Post Number 4 - Paris

It took me 11 hours to get from London to Paris, and only one of those hours was in the plane.

I had to leave early, and I didn't want to trouble my cousins yet again so I stuck out my chest and took the night bus (well, 2 of them) to Marble Arch. It was surprisingly easy in spite of it being only 3.30 in the morning. I got there 1/2 an hour earlier than expected, and as soon as I stepped off my bus, the Green Line coach to the London Luton Airport arrived. I was going to catch a later one, but I decided to hop on anyway. It was either that or stand in the cold. At this point I was thinking to myself, "My day is going well, isn't it?"

I thought too soon. As I entered the check-in lounge, I noticed that my flight was delayed slightly more than an hour. There I was, half an hour early in a rather cheery mood which turned only slightly sour within a few seconds. I checked in anyway and went through the tedious security check (laptop out, boots off, belt off, just take everything off why don't you?) to the departure lounge. 

I must admit that London Luton has a nice departure lounge. It's not massive, but you have access to all the food you could possibly want, and if you wanted you could go shopping or go to the video game arcade. Unfortunately I wasn't really in the mood for any of this. I just wanted to get on the plane and go to Paris. Trust me to choose to fly the day that every man and his dog decides to fly as well. There were no places to sit for a long time, so I just stood behind this old lady and farted. She soon left and I took her seat. Okay, I didn't really do that but I did manage to get a seat after about an hour.

I tried to read my book as slowly as I could. I didn't want to finish it, because I didn't know when I would be able to find another English book easily. After about what seemed like eternity, we got the call to board the plane. Apparently one of the pilots was sick, which was what caused the delay. I don't know the details. I was really more tired than impatient or pissed off. All I know is that I wasn't in the best of moods.

The flight was really quick. We literally started landing about 20 minutes after the seatbelt signs went off. Going through immigration was startlingly quick and almost unnecessary. After a quick glance at my passport, the immigration officer threw it back to me and nodded for me to get out of the way. That was it. No stupid questions, no stamp, no nothing! It was almost insulting. Haha.

So I landed without a hitch. The next step was to get into Paris from the airport. I read that the cheapest way to travel around Paris is with the Carte Orange, so I had to walk all the way to the train station and join the longest queue in the history of queues. There were probably about 100 people in front of me, and there were only 3 counters open. Good thing I read my book as slowly as I could because it took more than an hour till I got to the counter. Anyway, don't go asking for a Carte Orange anymore. It has been replaced with a new system called NaviGo. It's a little bit more expensive (and by that I mean it's twice the price) than the now obsolete Carte Orange, but it is so convenient! I laugh at all the people getting in line to buy tickets as I just stroll through the gates.

I got on the RER train into the city and then took the Metro (which is the Underground) to Pont de Neuilly, where I will be staying with my friend Philippe. I got a little bit lost, so I trusted my feminine side and asked for directions. Luckily I didn't walk that far trying to be a man, because I was going in the opposite direction. Well, I got there eventually and it is a beautiful apartment. Old and exquisite and full of things that he has collected from all over the world. 

I went for a stroll down Avenue Champs Elysees and looked at the Arc de Triumph. I didn't want to go up because I wasn't really in the mood for any more queues. There was even a queue to get into Louis Vuitton. Haha. Well, I made it here. I made it to Paris. 

Bonjour.