I set aside an entire day for the Louvre, which may or may not have been necessary. First off, I proceeded to get lost looking for the appropriate metro stop. On my mini-adventure, I came to the realization that Paris has a lot of, well, smells. Bakeries (yum!), Asian food, flower stands (my favorite so far!), and lots and lots of colonge/perfume. Whew!
Importantly, I also located a super market, which eventually helped me acquire that most impossible to find item on the Paris Scavenger Hunt List: WATER. I was practically giddy upon acquiring my one bottle of the stuff.
On to the Louvre! Getting a museum pass was worth just being able to slip right on in to the museum - you get to go through a special entrance where there is NO LINE. Security was a breeze and I was on my way to seeing some awesome art within 15 minutes.
The Louvre is pretty overwhelming...not only is it huge, but it's also pretty confusing. My almost non-existent French vocabulary has been supplemented by one word today: sortie (exit). Trust me, even surrounded by vast quantities of awesome art, you will eventually want to leave.
Despite the fact that the lovely Mona Lisa is probably the most famous piece of art in the world, I've never been too impressed. I was by far impressed with 1.) how hard she was to find despite all the signs pointing me in her direction (limited French considered, my brain jumped to the conclusion that Spanish might be useful if necessary - donde esta la Mona Lisa? was running through my head the whole time I looked) and 2.) the crowd of people gathered around her (it triggered memories of waiting in line to see a baby panda. I liked the panda better).
Favorites: all the medieval coffin lids with precious pets carved at their masters' feet, Cupid and Psyche (and lots of other beautiful statues in the same room), and, as always, practically any painting featuring children (too many to list).
I'm definitely looking forward to meeting up with Maria and her mom, because while Paris solo is interesting, it's also lonely. There's no one to discuss anything with and no one to take your picture. Bummer. I didn't take many photos in the Louvre because 1.) my camera's batteries keep going dead, 2.) I've taken photos of art pieces before and never did anything with them, and 3.) the art always looks better on the postcards you can buy anyway.
Post-Louvre, I headed back to the hostel (with a little detour to the super market for my precious water) because my feet hurt, where I proceeded to take a two hour nap (a result of lots of walking and not much sleep last night) and then update this crazy blog.
Tomorrow, I'll probably do the walking tour offered by my hostel (it hits most major sites) and then...who knows? Musee d'Orsay is on the list, as is Musee de l'Orangie and the aquarium. I doubt the aquarium has much I haven't already seen, but there's just something about watching tropical fish that I like. Oooh...I wonder if they have jellyfish. : )
Monday, February 22, 2010
Phase 2: Welcome to Paris!
Did I mention that I slept for a whopping eleven hours when I was in Serbia? Well, I did. This was in addition to all the dozing I did in the car and on the plane.
Flying from Belgrade to Paris was not as nice as flying in the other direction. I was in the exit row again, so I've now memorized the pictograms that detail how to remove the panel in the plane's side (not that I ever actually want to do it...I'm not to keen on any sort of emergency landing/crash). Now, why was this flight not-as-nice? Same company (Air France), same seat, same whatever.
Disgusting lunch. Amelia, if you're reading this, think back to our cafeteria days of orzo. Orzo by itself is probably okay (despite it's vague resemblance to small maggots), but every time I've had it, it's been mixed with a conglomeration of random stuff so as to prove less than patable. This wouldn't be too bad, except that the flight attendant never picked up my tray. Hence, I was forced to endure the presence of orzo for (almost) my entire flight.
The rest of the afternoon/evening proved exhausting.
After landing in CDG airport (once again), I proceeded to passport control/customs. Oh, the joy of waiting in line with all the carry-on junk you don't actually need with over a hundred other people. And, of course, I ended up in the slowest moving line possible (China line, I am jealous). I don't why it was so slow...when I finally got to the window, it took all of ten seconds to get through. Maybe they thought an idiot with a bunch of hideous pink baggage was pretty harmless (they were right).
Proceed to the baggage claim: no bag. My trip really is cursed! I think I was more concerned about losing the 4 tubs of Eurocreme Branislav's family sent with me than anything else. However, the lost baggage people were extremely kind/reassuring. I described my bag. I filled out forms. I was thrilled to hear my bag would most likely be delivered to my hostel in the morning. They even gave me an overnight kit, even though I had everything I needed in my carry-on (maybe you really do need to tote around all that junk...).
