... I have a new blog up and running for my upcoming adventures in Korea. Would have just tacked it on to this one, but I figured "new trip, new blog".
Find it here.
Saturday, February 9, 2008
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Remaining photos
Yes, I'm slow. That's a combo of laziness, full time work and my slowing dying lappy...
Anyway, for my dear grandmeres, R&D, and anyone else who might be lurking:
London
Paris
New York and Niagara Falls
LC
Anyway, for my dear grandmeres, R&D, and anyone else who might be lurking:
Paris
New York and Niagara Falls
LC
Sunday, November 18, 2007
There's no place like home
I'm back in Sydney. I couldn't decide whether that statement should be followed by a smiley or frowny emoticon, so it gets neither. This is my third full day at home, and I still feel like I've been run oner by a truck - now I understand why Rach said we should do it all again in two years: it'll take that long to recover!
Having said that, I'm voraciously reading through the Intrepid website, looking for the next adventure location, and I have an info night at Teach International tomorrow, so hopefully another trip will be in the works soon...
For now, I'm busy uploading my photos to Flickr (and it's taking longer than I envisioned when I gave Grandma an ETA of 24 hours on the phone yesterday). Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon are ready to roll, though.
The link is below. You can either click on the thumbnails one by one, or click on the slideshow option up the top right above the pics. For the slideshow, you can view the desciptions for each shot by rolling your mouse over the photo and clicking on the "i" that appears.
Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon
LC
Having said that, I'm voraciously reading through the Intrepid website, looking for the next adventure location, and I have an info night at Teach International tomorrow, so hopefully another trip will be in the works soon...
For now, I'm busy uploading my photos to Flickr (and it's taking longer than I envisioned when I gave Grandma an ETA of 24 hours on the phone yesterday). Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon are ready to roll, though.
The link is below. You can either click on the thumbnails one by one, or click on the slideshow option up the top right above the pics. For the slideshow, you can view the desciptions for each shot by rolling your mouse over the photo and clicking on the "i" that appears.
LC
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Start spreading the news...
Yep, I'm in the Big Apple! The immediate family probably got my messages at some ungodly hour yesterday morning - sorry about that, but I had to take that window of opportunity in Niagara while I could pick up the Rogers network from Canada!
Things are going well at my end. Rach and I grabbed same-day tickets to Hairspray on our first full day in the city - it's fun to be able to do things on a whim! then we checked out Times Square, did some shopping, had dinner and hit the sack early for the Niagara tour yesterday, as we had to be in Midtown for a 4:15am pickup. Ouch.
Niagara was very, very cold and - once we got close - very, very wet. My jeans and socks got soaked, but my Converse sneakers appear to have some sort of miraculous water-repelling qualities, and therefore came out of it in pretty good nick. We missed out on the chopper ride (due to bad weather, I think, but I can't be sure), and flew up with JetBlue. They're kinda like Virgin, only they give you food and drink for free, and have 38 stations of TV with sets on the back of every seat. Here's hoping the Aussie budget airlines may follow suit sometime soon...!
Anyway, we did the US side of the Falls (New York state) and the Canadian (Ontario), so I now have a Canadian stamp in my passport - whee! Had lunch at the Sheraton, with an awesome view:
It also had an awesome buffet :D I had lots of vegies (been craving them for ages - my eating habits have been typical of a traveller... not good) - crab meat, rice, potato salad, and a couple of tiny cakes and a mini lemon tart for dessert. Needless to say, there was no need for dinner last night! Then - because they don't run the Maid of the Mist in the winter season (sorry, Pa), we got to do the tour behind the Falls:
It was so windy, and the water came down with such force. Scary, but in a good way. After all that, it was a 90 minute bus ride to Rochester airport for the flight back to JFK, then a 90 minute taxi ride in city traffic back to Midtown and another 20 minutes to the hotel in the Village. And people say traffic in Sydney's appalling! We pretty much got in, showered, and went straight to bed.
