.: 16th April 2003
My flight
was with Iberian Airways. Take off and landing were a bit
….different, not as stable as some of the bigger airlines. The
meals were spanish which was good too.
Came into
Sevilla airport and went straight through customs. I picked up a city
map and guide from the tourism bureau and then it hit me where I was. I
was in a foreign country, by myself, can hardly speak the language and I
have no other option but to take a taxi to my hostel as my bags are
fucking heavy and pissing me off. I went outside and found it was still
quite light, considering it was
I stood around for
awhile checking my map to find where my hostel was. I had looked at
another map back home so I knew where it was but this map had the city
situated at a different angle so it was a bit harder to find. The hostel
was on a tiny alley which did not help either. I stood around a bit more
hoping one of the taxi drivers would ask if I needed a taxi. I
eventually walked over to a group of them and one offered to take me. He
would not speak a lot of English, furthermore he did not know the street
I was telling him. In the end he gave me a street directory as his eyes
were not that good. I finally found it and pointed it out. Now to
overcome the next hurdle, because of the Semana Santa processions there
would be a lot of road closures. We eventually got it all sorted out and
we were soon on our way. The sun was just setting and the horizon became
a gorgeous red/purple/pink. After a while of silence the driver started
pointing out things of interest to me and we were soon chatting (well
attempting to) like old friends. He had to drop me off a few streets
away because of the road blocks. The ride cost me €20 but I really
didn’t care. My new friend helped me with my backpack and pointed me in
the right direction.
The streets were
full of people and it was a bit disorientating. I’m sure the taxi guy
said to go down this certain alley and then turn left about 3 alleys
down heh. I kept on walking down the larger alley looking down the
smaller alleys that came off it. I had to stop every so often to allow
the blood to flow back into my hands from the bloody heavy plastic bag!!
I vowed to buy a suitcase before I left Sevilla.
I eventually saw the
sign saying “Hostel Lis II” for the hostel down one of the smaller
alleys. I was so glad to find it. There were two doors to get through to
get inside and the guy on reception rushed over to opent the second door
for me once he saw all the luggage I was stumbling in with. The guy was
actually alright too. Youngish, not bad looking.
I was so relieved to
find my reservation was still on their books. I had heard of places
‘losing’ reservations especially during high time like Semana Santa. I
was given my key and told my room was on the second floor. I somehow
carried everything up there up the narrow staircases.
My room was
quite small and quant. I think it used to be a bathroom as it was tiled
in that chequered black and white pattern. There was a basin, two tables
and chair and a bed complete with homely
I then had a
look through all the souvenirs I had bought. Unfortunately the Heineken
glass in the Heineken tin had smashed along with one of my shot glasses
from
I eventually went to
bed. My room had a window overlooking the reception area and all the
noise from downstairs came straight through the window. The bed was
quite comfy, the pillow was one of those long flat European ones though.
It’s not
different, it’s just
.: 17th April 2003
Decided to
sleep in this morning. I was in a new country where they didn’t speak
English and my knowledge of the city was basic. My list for today
included a wander over to the Cathedral and a lookie in the Reale
Alcazar which was right next to it. After a breakfast of Berocca and
chocolate again, I set off. Most of the shops were closed because it was
Easter week. But all the souvenir shops were open. I found a main street
and decided to follow it. It came out onto an area called Plaza Nueva,
this reset my orientation as I knew where most things were from here. I
headed to an area where it seemed they were setting up barricades and
chairs along a street which I assumed were for the processions later
that evening. That road let up to the Cathedral which is the 3rd
largest in the world after St. Pauls in
Throughout the day I had seen these Spanish women wearing plain black dresses with these tortoiseshell hair pieces and a black lace veil over it. They looked gorgeous and I wanted to get one.