And then I saw my bag on my way out of office.
They let me keep the overnight kit anyway.
Proceed with the further difficulties of situating oneself in Paris upon arriving all alone. It's like being on a scanvenger hunt with a huge pile of baggage (I find that I'm really starting to resent all my stuff). You must find:
ATM
Tourism office (for museum pass)
Photo Booth (for Pass Navigo, if you choose)
Place to exchange large bill received from ATM for small bills to use in photo booth
Transport office
Appropriate train
Appropriate metro stop
Appropriate place to get on metro so that you're going in the right direction
Appropriate metro stop to get off the metro (this, at least, is easy)
Hostel
Toilette (difficult to find)
Water (near impossible to find)
Easier said than done! Gladly, every person I approached for help was genuinely helpful - one guy even carried my 20 kilo bag up the metro steps for me. Now, for future reference, if you're going to take a crazy amount of stuff on the Paris Metro, bring a very sturdy bag. Mine's lost a bit of a wheel already. : / Now, huge bags aside, I love public transport. Yes, the seats aren't always comfy and the company isn't always the best, but it's definitely convenient!
Finding my hostel was a little tricky (I might have been lost for just a wee bit), but I got there in one piece and the place is nice.
No tourism the first night. My introduction to CDG/Paris transport/hostel was enough for one day. : )
Flying from Belgrade to Paris was not as nice as flying in the other direction. I was in the exit row again, so I've now memorized the pictograms that detail how to remove the panel in the plane's side (not that I ever actually want to do it...I'm not to keen on any sort of emergency landing/crash). Now, why was this flight not-as-nice? Same company (Air France), same seat, same whatever.
Disgusting lunch. Amelia, if you're reading this, think back to our cafeteria days of orzo. Orzo by itself is probably okay (despite it's vague resemblance to small maggots), but every time I've had it, it's been mixed with a conglomeration of random stuff so as to prove less than patable. This wouldn't be too bad, except that the flight attendant never picked up my tray. Hence, I was forced to endure the presence of orzo for (almost) my entire flight.
The rest of the afternoon/evening proved exhausting.
After landing in CDG airport (once again), I proceeded to passport control/customs. Oh, the joy of waiting in line with all the carry-on junk you don't actually need with over a hundred other people. And, of course, I ended up in the slowest moving line possible (China line, I am jealous). I don't why it was so slow...when I finally got to the window, it took all of ten seconds to get through. Maybe they thought an idiot with a bunch of hideous pink baggage was pretty harmless (they were right).
Proceed to the baggage claim: no bag. My trip really is cursed! I think I was more concerned about losing the 4 tubs of Eurocreme Branislav's family sent with me than anything else. However, the lost baggage people were extremely kind/reassuring. I described my bag. I filled out forms. I was thrilled to hear my bag would most likely be delivered to my hostel in the morning. They even gave me an overnight kit, even though I had everything I needed in my carry-on (maybe you really do need to tote around all that junk...).
And then I saw my bag on my way out of office.
They let me keep the overnight kit anyway.
Proceed with the further difficulties of situating oneself in Paris upon arriving all alone. It's like being on a scanvenger hunt with a huge pile of baggage (I find that I'm really starting to resent all my stuff). You must find:
ATM
Tourism office (for museum pass)
Photo Booth (for Pass Navigo, if you choose)
Place to exchange large bill received from ATM for small bills to use in photo booth
Transport office
Appropriate train
Appropriate metro stop
Appropriate place to get on metro so that you're going in the right direction
Appropriate metro stop to get off the metro (this, at least, is easy)
Hostel
Toilette (difficult to find)
Water (near impossible to find)
Easier said than done! Gladly, every person I approached for help was genuinely helpful - one guy even carried my 20 kilo bag up the metro steps for me. Now, for future reference, if you're going to take a crazy amount of stuff on the Paris Metro, bring a very sturdy bag. Mine's lost a bit of a wheel already. : / Now, huge bags aside, I love public transport. Yes, the seats aren't always comfy and the company isn't always the best, but it's definitely convenient!