Today was another Moving Day (which we've both decided we hate - all that packing and hauling paraphernalia to the taxi, and out of the taxi, and up another lift and into another room). We went from the Village to the Upper West Side. Ma and Pa, if you go to NYC at any stage, you'd love Hotel Beacon. It has a kitchenette (Fridge! Microwave! Yay!), good sized beds, and room enough to put your suitcase down and move around without tripping over - a first for the trip so far. It's only a couple of blocks from the Museum of Natural History, too, which is where we headed this arvo. Checked out the Asian and African mammals and people, some of the dinosaurs, and their latest exhibit called Mythical Creatures. I could've spend hours more, but Rach went to see Wicked tonight, so we had to head back to the hotel. Ah well, something for next trip, eh?
Not sure what we'll be up to tomorrow - we tend to make decisions based on the weather each day. We're going to try our luck for half-priced tickets to the Lion King in the evening, though.
Maman - WTF? You and your crazy comments that I have to hunt for. You scared the bejeezus out of me because I read them in the wrong order. Please send Allie my love and tell her I hope she's feeling all better soon.
Ros - hi! Great to hear from you :) Don't worry, Blogger confuses me a bit, too; I'm used to LiveJoural. Yeah, tipping's okay once you get used to it - a lot of places quite helpfully put in on the bill. Otherwise it's between 10-20% depending on what you thought of the service you received. We're just rounding up to the nearest $5 most of the time...! At least we're tipping; Aussies have a bad rep over here for not doing it. Say hi to Grandma and to Dave for me!
In other (old) news, I went to Winchester on the train on Friday (much nicer than CityRail's intercity service - very quiet and clean), met up with Amy (yes Mum, Amy = Lucy), stayed at Richelle's place on Friday night, met some nice people at a party, realised that Jaeger doesn't agree with me, overslept for my flight on Saturday morning, copped an hour delay at Heathrow due to fog, slept in a transit lounge, ate Maccas in Frankfurt (no, they don't have cocktail frankfurts on the menu, sadly) and discovered that 5c and 10c pieces in the States are the opposite of ours, size wise (very confusing at the till). Here are some random pictures:
Dad - thought you might like this. Taken in the South Western Rail train to Winchester.
Amy and I outside Winchester Cathedral
Me and Richelle in Brogan's (!) pub in Fulham.
Me and my snakebite - oh, the shame...
Things are going well at my end. Rach and I grabbed same-day tickets to Hairspray on our first full day in the city - it's fun to be able to do things on a whim! then we checked out Times Square, did some shopping, had dinner and hit the sack early for the Niagara tour yesterday, as we had to be in Midtown for a 4:15am pickup. Ouch.
Niagara was very, very cold and - once we got close - very, very wet. My jeans and socks got soaked, but my Converse sneakers appear to have some sort of miraculous water-repelling qualities, and therefore came out of it in pretty good nick. We missed out on the chopper ride (due to bad weather, I think, but I can't be sure), and flew up with JetBlue. They're kinda like Virgin, only they give you food and drink for free, and have 38 stations of TV with sets on the back of every seat. Here's hoping the Aussie budget airlines may follow suit sometime soon...!
Anyway, we did the US side of the Falls (New York state) and the Canadian (Ontario), so I now have a Canadian stamp in my passport - whee! Had lunch at the Sheraton, with an awesome view:
It also had an awesome buffet :D I had lots of vegies (been craving them for ages - my eating habits have been typical of a traveller... not good) - crab meat, rice, potato salad, and a couple of tiny cakes and a mini lemon tart for dessert. Needless to say, there was no need for dinner last night! Then - because they don't run the Maid of the Mist in the winter season (sorry, Pa), we got to do the tour behind the Falls:
It was so windy, and the water came down with such force. Scary, but in a good way. After all that, it was a 90 minute bus ride to Rochester airport for the flight back to JFK, then a 90 minute taxi ride in city traffic back to Midtown and another 20 minutes to the hotel in the Village. And people say traffic in Sydney's appalling! We pretty much got in, showered, and went straight to bed.
