Ordy Boy and I left Atlanta Sunday night around 9 p.m. My bag came in at 68 lbs and we had to pay $150 extra weight charge! Ordy's bag came in at 49- he just got lucky... they would've charged him $150 too if it was 51lbs. We picked up some adaptors and converters so we could charge our appliances, and of course my hair straightener. I decided the easiest way to have my hair would be straight so we made sure we got the right tools to be able to use it abroad...
We got to Paris around 5 a.m. Atlanta time Monday (1 p.m. Paris) and got to the hotel at 8:30 a.m. We stood in line for hours (between Customs lines and the line to get a taxi)! We finally got to the hotel and could do nothing but pass out into mini comas. After a three hour nap, Ordy's coworker Ashook called our room and invited us down for dinner/show us around. Since I only HALF STRAIGHTENED my hair in Atlanta (because Ordy was such a last minute packer) and was incredibly rushed, I assumed I could just straighten my hair here... I plugged in the converter, adaptor, and my straightener and within 5 minutes the lights in the room were flickering and I heard a POP! crackling noise. I looked to the adaptor and noticed thick black/grey smoke coming from the outlet. Great. So there goes any hope of straight hair. Hopefully, I didn't mess up my straightener (because it's amazing...) and didn't blow out the converter (because it was $50). I guess we can only find out later in America.
We're staying at Le Pera Hotel in Madeleine Square- it's absolutely gorgeous. So much activity going on. There are so many shops and outdoor cafe's I feel like I'm in heaven!!! The three of us walked to dinner taking the long way to Rue St. Germaine and cut through the Louvre and the gorgeous park. Everyone seems so laid back and relaxed, just like how I remembered. My dad would sit at the patisserie with me and say, "In America, we live to work... here, they work to live." At the time I was in college thinking, whatever that means, Confucius. But for some reason two years later it actually clicked. I get it. I love the lifestyle here. I could definitely live here.
Dinner took forever because of this "relaxed" mentality. It took us 2 hours to eat and we all ordered simple sandwiches. It shows how rushed the Americans were. We were antsy waiting for our food, antsy waiting for the server when he was no where to be found, and antsy to get and pay our bill. I had to literally make myself have the mentality of a Parisian. I sat and enjoyed the night. The weather is absolutely gorgeous, 75 degrees. I am so blessed to be here in the summertime again. We took the 2 mile walk back to the hotel and noticed it was 10:30 p.m. before it got dark, and when we got to the hotel it was 11:30 and the streets were still packed with people in the restaurants and picnic-goers by the river. I love how everyone takes time to just enjoy life! I am so thankful to be here with Ordy Boy, even though I would have LOVED to have my family here with me! Just another excuse to come back...
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