Finding my hostel was a little tricky (I might have been lost for just a wee bit), but I got there in one piece and the place is nice.
No tourism the first night. My introduction to CDG/Paris transport/hostel was enough for one day. : )
Phase 1: Serbia
So...even if I'm writing about all my travels thus far on the same day, I'll split everything into separate posts. I should have journaled sooner, but...I didn't. That shouldn't be any sort of surprise.
The flight from Paris to Belgrade was a-okay: I was in the exit row, so that meant a little more leg room, and they fed us a second breakfast after my oh-so-delicious (not) egg thing. A croissant, a chocolate croissant, and a yogurt - not bad!
Now, nobody told me quite what it's like to go through passport control/customs, but as a U.S. citizen going into Serbia, it's not bad. Still, it was a little confusing...go through one window, get all your bags, go though another check... Picking up your baggage is also an experience: in Belgrade, you don't have to pay to use a luggage cart, so everyone gathers around the baggage claim with carts/kids/whatever.
Everyone in Serbia was extremely nice, and it was definitely neat to see the place my brother-in-law is from. The only pitfall - I was pretty beat from my glorious overnight plane ride. Not too disastrous, because I was definitely still awake to completely enjoy the great spread of food Branislav's family had waiting for me! Everything was delicious (hence the few Serbian words I learned - torte and pie - are both food words) - but one thing tops all. I don't know what it's called...pardon me while I do a quick little search on the ever-helpful 'net.
KAJMAK!!! (<--look, Branislav, I learned another word!)
It's like cream cheese, but softer and most definitely tastier. It's also pretty addicting. I ate a lot.
One thing about Serbian food is that it's very, very hearty - which is something I'm not used to. Bread, kajmak, soup, and lots and lots of meat make for a very full Sarah! I swear, I'm probably still full a couple days later.
I do have one goofy food story - in the evening, Branislav's family asked me what I wanted for breakfast. I said, "Anything but eggs."
Bright and early the next morning, there was a great big skillet of - you guessed it! - eggs! Oh, the language barrier. When I mentioned that I don't usually eat eggs, the response was, "We asked what you wanted for breakfast, and you said eggs, so that's what we made!"
I seem to be on a bit of an eggs-for-breakfast run.
What else about Serbia/Novi Sad? We dashed out for a quick bit of sight-seeing, but the weather (wet and cold) made it a very quick bit. Petrovaradin Fortress is AMAZING - I would have loved to see more, but it was extremely cold. Look it up on the web - this place deserves more attention!
I could write a whole lot more, but I call it quits for now. : )
The flight from Paris to Belgrade was a-okay: I was in the exit row, so that meant a little more leg room, and they fed us a second breakfast after my oh-so-delicious (not) egg thing. A croissant, a chocolate croissant, and a yogurt - not bad!
Now, nobody told me quite what it's like to go through passport control/customs, but as a U.S. citizen going into Serbia, it's not bad. Still, it was a little confusing...go through one window, get all your bags, go though another check... Picking up your baggage is also an experience: in Belgrade, you don't have to pay to use a luggage cart, so everyone gathers around the baggage claim with carts/kids/whatever.
Everyone in Serbia was extremely nice, and it was definitely neat to see the place my brother-in-law is from. The only pitfall - I was pretty beat from my glorious overnight plane ride. Not too disastrous, because I was definitely still awake to completely enjoy the great spread of food Branislav's family had waiting for me! Everything was delicious (hence the few Serbian words I learned - torte and pie - are both food words) - but one thing tops all. I don't know what it's called...pardon me while I do a quick little search on the ever-helpful 'net.
KAJMAK!!! (<--look, Branislav, I learned another word!)
It's like cream cheese, but softer and most definitely tastier. It's also pretty addicting. I ate a lot.
One thing about Serbian food is that it's very, very hearty - which is something I'm not used to. Bread, kajmak, soup, and lots and lots of meat make for a very full Sarah! I swear, I'm probably still full a couple days later.
I do have one goofy food story - in the evening, Branislav's family asked me what I wanted for breakfast. I said, "Anything but eggs."
Bright and early the next morning, there was a great big skillet of - you guessed it! - eggs! Oh, the language barrier. When I mentioned that I don't usually eat eggs, the response was, "We asked what you wanted for breakfast, and you said eggs, so that's what we made!"