Today was another Moving Day (which we've both decided we hate - all that packing and hauling paraphernalia to the taxi, and out of the taxi, and up another lift and into another room). We went from the Village to the Upper West Side. Ma and Pa, if you go to NYC at any stage, you'd love Hotel Beacon. It has a kitchenette (Fridge! Microwave! Yay!), good sized beds, and room enough to put your suitcase down and move around without tripping over - a first for the trip so far. It's only a couple of blocks from the Museum of Natural History, too, which is where we headed this arvo. Checked out the Asian and African mammals and people, some of the dinosaurs, and their latest exhibit called Mythical Creatures. I could've spend hours more, but Rach went to see Wicked tonight, so we had to head back to the hotel. Ah well, something for next trip, eh?
Not sure what we'll be up to tomorrow - we tend to make decisions based on the weather each day. We're going to try our luck for half-priced tickets to the Lion King in the evening, though.
Maman - WTF? You and your crazy comments that I have to hunt for. You scared the bejeezus out of me because I read them in the wrong order. Please send Allie my love and tell her I hope she's feeling all better soon.
Ros - hi! Great to hear from you :) Don't worry, Blogger confuses me a bit, too; I'm used to LiveJoural. Yeah, tipping's okay once you get used to it - a lot of places quite helpfully put in on the bill. Otherwise it's between 10-20% depending on what you thought of the service you received. We're just rounding up to the nearest $5 most of the time...! At least we're tipping; Aussies have a bad rep over here for not doing it. Say hi to Grandma and to Dave for me!
In other (old) news, I went to Winchester on the train on Friday (much nicer than CityRail's intercity service - very quiet and clean), met up with Amy (yes Mum, Amy = Lucy), stayed at Richelle's place on Friday night, met some nice people at a party, realised that Jaeger doesn't agree with me, overslept for my flight on Saturday morning, copped an hour delay at Heathrow due to fog, slept in a transit lounge, ate Maccas in Frankfurt (no, they don't have cocktail frankfurts on the menu, sadly) and discovered that 5c and 10c pieces in the States are the opposite of ours, size wise (very confusing at the till). Here are some random pictures:
Dad - thought you might like this. Taken in the South Western Rail train to Winchester.
Amy and I outside Winchester Cathedral
Me and Richelle in Brogan's (!) pub in Fulham.
Me and my snakebite - oh, the shame...
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Happy Halloween!
So it's the end of October - boy is the year flying by! Even faster now that I'm in a new country every week...
Rach and I have settled back in to London for a few days - this place really does feel like home. It's easy to get around and people speak English and there are Aussies everywhere (which could be seen as a bad thing, if you're looking to get out of Oz).
Since I last blogged, we got locked out of our room (key card was corrupted, they had to get a locksmith in to reconfigure it), had a pub dinner (oh London pubs, how I've missed thee!) at the Cambridge hotel in Covent Garden and headed round the corner to see Atonement at the cinema (depressing movie; makes me glad I never finished the book), wandered down Oxford Street while racking up a credit card bill at H&M and Topshop, checked out Trafalgar Square, had lunch at TGI Friday's (Oreo milkshakes FTW) and - most importantly - called Vodafone and got my messages working again! Gem, I'm sorry for sending you a test message at some ungodly hour! I really should look at the time before I call. Fail :(
Mama - I'm doing okay on the wheat, it seems. Clearly, I am simply allergic to Sydney! I haven't had to dress my feet at all - the skin is pink and scarred, but it hasn't broken open (though it does itch occasionally). I'll stop there before we enter the realm of Too Much Information.
Pa - can't wait to see the new phone. Does this mean you've graduated from the old green screen??? :D You and Mum need to get travelling - you'd both love the museums and galleries in Paris...
Islamiah - don't forget to show me those dresses! They sound kinda cool... Also, five twenty-firsts in two weeks, with four costume themes? Sucks to be you... Hee.
Gra - miss you, too, kiddo. You'll be stoked with what I got you in Paris!
Grandma, Allie, Ros & Dave - postcards are written, but need to be posted. I've been a bit lax on that front, sorry!
Off for dinner now, then I'm having catch up drinks with Butters in Fulham while Rach goes to see the 3D Nightmare Before Christmas at Leicester Square cinema.
