My First Day in France

After a week of rushing through packing, meeting up with friends and family, and hand overing of work duties, I made it to the airport exhausted with my 40 kg luggage..! Thank God I didn't get charged for the excess luggage, although I worried through the day imagining how I'd survive carrying all that bags around.

The flight to Paris was horrendous.. as there was no personal TV screen onboard Thai Airways! Thus, I had to spend time between sleeping, reading, and watching a strange French film Miss Irma online.. about a man living a double life as a senior executive and a psychic.. Not too good at 3am in the morning..

After surviving 15 hours of boredom, I finally arrived in Paris at 7am. The passport clearance was the worst mess I've ever been through.

. there were no queues in place and we were squeezed like sardines for almost an hour.. with no air-conditioning and heavy bags.. I never expected this from a developed city like Paris.. For more airport horror, I got a little lost, and couldn't figure out how to take the RER to my host's place... Ended up taking a taxi and splurging on the most expensive taxi ride of my life.. Once's good for an experience, but I doubt it'll every happen again.

Upon arrival at my host's place, I had to carry my bags that weighed 80% of me up a flight of 5 storeys of stairs.. That's good morning exercise to wake me up. By now, I am ready to pee in my pants.. And the worst part's not being to successfully open the door with the key! I tried my best for 30 minutes and finally I succeeded.. What a morning! It's a cool place to live in.

. My host, Steeve, is an avid couchsurfer and his place is friendly and inviting.. At least I would get some good company.

In the afternoon, I visited the Notre Dame Cathedral. Upon stepping out of the Metro, I was impressed and welcomed by Parisien architecture and it's bustling cafes. Then Miss Japanese hypnotized me and I started taking lots of pictures of the rivers, the churches, and the cafes. Amazing how the postcards pop to life hehe...

The church was beautiful but over touristy.. There were machines everywhere to purchase candles and souvenir booklets. There were too many heads that it was hard to take a proper picture without them appearing in it. I spent the afternoon roaming around the Notre Dame area and bought some bakeries for lunch. So the French bakeries are really good, that's undeniable.

After a few attempts at the RER, I got very lost and ended up where I am here at Gare De Lyon station instead of Champs D'Elysee. Tired of figuring transportation out, I decided to be a net junkie and work on my blog. The RER is very different from the MRT we have in Singapore. There are more than 200 stops with many colored lines and it's warm in the trains. My MRT's much simpler, and definitely more comfy as well.

As for the Parisiens, they aren't as mean as people mention. Most of the people I speak to replied to my questions in polite English. Maybe it's just my lucky day, let's leave no comments for now.

There is so much to explore in France, and I wonder if more catastrophes or delights lie ahead. Tonight, I'll take the TGV to Tours.. Let's see how it goes :)