I started taking some photos of the Cathedral across the road. When I went to cross the road a lady came up to me and gave me a sprig of rosemary. Now I know a lot of the scams that take place in scam, but my initial reaction was to take it. In a moment of stupidness I figured that she was from the Church and the rosemary had some religious significance, as it was Easter. But she then grabbed my hand and started reading my palm. I told her repeatedly that I didn’t understand Spanish and even tried the old “No hablo Español” but she wasn’t listening. She finally finished and put her hand out for money. The whole time I had my other hand on my wallet in my pocket and been concentrating on feeling if anyone was tampering with my backpack. She asked for any spare change. I told her again, I don’t speak Spanish! She then got a bit narky but I walked off anyway. Some others tried the same thing as I walked around the Cathedral but I put my sunnies on and ignored them. I wandered around to a side of the church that had an entrance. A lot of people were gathered around going in and out. I watched and made sure that other tourists were going in as well. I then went in. The guard at the door pointed to my camera and said something en Español so I figured he had told me not to take any photographs. I nodded and went in.
Inside was absolutely huge with massive
sky-high ceilings. It was divided into separate areas with the main
altar and pews in the middle.
Most people were there for worship and
they were allowed to go through to the area with the pews. I went up a
side area that had some interesting architecture. I pulled out my really
small digital camera and started taking some discreet photos. I later
saw some other people taking photos but without the flash. I assumed use
of flash was prohibited but that you could still take normal photos, so
I brought out my bigger SLR camera and snapped away.
Back outside I stood around for a while
taking it all in. I really was huge and covered in intricate detail. I
love Arabic influenced architecture so I really like Sevilla as a lot of
the southern area of Spain used to be under Moorish rule.
From there I went to go have a look at
the Reale Alcazar, an old Moorish palace. It was just across the square
from the Cathedral but it took me awhile to find the proper entrance.
Inside I wandered through a small section
of garden that was quite nice. What I did not realise was that it was
actually a courtyard and tiny in comparison to the rest of the place.
The Palace itself was quite big but it was the lavish gardens that I
really liked. They were huge, at least 3-4 times the size of the Palace.
The building itself was a maze of
hallways connecting various rooms and courtyards. Each time you turned a
corner, you would be greeted with various fountains, ponds or paved
courtyards lined with roses and other flowers. The rooms inside were
detailed in gold leaf and had huge chandeliers hanging. The décor and
furniture showed that these guys had money!
I tried to make sure I looked in every
room but I know I missed about half of it. I ended up in the main garden
outside which was like a huge park with different areas. I spent a good
few hours just looking around before finally leaving.
I was starving by this stage as I it was late afternoon and I had only had my Berocca and piece of chocolate for breakfast. I headed towards the Barrio de Santa Cruz area that is basically a maze of narrow alleys lined with shops, houses and restaurants. There are no cars but the area it covers is quite big. Very easy to get lost in though.
I figured that if
I travelled in a square that I would eventually end up back near the
Cathedral. So for the next few hours I poked around in the alleys having
a look in all the souvenir shops. First place I stopped at, I bought
some castanets, a bull fight poster and a Semana Santa figurine. I then
went in search for some lunch/dinner. I went into what best resembled a
deli/café. I just wanted to be able to point a something I recognised. I
had come to the conclusion that no one speaks English here. Not that I
had expected them to be fluent, but I had hoped that they would know a
few basic words. It’s my fault though, not theirs, it just made things a
bit harder as I was not confident in speaking the Spanish I knew.
I saw a ham and
cheese roll, otherwise known as a Jambon de York, so I pointed at that
and then asked for a Tropical juice which they had displayed in the
fridge. The girl did not understand ‘tropical’ even though that is what
it said on the drink box. She finally figured it out and said “oooooh
Tropicale”. I’m just like “Oh for Christs sake!” I went to sit down at
one of the tables and the girl asked that I’d need a plate if I sat
there. I asked if it would cost me more. It did, so I got up to leave
but the girl must have seen the look of weariness and disappointment on
my face so she motioned for me to sit back down with a sympathetic look
on her face. No one else was in the place anyway. I quickly ate my roll
and left. At the next souvenir shop I bought a stuffed toy bull, some
fans, a tortoiseshell hairpiece and a black shawl with red embroidery.
