Grandchild in Paris, Days 1 and 2
We were there, Josh got a stamp in his passport, and our little 14-year old EverReady Bunny was off and running. The big priorities were: going to McDonald's for Chicken McNuggets; hitting an ATM for Euros, and walking over to Notre Dame Cathedral. (Our hotel was situated within walking distance from Notre Dame.) View image
Josh's first bit of culture shock - young people kissing and "making out" in broad daylight on every street corner! In his words..."how rude". Second, you have to pay to use a toilet...."it's so cruel". Third, people don't curb their dogs and you have to watch out for "poop" on sidewalks. Fourth, "why are all the people smoking?"
A fast nap and his major focus in Paris - The Eiffel Tower. The wait wasn't too long...elevator to the top...wonderful views and walked down from the 2nd level. Rather, I walked down...he ran down. It's very hot in Paris and crowded. Dinner at Polidor, on the Left Bank but Josh didn't enjoy his meal that much...probably would have preferred McDonald's again. Kids....
After being on the go all day - metro's, stairs, walking...Josh didn't even have the energy to use his Ps2! Lights out!!
The next day, finally found something that Josh liked to eat other than Happy Meals, French Baquettes with lots of butter...he chowed his way through one after another every morning for breakfast.
This day's priority was the Louvre: Venus de Milo, Winged Victory, Mona Lisa ("why is it so small?" and "people are rude taking pictures and shoving.") Josh thought the Venus de Milo was the best part of the Louvre. I liked the Crown Jewels room.
Then, we walked all the way down the Champs-Elysees to the Arc d'Triomphe. At the Arc, he wanted to walk up all 289 steps to the top...so, we did. View image
After that, metroed to Notre Dame where he and ex-Marine walked up 287 steps to the South Tower. View image The gargoyles are now covered with bars and mesh so you can't get near them for photos as we could in the past. We all enjoyed the entertainers in the square around Notre Dame...mimes, a person dressed as a gargoyle and musicians.
By then, his feet were actually getting sore! But, he still had some energy left for the boat cruise on the Seine...Josh thought it was very boring.
Understand that in between all this sightseeing is SHOPPING for souvenirs. Very, very important! And we had to pick up maps and informational brochures everywhere we went for his French class. My daypack weighed a ton at the end of each day.
New question...."why do the advertisements on the walls have bare-breasted women and why do the shops sell inappropriate things?" Answer - Because there are no nude restrictions in France. With that in mind, he purchased an extremely inappropriate T-shirt for his Dad. Josh insisted his Dad could wear it IN the house - not OUT and there were no arguments to sway him.
(We did lots of explaining about different customs during this trip.)
Josh's next surprise...it's noisy during the night in Paris! My grandchildren have grown up in Suburbs, not cities, and rarely experience people walking and shouting on sidewalks, automobile horns, lots of sirens, etc., at all hours of the night. It took a while to comprehend.
To date, Josh wins the "Europe Travel with Sheila and ex-Marine Endurance Award".
Next day....
Comments
cute story
Posted by: som | April 21, 2006 08:08 AM