Heading for Paris, France

Belushi's Bar n
St Christopher's Hostel

I finished out the week in London @ St Christophers, and decided that Paris would be next.

This idea was amplified after a suggestion from my German friend that I might be able to stay with his business colleague, on a houseboat on the River Seine :)


Unfortunately I fell ill - probably caused by to much partying, I was not 100% in Bath and deteriorated further. I went to stay my friends (Oli, Mat n Alex's) in Shebu for some down time.
After visiting a local Chinese Herbalist and getting some herbs, I spent the next week recovering on the couch, brewing some great tasting tea (lol - not)
NB: having been to a Chinese Herbalist before and contrary to popular belief this actually works :) and prevents the need for me to take antibiotics unnecessarily (it is just the taste which is controversial).

Some graf near Brick Lane

During this time I caught up with my cousin and his partner (Duncan and Elise - currently living in London) and my 2nd cousin (Chris Waitt who lives in London *check the link for Chris... DO IT!!). We went and had some Indian in Brick Lane (which is famous for its curry house's).

It was good to catch up with some family, while so far from home :) I am still meaning to catch up with my Great Uncle who lives on the Isle of White but just not sure when I am going to do that yet!

No photos allowed
(may or may not be before some -
tunnel to France)

I left London for Paris via bus as it was the cheapest option @ only about £40. Taking an early bus I arrived about 7 hours later just in time to travel through peak hour traffic on the metro... this is always heaps of fun in any country esp. with all my bags :s

NB: I do actually have a great backpack as it also has wheels :) this has saved me having to carry around over 20kg's of luggage everywhere.

Entrance to the Houseboat

PARIS

After missioning it across Paris I finally got to my destination at Brimborion station, (after 3 different trains and through many, many people). Marc (Emil's business partner) had put me in contact with Nicolas another crew member (as he was not going to be there when I got in), and after a quick call to the boat he came out and met me...........I had arrived :)

There are 6 German students that live on the boat and I feel really honoured to be able to stay with them, they are all really cool people. I was welcomed into there floating house and made me feel at home, A BIG Thankyou to Marc, Nico, Romona, Florian, Marco and Sabine :)

Marie-Joséphine

The Marie-Josephine is a steel Freycinit style boat built in 1949. She is 38.82 metres long, 5.05 metres wide and can hold a capacity of 125 people. = freakin sweet :) I got a tour of her spacious living area, it is magic and still very authentic... I loved staying there.

A lot of the house -boats on the Seine have a history and at some point in the past was used commercially before converted into a functional living entities.

the best bed on the boat

The local shopping centre is 2 tram stops away, and I went to grab some supplies then settled in for the evening. I bought some French wine (of course) and a selection of random beers which I really enjoyed -> Labiere - 12% Urbock - 9% Maudite - 8% and my standard (while in Paris) Kronenbourg -4.2% (I actually did this a few times while in Paris - get some food, French wine and random beers :)

Upstairs room, n Kitchen

Since I have been traveling abroad I have met some amazing people, heard many a great story, and recive lots of helpful hints... (such as great hostels and cities worth visiting, phone applications, pubs to visit and places to eat etc.


This first hand info is invaluable and having my iphone on me to take notes has been a great asset while I have been on the road. I have been recording stuff straight into my phone, which then sinks with my email. Another great thing about my iphone has been the applications. Two inparticular have been extremely useful - CityMaps2GO, and Metro maps of the relevant cities.

Out the side of the Boat

This really came into its own while I was in Paris. I used the CityMaps2Go to pinpoint my destinations then line these up with nearby train stations, and use the Metro Maps to calculate the best possible train route, and it even gives you your travel time.

down stairs lounge area

I was able to do most of my sightseeing in two days from the help of these apps. The CityMaps2Go even uses your phone signal to tell you where you are on the map and which dicection you're facing = awesome - and this is without using any Data roaming.

Now when I arrived on the houseboat, only two members of the crew where present, and I was thus able to sleep the most amazing bed a converted rowboat/ bed for the first couple of nights. This was sick :) welcome to the high seas... lol (This was actually the captains bed - thanks Marc :)

authentic toilet n shower

Marc and the rest of the crew got home over the next few days and I moved to a double pull out couch downstairs for the remainder of the week.

<- The downstairs toilets on the boat where classic, no doors, and no shower curtain, very authentic :) Still there from her working days.

Out the front of the Louvre

My first full day was taken up with housekeeping issues, ie. trying to re-charge my 7pound phone (which has caused me lots of trouble) plus answering emails, and doing some blogging. I did make it out in the arvo and headed out to see some sights. I travelled over to the Belushi's Bar / St Christophers for some friends back at the SheBu, recieved a free beer and then headed to Le Louvre to meet Nicolas and his friend.

Arc De Triomphe du Carrousel, from Le Lourve

Le Louvre is a spectacular place. You can see the Arc De Triomphe du Carrosel from here which makes a great night shot. The Musée du Louvre is one of the biggest, and the most visited art museums in the world.

It is a historic monument and the central landmark of Paris.There are nearly 35,000 objects prehistory to the 19th century, over an area of 60,600 square metres.

Firstly we made our way to the Mona Lisa, (a must do), then spent the rest of the evening wandering around trying to take in the vast amount of history in the place, it is enormous.

There is soo much history in the Louvre, so many paintings and soo many statues sooo much to see, the building itself is a work of art. I only ended up doing the one trip but could have easily gone back many times. Apparently if you spent 30 seconds looking at every painting in the Louvre it would take you over 3 weeks -EPIC.

Winged Victory of Samothrace
in Le Louvre

more of Paris to come...........