Paris for a day

The long lines at immigration as Europe rolls out a new fingerprint recognition system never materialised. Mainly because they didn't do it.

The usual struggle with getting a new sim card to work always happens but I think we kept it to under 45 minutes this time. 

We got ourselves on the correct trains, got off at the correct station and dumped our bags at a small shop to store just after 11am (love Stasher and Nannybag apps!).

Then it was off to our Parisian nemesis, Notre Dame.

Since its extremely inconvenient burning down, we have tried many times to get inside, and always failed. Today we tried again.

For those avid readers from the past who have been saddened by our continuing failed searches to find Hard Rock Cafes, you will realise that getting into this church has presented the same problems.

But the rain that had our plane skidding on the runway earlier had returned. It was cold and wet, but we soldiered on and finally got to go inside.

Was it worth the wait? Nope. Sorry but I'm not sure it makes my top 10.

And just a quick note to the Catholic Church. The place has burned down once, yet you continue with this practice:

For those of you in the betting pool, the result was 11:22am on day 1.

We stopped by a Maccas to get our caffeine fix, although the 3 flavoured teas that were on the menu did not please the Editor. If you ever offer her tea, don't mention Earl Grey or the wrath of the tea Gods will come down heavily on tea cups of the world.

We collected our bags and started the 5 minute walk back to the station that had delivered us. Of course this event was met by cold rain. I will use this platform to grade the $49.99 rain jacket purchase from Anaconda 2 weeks ago. I really should do a review.

I had a sneaking suspicion we were at the wrong station, but just for fun I carried 2 brick-laden suitcases down, and then up the stairs. In our defence, there were a considerable number of similarly confused suitcase people in the area.

Back out into the deteriorating elements we went and way down over yonder we saw what appeared to be the correct station. Same name, different location. 

We arrived with an hour to spare, got on the correct train and sped off through the countryside to Bordeaux.

Outside we were met, after a 200 metre walk in the rain, by Jeremy and off we went through quite small streets that I don't feel were made for cars, and arrived at our home away from home. 

Emma was cautiously happy to see us until I got to hold her, at which time it was off to bed for her. 

A giant rissole between tomato (I imagine that's not what it's called in France), black rice and salad followed by a really nice cake and then to sleep at 11pm on the dot, because that's what the timeshifter app said to do.

The flights

Some outstanding meals with the ginger chicken breakfast on the last flight being the best choice. 

This was, however, my favourite - pepper chicken bar buns.

There was a lot of turbulence, but as I say, in the air nobody can hear you fart.

I slept when I was supposed to but Garmin, always criticising me, told me my 3h40m sleep was poor.

I tried some movies but couldn't get into anything, so listened to podcasts on my new Bluetooth eye mask. (Note to self - do not accidentally put this mask in the washing machine).

The Korean girls, all in platform shoes, at Changi airport amused me, and I got rid of some Singapore dollars from the past on the most sugary sweet red Fanta in the history of soft drinks.

Kudos to the pilot on the wet Paris runway as we skidded to a halt before disembarking from the plane onto a bus in the cold rain.

Timeshifter

Timeshifter is an app that helps you beat jet lag. There are highly caffeinated sections, living in the dark or needing bright lights and staying up late nights. It starts a few days before departure and finishes a day after arrival. Getting onto a flight and not heading straight to the movies, while having a nap straight away at 3 in the afternoon is tough.

But I slept ok on the shorter 7 hour flight and the longer 13 hour marathon. 

It's almost 4pm and I'm on a train about to leave from Paris to Bordeaux. I feel really good. Give it a try people, but beware, you only get one free use of the app.

Prelude

Let's go way back to that moment in January when we decided that living in a 2 storey house was not going to cut it in the future.

Three months of constant packing, disposing of junk, dismantling of an entire 7 piece wardrobe set, of constant back pain, moving into a smaller fully furnished house with all of our furniture and boxes and boxes of "stuff".

The people of Wattle Grove helped by taking lots of free stuff off our hands.

Good thing that last year we booked a holiday.

Of course the next problem was finding what we needed to take on the holiday. Finding clothes was an adventure, one that will be concluded when I find the black pair of pants that I had put aside for the cruise (turns out I had found blue pants but in the darkness of where I put them, I mistakenly took them as black).

Somehow we managed to get packed, and on our way we went ... and then halfway to the station on Heathcote Rd, I realised my phone was not with me. 

Somehow we still got back home and to the station in time for the 11:19 train to the airport.

Time for the holiday to begin.