Toodles,
Laura.
p.s. Looked over the old entries and notice the shocking amount of typos. Please excuse these - it's a combo of unfamiliar keyboard layouts and my rush to get in and out of the internet cafe before they fleece me : )
Rach and I have settled back in to London for a few days - this place really does feel like home. It's easy to get around and people speak English and there are Aussies everywhere (which could be seen as a bad thing, if you're looking to get out of Oz).
Since I last blogged, we got locked out of our room (key card was corrupted, they had to get a locksmith in to reconfigure it), had a pub dinner (oh London pubs, how I've missed thee!) at the Cambridge hotel in Covent Garden and headed round the corner to see Atonement at the cinema (depressing movie; makes me glad I never finished the book), wandered down Oxford Street while racking up a credit card bill at H&M and Topshop, checked out Trafalgar Square, had lunch at TGI Friday's (Oreo milkshakes FTW) and - most importantly - called Vodafone and got my messages working again! Gem, I'm sorry for sending you a test message at some ungodly hour! I really should look at the time before I call. Fail :(
Mama - I'm doing okay on the wheat, it seems. Clearly, I am simply allergic to Sydney! I haven't had to dress my feet at all - the skin is pink and scarred, but it hasn't broken open (though it does itch occasionally). I'll stop there before we enter the realm of Too Much Information.
Pa - can't wait to see the new phone. Does this mean you've graduated from the old green screen??? :D You and Mum need to get travelling - you'd both love the museums and galleries in Paris...
Islamiah - don't forget to show me those dresses! They sound kinda cool... Also, five twenty-firsts in two weeks, with four costume themes? Sucks to be you... Hee.
Gra - miss you, too, kiddo. You'll be stoked with what I got you in Paris!
Grandma, Allie, Ros & Dave - postcards are written, but need to be posted. I've been a bit lax on that front, sorry!
Off for dinner now, then I'm having catch up drinks with Butters in Fulham while Rach goes to see the 3D Nightmare Before Christmas at Leicester Square cinema.
Toodles,
Laura.
p.s. Looked over the old entries and notice the shocking amount of typos. Please excuse these - it's a combo of unfamiliar keyboard layouts and my rush to get in and out of the internet cafe before they fleece me : )
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Au Revoir Paris, Hello Ol' Blighty
So, we've just got back into England after two and a half hours on Eurostar, and let me just say that the trip was very comfortable and comes highly recommended (especially at 40 euros a pop). I've been receiving your text messages, but over the past couple of days my mobile's been having probs sending anything, hence my lack of replies.
To maman, in answer to your questions:
1. Detergent makes things feel cleaner, but water alone works alright in the short term.
2. French newspapers have French politicians on the front, not celebs. English papers have football/rugby players or the McCanns (of missing Madeline fame).
3. French TV seems to consist primarily of talk shows, sport and music videos. Half the music videos are from the UK and US, the other half are local.
4. Clothes are lovely, but expensive. I bought a coat from Zara (equivalent of, say, Sportsgirl) for 70 euros, which was reasonable (and hey, it's a nice coat), but that's the exception rather than the rule, price wise.
5. I didn't eat any chocolate while I was in Paris. Why? Because their food is so rich, I couldn't stomach it. Imagine living on pastries and vegies cooked in butter and so forth. I felt ill by the time we left. At least back in London, fresh(ish) fruit and veg is easy to source, and Pret A Manger is everywhere.
6. Didn't see many poodles in handbags, but heaps of pampered pooches on leashes, and in grooming salons! The French really do love their chiens :)
7. Teenagers don't dress up (clearly they're going through their rebellious phase), but all the children and adults are tres chic. Thankfully, with so many other travellers around, I never felt too underdressed.
8. The Metro is cheap as chips - 1.50 for one trip anywhere in the city, 5ish for an unlimited day pass. It's fairly quick, clean and efficient, though their signage is a bit hit and miss (we caught a few trains in the wrong direction thanks to arrows pointing in vague directions). Paris is fairly flat and easy to walk around, too.