I seem to be on a bit of an eggs-for-breakfast run.
What else about Serbia/Novi Sad? We dashed out for a quick bit of sight-seeing, but the weather (wet and cold) made it a very quick bit. Petrovaradin Fortress is AMAZING - I would have loved to see more, but it was extremely cold. Look it up on the web - this place deserves more attention!
I could write a whole lot more, but I call it quits for now. : )
Friday, February 19, 2010
A post?! For real?!
Yikes...I really am like the worst blogger ever. I even included my blog in my Christmas letter this year (with a warning that it's rarely updated) - and I haven't posted a single thing since before that letter went out.
So...right now I'm stuck in the airport in Paris, waiting for a flight to Serbia. Crazy, huh? You don't know the half of it. I was supposed to be doing all of this yesterday.
Here's the story, morning-glory: I made it safe & sound all the way to Chicago, where I was supposed to catch my next flight. Being the naive first-time International traveller that I am, I was completely oblivious to the fact that you catch Air France flights in a completely different terminal. Instead of high-kicking it over there, I ate some McDonalds, surfed the net (it's crazily expensive in airports, peeps - I'm being self-indulgent and it has to stop), and responsibly checked the flight boards for my gate assignment. By the time I was freaked out enough to ask someone, I had about half an hour to get all the way to another terminal, hurry through security, and run to the gate...
...to find out I had just missed the final boarding call.
Commence the horror of having to get my flight re-routed. Air France said to go to the ticket counter, so that's what I did...and no one was there. One phone call later and I was dragging around about a hundred pounds of luggage (mostly clothes and chocolate) to another terminal and checking at the Delta ticket counter. Delta told me to talk to my booking service, who then told me I had to talk to Delta again. At this point about three hours have passed.
What's a girl to do? Apparently you need evil witch facilities to get your flight re-routed promptly...and I'm sorely lacking in them, I think. I cried. I called my mom. And my sister & brother-in-law. I paid the ridiculous airport internet fee and skyped. I cried some more. I spent an hour on the phone with three different Delta agents (who were all lovely and responded well to my distraught pleas for assistance) who managed to get me re-routed with only a day of travel time lost. Kathleen, Sue, and Kathy: you saved the day!
To my awesome sister Jess: thanks for booking me a hotel that night. Crashing into bed hasn't felt that good in a long time.
My first International flight was spent attempting to sleep. You get a pillow that looks like it came from a doll hospital (it works surprisingly well) and a blanket which resembles a sarong made out of T-shirt cloth. Cozy. Fabulously, however, there was an empty seat between me and the other person in my row - yay for a place to dump all the junk you don't really need to bring with you on a plane! Also, it was a nice place for elbows.
Dinner was lovely (a sort of unidentifiable mass of pasta, pesto, and cheese - but it was tasty); breakfast was swallowed quickly enough that it didn't have to be tasted (it involved an egg).
My only other comment for now is that I'm surprised at how cold I am. The flight was cold; the airport is cold - and I'm wearing a wool coat. The oncology nurse in me briefly suggests that maybe I'm going to spike a temp...not likely, but that's one of the first things that came to mind. ; )
So...right now I'm stuck in the airport in Paris, waiting for a flight to Serbia. Crazy, huh? You don't know the half of it. I was supposed to be doing all of this yesterday.
Here's the story, morning-glory: I made it safe & sound all the way to Chicago, where I was supposed to catch my next flight. Being the naive first-time International traveller that I am, I was completely oblivious to the fact that you catch Air France flights in a completely different terminal. Instead of high-kicking it over there, I ate some McDonalds, surfed the net (it's crazily expensive in airports, peeps - I'm being self-indulgent and it has to stop), and responsibly checked the flight boards for my gate assignment. By the time I was freaked out enough to ask someone, I had about half an hour to get all the way to another terminal, hurry through security, and run to the gate...
...to find out I had just missed the final boarding call.
Commence the horror of having to get my flight re-routed. Air France said to go to the ticket counter, so that's what I did...and no one was there. One phone call later and I was dragging around about a hundred pounds of luggage (mostly clothes and chocolate) to another terminal and checking at the Delta ticket counter. Delta told me to talk to my booking service, who then told me I had to talk to Delta again. At this point about three hours have passed.
