Bonjour!

Enchante?

The train ride to Paris sucked. It was super hot in the car, and there were no sheets on the tweed beds. Hot and itchy does not make for an enjoyable 14 hour ride. Getting off the train in Paris was a pleasure because it was a nice and cool 61 degrees. We couldn't find the hostle right away. We walked down the wrong side of the street at first but found it eventually.

The hostel itself, St. Christopher's Inn, is very nice. The building is less than a year old so everything is brand new. It is the nicest hostel we have stayed in, but a close second was Wombat's in Munich. We arrived around noon but couldn't check I'm until 2, so we got lunch. Nothing fancy, just some kabob from a local hole in the wall. We ate slow and planned out what we would do the next three days in Paris.

After checking into the hostel, we took showers, and unpacked. Yes, the luggage lockers here are big enough to actually remove things from a backpack an keep them locked up. A definite luxury. After getting all that situated we left for a walking tour of the Montmartre district.

It is a really cool part of Paris. We saw where Vincent Van Gogh lived, and where Picasso used to trade paintings for food because he was so poor. The Moulin Rouge is also located here, as well as many spots where the movie "Amelie" was filmed. I've never seen it, but maybe some of you have. We also saw the artists district where we actually went back to eat. We found a place that had a three course meal for €12. Too bad Coke Light was €4.80 for a small. Sneaky French. A traditional French meal consists of an entrée (appetizer), plat (main course), and desert. What we got was little more than salad, a piece of meat with French fries, and flan. Everything was pretty good though.

We ended up sitting at a table next to two girls who were on the tour with us. They are from California, one of whom is a DJ in San Fransisco. She is a local celebrity there apparently. After dinner we all walked around for a bit and got chocolat crepes. Yum! We made our way back to the Metro (Paris CTA) and went our seperate ways. But not before they got a picture of Mark in his plad shorts. They loved those.

It was pretty late at this point so we got back to the hostel and went to bed. It is the morning now, and we are getting breakfast in a few. Then we are going on a free tour of Paris to see all the main sights. Later tonight we are meeting up with Gaelle (friend from Loyola who lives in Paris) for drinks. Tomorrow will be another big day as we are going to the Eiffel Tower and Louvre.

I'll keep you posted.

Au revoir,
Kevin


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