9. No, they don't have wine with every meal. Why would you? Complimentary water is always provided. Same goes for lovely, crusty baguettes - yum. Yes, I know I shouldn't eat them, but gluten free options in Paris are as rare as hens teeth. Not all women are thin in Paris, but you don't see many that you would call fat, per se. Certainly didn't see any obese Parisiennes in my travels.
10. Architecture in Paris is gorgeous - so many beautiful old buildings and almost no mid- to late-twentieth century eyesores that you see in most cities. They've preserved their heritage well, despite the uprisings and revolutions. Lots of wrought iron lacework, beautiful stone carvings, and HEAPS of chandeliers. The French love them.
Okay, moving on to new news now! Our stay at the Baltimore was very, very nice. Cushy beds with feather doonas and feather matress underlays (like sleeping on a cloud), hardwood flooring in the bathroom, complimentary chcolates on our pillows (get Gem to say it for you, for the right effect) and room service continental brekkie included. It was very hard to leave this morning!
On our first day in town, Rach and I attempted to shop. However, we soon discovered that Paris shuts down on Sunday morning. One shop in five was open. So we headed down to the Musee de Rodin, where we wandered around the beautiful gardens, ate afternoon tea in the cafe and checked out the collection inside the big old mansion. I also had fun renaming the sculptures... Afterwards, we found the only open shops - under the Pyramid at the Louvre. Did some shopping at the Virgin Megastore there and found the French equivalent of the National Geographic store, which was selling these brilliant illuminated faux flowers. I really wanted to buy some, but getting the adaptors and shipping it all home would have been more trouble than it's worth...
We tried to do a night trip up the Eiffel Tower, but the queue was ridiculously long, and we were due to meet Saph for dinner and a movie, so we gave up and put it on the to do list for the next day. Had dinner at Paradis du Fruit - if you eat anywhere in Paris, eat here. The food was gorgeous and the prices weren't too shabby (especially considering it's just off the Champs Elysees). Then we headed back onto the main street (the CE) to see Stardust. The particular cinema we went to does original versions with French subtitles; a rarity in France, where dubbing is king. The movie was entertaining, though Saph says it's nothing like the book (the SMH review had said something similar). Then we grabbed ice cream at Haagen Dasz. It's a testament to the 24 hour city that Paris is (well, except Sunday mornings) that we still had to queue for service there at 1am on a Monday morning...!
Yesterday we were supposed to be going to Disneyland, but Rach woke up with an upset stomach, so we had to call it off. That was okay, though - when we opened the blinds it was pouring, which in continued to do all day and into the night. We bummed around in the hotel, but went out to dinner at a cafe with a nice view of the Arc de Triomphe.
Okay, I'm seriously draining my bank account with my internet time here (it's a lot more pricey in London than in France) and Rach is waiting (im)patiently for me, so I must be off. Will leave you with some photos:
Stuck in the middle of the Champs Elysees - Paris traffic is crazy and pedestrian crossings are used at your own peril.
At the gardens of the Palais de Versailles.
Did I mention the French like chandeliers?
To maman, in answer to your questions:
1. Detergent makes things feel cleaner, but water alone works alright in the short term.
2. French newspapers have French politicians on the front, not celebs. English papers have football/rugby players or the McCanns (of missing Madeline fame).
3. French TV seems to consist primarily of talk shows, sport and music videos. Half the music videos are from the UK and US, the other half are local.
4. Clothes are lovely, but expensive. I bought a coat from Zara (equivalent of, say, Sportsgirl) for 70 euros, which was reasonable (and hey, it's a nice coat), but that's the exception rather than the rule, price wise.
5. I didn't eat any chocolate while I was in Paris. Why? Because their food is so rich, I couldn't stomach it. Imagine living on pastries and vegies cooked in butter and so forth. I felt ill by the time we left. At least back in London, fresh(ish) fruit and veg is easy to source, and Pret A Manger is everywhere.