What's a girl to do? Apparently you need evil witch facilities to get your flight re-routed promptly...and I'm sorely lacking in them, I think. I cried. I called my mom. And my sister & brother-in-law. I paid the ridiculous airport internet fee and skyped. I cried some more. I spent an hour on the phone with three different Delta agents (who were all lovely and responded well to my distraught pleas for assistance) who managed to get me re-routed with only a day of travel time lost. Kathleen, Sue, and Kathy: you saved the day!
To my awesome sister Jess: thanks for booking me a hotel that night. Crashing into bed hasn't felt that good in a long time.
My first International flight was spent attempting to sleep. You get a pillow that looks like it came from a doll hospital (it works surprisingly well) and a blanket which resembles a sarong made out of T-shirt cloth. Cozy. Fabulously, however, there was an empty seat between me and the other person in my row - yay for a place to dump all the junk you don't really need to bring with you on a plane! Also, it was a nice place for elbows.
Dinner was lovely (a sort of unidentifiable mass of pasta, pesto, and cheese - but it was tasty); breakfast was swallowed quickly enough that it didn't have to be tasted (it involved an egg).
My only other comment for now is that I'm surprised at how cold I am. The flight was cold; the airport is cold - and I'm wearing a wool coat. The oncology nurse in me briefly suggests that maybe I'm going to spike a temp...not likely, but that's one of the first things that came to mind. ; )
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Winter Approaching...
I have to say again...I stink at blogging. Waaaay back when I was a college freshman, I made entries on an almost daily basis (old blog still exists, but will not be revealed!). I'd really like to get into the habit, what with heading off to Singapore next year.
For now though, I'm still in Wisconsin, and the holidays are sneaking up on me. My family is getting together for Thanksgiving - I'm so glad I have off!! I volunteered to bring a cheese plate - we'll see if my cheese arranging skills are on par with the fruit-arranging abilities.
Tonight I got a head-start on my Christmas baking - I don't want to miss out this year! Next year I'll most likely be abroad during the hols, and apparently baking isn't all that common in Singapore - so best to enjoy it now! I tried a new recipe (Chocolate Mint Chip cookies) and one of my favorites - Russian teacakes/Mexican wedding cakes/whatever-you-want-to-call-them.
I've also been on a sock-knitting spree...right now I'm working on a pair for my dad that MUST be done by Christmas. They've been in progress for...well...over a year. I can't even remember when I bought the yarn, which is really bad.
That reminds me - there's now a yarn shop in M-field! Bummer that I really shouldn't buy anymore yarn. My mom and I were talking about the vast amounts of yarn and how that's going to work with travelling - the best route would probably be to choose a few projects and pack together the pattern, needles, and yarn for each.
For now though, I'm still in Wisconsin, and the holidays are sneaking up on me. My family is getting together for Thanksgiving - I'm so glad I have off!! I volunteered to bring a cheese plate - we'll see if my cheese arranging skills are on par with the fruit-arranging abilities.
Tonight I got a head-start on my Christmas baking - I don't want to miss out this year! Next year I'll most likely be abroad during the hols, and apparently baking isn't all that common in Singapore - so best to enjoy it now! I tried a new recipe (Chocolate Mint Chip cookies) and one of my favorites - Russian teacakes/Mexican wedding cakes/whatever-you-want-to-call-them.
I've also been on a sock-knitting spree...right now I'm working on a pair for my dad that MUST be done by Christmas. They've been in progress for...well...over a year. I can't even remember when I bought the yarn, which is really bad.
That reminds me - there's now a yarn shop in M-field! Bummer that I really shouldn't buy anymore yarn. My mom and I were talking about the vast amounts of yarn and how that's going to work with travelling - the best route would probably be to choose a few projects and pack together the pattern, needles, and yarn for each. We'll see if I actually manage to be that disciplined.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Accidental?
Edit (24 Aug 09): So apparently I made a completely blank entry by mistake a few days ago. Huh.
