saying, "April showers bring May flowers".  Well, April has been showering us for quite a few days.  This led to my concern about getting stuck.  But, I made sure I stayed above the truly wet part of the culvert.

And that didn't help at all.

Once we had unloaded and stored the beast I discovered the truck had zero traction on the wet grass.  Try as I might, this truck was going nowhere.  I left it for the night and only returned to it the next day when my youngest son arrived in his four wheel drive pick up.  Long story, short (as if I haven't made this long enough) 30 minutes later the truck was in the driveway and I now have a set of spinning tire tracks through my front yard.  All is good in my world except, we missed our monthly travel meeting.

We are disappointed as the meetings gave us an outlet for our excitement for our upcoming trip.  Also, we have garnered several great travel tips and suggestions on what to do, see and where to eat.  This meeting was also the last one for a couple of months as several members are leaving in the next couple of weeks to their own travels.  One trip in particular is being taken by three members, a photo safari to Africa.  Another is leaving today to enjoy London and Paris and yet another couple leaves soon for a trip through Italy.  By the time everyone gets back Betty and I will be just two weeks from leaving on our trip to Paris.  We may try to squeeze in a meeting before we leave.

We are getting closer, just 69 days left and our adventure begins.