6. Didn't see many poodles in handbags, but heaps of pampered pooches on leashes, and in grooming salons! The French really do love their chiens :)
7. Teenagers don't dress up (clearly they're going through their rebellious phase), but all the children and adults are tres chic. Thankfully, with so many other travellers around, I never felt too underdressed.
8. The Metro is cheap as chips - 1.50 for one trip anywhere in the city, 5ish for an unlimited day pass. It's fairly quick, clean and efficient, though their signage is a bit hit and miss (we caught a few trains in the wrong direction thanks to arrows pointing in vague directions). Paris is fairly flat and easy to walk around, too.
9. No, they don't have wine with every meal. Why would you? Complimentary water is always provided. Same goes for lovely, crusty baguettes - yum. Yes, I know I shouldn't eat them, but gluten free options in Paris are as rare as hens teeth. Not all women are thin in Paris, but you don't see many that you would call fat, per se. Certainly didn't see any obese Parisiennes in my travels.
10. Architecture in Paris is gorgeous - so many beautiful old buildings and almost no mid- to late-twentieth century eyesores that you see in most cities. They've preserved their heritage well, despite the uprisings and revolutions. Lots of wrought iron lacework, beautiful stone carvings, and HEAPS of chandeliers. The French love them.
Okay, moving on to new news now! Our stay at the Baltimore was very, very nice. Cushy beds with feather doonas and feather matress underlays (like sleeping on a cloud), hardwood flooring in the bathroom, complimentary chcolates on our pillows (get Gem to say it for you, for the right effect) and room service continental brekkie included. It was very hard to leave this morning!
On our first day in town, Rach and I attempted to shop. However, we soon discovered that Paris shuts down on Sunday morning. One shop in five was open. So we headed down to the Musee de Rodin, where we wandered around the beautiful gardens, ate afternoon tea in the cafe and checked out the collection inside the big old mansion. I also had fun renaming the sculptures... Afterwards, we found the only open shops - under the Pyramid at the Louvre. Did some shopping at the Virgin Megastore there and found the French equivalent of the National Geographic store, which was selling these brilliant illuminated faux flowers. I really wanted to buy some, but getting the adaptors and shipping it all home would have been more trouble than it's worth...
We tried to do a night trip up the Eiffel Tower, but the queue was ridiculously long, and we were due to meet Saph for dinner and a movie, so we gave up and put it on the to do list for the next day. Had dinner at Paradis du Fruit - if you eat anywhere in Paris, eat here. The food was gorgeous and the prices weren't too shabby (especially considering it's just off the Champs Elysees). Then we headed back onto the main street (the CE) to see Stardust. The particular cinema we went to does original versions with French subtitles; a rarity in France, where dubbing is king. The movie was entertaining, though Saph says it's nothing like the book (the SMH review had said something similar). Then we grabbed ice cream at Haagen Dasz. It's a testament to the 24 hour city that Paris is (well, except Sunday mornings) that we still had to queue for service there at 1am on a Monday morning...!
Yesterday we were supposed to be going to Disneyland, but Rach woke up with an upset stomach, so we had to call it off. That was okay, though - when we opened the blinds it was pouring, which in continued to do all day and into the night. We bummed around in the hotel, but went out to dinner at a cafe with a nice view of the Arc de Triomphe.
Okay, I'm seriously draining my bank account with my internet time here (it's a lot more pricey in London than in France) and Rach is waiting (im)patiently for me, so I must be off. Will leave you with some photos:
Stuck in the middle of the Champs Elysees - Paris traffic is crazy and pedestrian crossings are used at your own peril.
At the gardens of the Palais de Versailles.
Did I mention the French like chandeliers?
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Moving house...
Last night was the last "official" night of the Contiki trip, though most of the group had left us a couple of days beforehand, and boy did we pack a lot in! I got up at the crack of dawn to brave a French laundromat, which meant I got down to brekkie before all the good food was gone : ) I managed to nab a fruit'n' yoghurt combo, a banana, a chocolate croissant and a couple of glasses of water - probably the most substantial brekkie I've had since leaving Australia.