Life continues. The last month involved a few day trips to see friends, a day spent at the Minnesota Zoo, and various odds and ends. I have pictures, but am too lazy to post them. This last weekend my family had a back-to-school cookout involving a grilled turkey, s'mores, and deep-fried twinkies. I don't entirely understand it, but my family seems entirely unable to just eat twinkies. A few Easters ago, we decorated them to look like Easter eggs...and then blew one up with a mini-firework. A total twinkie-smearing fight resulted. The deep fried ones were edible, but intensely sweet and kind of sickening, really. I suggest lots of Cool Whip.
Life continues. The last month involved a few day trips to see friends, a day spent at the Minnesota Zoo, and various odds and ends. I have pictures, but am too lazy to post them. This last weekend my family had a back-to-school cookout involving a grilled turkey, s'mores, and deep-fried twinkies. I don't entirely understand it, but my family seems entirely unable to just eat twinkies. A few Easters ago, we decorated them to look like Easter eggs...and then blew one up with a mini-firework. A total twinkie-smearing fight resulted. The deep fried ones were edible, but intensely sweet and kind of sickening, really. I suggest lots of Cool Whip.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
2+ Months?!
So yeah...I'm a horrible blogger. I think about blogging a lot, but don't actually do it. I'm always thinking, "Hmm, I don't want to post about stupid boring stuff" or "I'm going to have to take some pictures or something".
But anyway, plenty has happened since I last posted. The important stuff:
My kid sister Jamie graduated. This sort of freaks me out because we're seven years apart and it makes me feel OLD. Cripes, by the time Josie graduates I'll be ready to get behind the wheel of a mini-van. Jamie's party was a blast: it was awesome to chat with a bunch of people I haven't seen for years. I made her a scrapbook and a college survival kit as gifts, but haven't got decent pics of either.
Birthday parties! Both my dad and my brother-in-law turned another year older back in June. Jess made B a super-delicious cake...you know, the kind that necessitates eating more than one slice. Trust me on this one.
Speaking of cake, I tested out a yummy white chocolate cheesecake recipe the other week:
Okay, so the picture only shows off my killer skills in arranging fruit. The cheesecake itself was a little tricky but not too hard to make and had a really nice, mild flavor. If you want the recipe, shoot me an email (does anyone even read this thing anyway?).
Other unimportant things:
*I went to the dentist. I kind of like the dentist, because it makes me secretly giddy to be told that I'm doing a good job with flossing and whatever.
*I actually got to watch 4th of July fireworks. I forgot how much I love them.
*My hair has turned weird again. I swear, I think its purpose is to make my life more complicated. I'm probably going to regret posting this picture, but this is what it looks like if I leave it to its own devices:
Yeah, all those stories about the wonders of naturally wavy hair...umm, they don't apply to me. Luckily, I own a flat-iron. 
*Take note that I've followed magazine advertisement protocol and have made sure my expression in Photo #1 is totally unnatural.
But anyway, plenty has happened since I last posted. The important stuff:
My kid sister Jamie graduated. This sort of freaks me out because we're seven years apart and it makes me feel OLD. Cripes, by the time Josie graduates I'll be ready to get behind the wheel of a mini-van. Jamie's party was a blast: it was awesome to chat with a bunch of people I haven't seen for years. I made her a scrapbook and a college survival kit as gifts, but haven't got decent pics of either.
Birthday parties! Both my dad and my brother-in-law turned another year older back in June. Jess made B a super-delicious cake...you know, the kind that necessitates eating more than one slice. Trust me on this one.
Speaking of cake, I tested out a yummy white chocolate cheesecake recipe the other week:
Okay, so the picture only shows off my killer skills in arranging fruit. The cheesecake itself was a little tricky but not too hard to make and had a really nice, mild flavor. If you want the recipe, shoot me an email (does anyone even read this thing anyway?).
Other unimportant things:
*I went to the dentist. I kind of like the dentist, because it makes me secretly giddy to be told that I'm doing a good job with flossing and whatever.
*I actually got to watch 4th of July fireworks. I forgot how much I love them.
*My hair has turned weird again. I swear, I think its purpose is to make my life more complicated. I'm probably going to regret posting this picture, but this is what it looks like if I leave it to its own devices:
Yeah, all those stories about the wonders of naturally wavy hair...umm, they don't apply to me. Luckily, I own a flat-iron. *Take note that I've followed magazine advertisement protocol and have made sure my expression in Photo #1 is totally unnatural.
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