Bilious Blog…around Europe in 80 days #3

Paris is known as the City of Lights or the City of Love depending on which Wiki entry you choose to believe and to be fair it does  have a lot of lights and I’m guessing it has a  fair amount of luuurrve but I’m proposing a new pen name.; Paris.The City of Zebra bloody Crossings…they’re everywhere it seems.I’m guessing many moons ago the town planners brother in law had a surfeit of whitewash and was told to go nuts…it’s no less credible than many of the contracts handed out to friends & family by our present government in the UK…

Just had a gentle bit of piss taking by the young girl at the breakfast bar.I said my go to French words “Bonjour” & “Merci” and she said “ oh you speak French” then rattled off  a sentence in French and just looked at my uncomfortable face for a couple of seconds before a wink & beautiful smile( I must add for context we’d spoken the day before and built up a bit of rapport) all good fun and one I am game for….hotel breakfast buffet bars are strange places.On the first day I am walking around dazed & confused  with an empty tray like an extra from One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest cos’ I don’t have a scooby where anything is.The next day I stride in like The Wolf of Wall Street confident i now own all this shit cos’ I worked out where the butter is and how to use the coffee machine…

Using the metro a lot as you’d imagine.I like it,not been on a train yet where I have got a seat as it always seems pretty full.The stations are fascinating,not the platforms as they seem pretty standard but the exits & walkthroughs which are a hotch botch of winding tunnels & stairs( so many stairs!) Unlike the Berlin U-Bahn with It’s straight lines & uniformity…have seen a lot of fare dodgers too,been tailgated twice myself but by far the most impressive was the young mother in front of me with her nipper in a buggy who lifted it over and climbed under the turnstiles herself.Bravo…not that I’m condoning such things of course…

Paris is generally seen as expensive and as with most things it’s depending on what you do whilst here and of course it’s all relative.Personally my needs are very simple.Have a drink,simple food from shops etc.I rarely push the boat out cos’ I just enjoy the ambiance of being in certain places.For instance I have just had three cafe noirs in a little place in the city centre for less than €8 all nice and relaxed writing this(no doubt the coffee shakes will kick in later) The most I have paid for a drink is €6 last night in Place de la Republique.So bargains can be found…I suppose living in London has conditioned me to think €6 for a pint is reasonable!

The owner of the cafe I’m in seems to know everyone who passes by and it’s a nice thing to witness…oh and it’s raining again.Looks like I bought our glorious summer over the channel with me…

This is my last full day here and despite all the bad press Paris gets I think it’s an ok place.Even with my rudimentary French I have not come across any shitty attitude from the natives,just smiles & a willingness to engage…I will come again definitely.

Until tomorrow then…