The laundromat (la lavorie en Francais) was an experience. I didn't realise that once you had paid, shutting the door of the washing machine would start the cycle... and there's no way to stop it. Hence, my clothes received a water wash only. On the upside, I saved 40 centimes (Euro cents) on washing powder. Then there was the dryer, which cost 50c per cycle, and took about six cycles to dry my clothes. Can't wait to get home to a nice, normal laundry!
After washing duties were complete, I headed out with Rach and Claire to the Catacombes. Wow. Amazing. Freaky, eerie, drippy, but amazing. I got some pretty good photos, which hopefully I can add in next time. They're uploading at the moment, but once again I'm on a schedule.
After the Catacombes, I rushed across town to Notre Dame to meet the other Rachel (who from herein will be known as Saph to prevent confusion), who had come up from Brittany to visit. We grabbed lunch in a cafe while contemplating a climb up the Notre Dame bell tower, but ended up giving this a miss, as we were supposed to meet Claire and Rach at the Musee d'Orsay at 2:30 and were pushed for time. So we wandered up the Seine in the cold and admired the architecture, got a little lost, but eventually got to the museum. We waited... and waited... and waited. Eventually I sent Rach a WTF are you message, and found out that they were stuck in a tunnel on the metro. To cut a long story short, we waited a bit more, and eventually they showed up.
The Musee d'Orsay is a must for art lovers. There was a full room of Monet, a full room of Van Gogh, a room of Rembrandt... and so many more that I can't recall off the top of my head. I took lots of piccies though, to make you all jealous : )
In the evening we all met up with Erika, Ariella, Joanne and Charissa for a cruise along the Seine. Great fun, but ABSOLUTELY BLOODY FREEZING. It would have been under 10°C and I don't think any of us (except maybe Claire) were adequately prepared. Then it was off to dinner, where we took the set menu - a good budget option if you're in Paris, as food's a bit pricey. Food was pleasant, as was the company. Then it was back on the Metro to Pierre et Marie Curie station, and into bed.
Gotta rush now - check out time's in 15 mins. Will write again soon.
Bisous,
Laura.
The laundromat (la lavorie en Francais) was an experience. I didn't realise that once you had paid, shutting the door of the washing machine would start the cycle... and there's no way to stop it. Hence, my clothes received a water wash only. On the upside, I saved 40 centimes (Euro cents) on washing powder. Then there was the dryer, which cost 50c per cycle, and took about six cycles to dry my clothes. Can't wait to get home to a nice, normal laundry!
After washing duties were complete, I headed out with Rach and Claire to the Catacombes. Wow. Amazing. Freaky, eerie, drippy, but amazing. I got some pretty good photos, which hopefully I can add in next time. They're uploading at the moment, but once again I'm on a schedule.
After the Catacombes, I rushed across town to Notre Dame to meet the other Rachel (who from herein will be known as Saph to prevent confusion), who had come up from Brittany to visit. We grabbed lunch in a cafe while contemplating a climb up the Notre Dame bell tower, but ended up giving this a miss, as we were supposed to meet Claire and Rach at the Musee d'Orsay at 2:30 and were pushed for time. So we wandered up the Seine in the cold and admired the architecture, got a little lost, but eventually got to the museum. We waited... and waited... and waited. Eventually I sent Rach a WTF are you message, and found out that they were stuck in a tunnel on the metro. To cut a long story short, we waited a bit more, and eventually they showed up.
The Musee d'Orsay is a must for art lovers. There was a full room of Monet, a full room of Van Gogh, a room of Rembrandt... and so many more that I can't recall off the top of my head. I took lots of piccies though, to make you all jealous : )
In the evening we all met up with Erika, Ariella, Joanne and Charissa for a cruise along the Seine. Great fun, but ABSOLUTELY BLOODY FREEZING. It would have been under 10°C and I don't think any of us (except maybe Claire) were adequately prepared. Then it was off to dinner, where we took the set menu - a good budget option if you're in Paris, as food's a bit pricey. Food was pleasant, as was the company. Then it was back on the Metro to Pierre et Marie Curie station, and into bed.
Gotta rush now - check out time's in 15 mins. Will write again soon.
Bisous,
Laura.
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