I eventually came
back to the Cathedral area where a crowd had now gathered. I spotted a
few Nazareno’s wandering around so I knew the Semana Santa processions
would begin soon. Basically every Easter in highly catholic countries,
people gather to take part in processions so they can repent their sins
for that year. They dress up in robes with very tall hoods that cover
their faces. This is so people will not recognise their face and the
pointed hoods are so they won’t know how tall they are. They walk the
streets for hours carrying various religious paraphernalia likes huge
long church candles, wooden crosses, giant floats with effigy’s on them
surrounded by flowers, incense burners and church valuables.
The sides of the
streets were packed. I got a spot right alongside the Cathedral and
worked my way to the front. After awhile I could hear a band playing and
the first procession went past. Every so often a big religious float
would come through adorned with gold and lots of flowers. As they were
carried past, people would reach out and touch it. Being non-religious,
I thought it would be disrespectful if I did it, so I let some old
ladies who were behind me go in front each time the floats went past.
A lot of little kids
were at the front of the crowds all vying for the nazareno’s to pour the
wax from their huge candles on a wax ball the kids had created. They
would also hand out lollies and little religious cards to them. Various
church groups went past wearing various robes depicting their specific
church. Some wore all purple, or purple and white or black and white.
But the group I wanted to see wore all black which would look great at
night with all the candles. I stayed in that area watching for about 2
hours.
The groups then
finished coming out of the Cathedral so I made my way down the road to
find some more processions. Another group was passing the opposite side
of the Cathedral, down the road where they had set up all the chairs
earlier in the day. There was no chance of me getting a good viewing
position on that road so I wandered back past Plaza Nueva where I
watched another group for awhile before going back to the hostel to get
my video camera. Unfortunately the battery had run out and as I had lost
the recharger somewhere in Rome, I could not recharge them.
I went back out
anyway, but this time in the opposite direction. I was making my way
down a street when I heard a band playing. People started crowding the
sidewalk and I stopped where I was and secured my front row spot. Up the
street I saw the first of the all black Nazareno’s. This was the one I
had been waiting for. They looked awesome in their black robes and
especially evil as it was starting to get dark. I loaded my ISO800 speed
film so I could take photos without using my flash and annoying the
people. The floats that came past were gorgeous with hundreds of pillar
candles lit up at the front before the effigy of Mary.
At one stage I had
my digital camera out and a guy standing next to me said some in
Spanish, probably “Wow, small camera!” I just nodded and smiled.
I watched the entire
procession and then as the crowds dispersed I went looking for some
dinner. I found a vending machine that sold fruit juice so I bought a
few of those, but the café’s in the area were full of people and I
really did not want the hassle of having to try and get across what I
wanted. In the end I just went back to the Hostel, raided the last of my
chocolate bar and went to sleep.
.: 18th April 2003
This morning I went
down and surfed the net for awhile. I had made friends with the day
reception guy and he let me use the computers for free or at a cheaper
rate. I think he liked the company because I’d talk to him while I was
down there. From what I gathered he had a son or daughter who lived in
Sydney so he was really interested in Australia. He was probably the
only person I had a proper conversation with in Sevilla.
I tried phoning the
Spanish Train company – RENFE, the same place I was trying to find at
Victoria Station in London so I could book my overnight train to
Barcelona. The phone at the hostel wasn’t working properly so I went to
the pay phone outside. I finally got through only to find that the train
was fully booked which I kind of knew would happen anyway, but I still
had a mini freak out anyway. After composing myself I went back to the
hostel and booked a flight online. I also rang up the hotel I had booked
in Barcelona and requested another night. After I was organised I
settled down and called Kirsty. I needed to talk to someone who I could
talk to properly. I only got about a minute of talking as the phone ate
my money pretty quickly.
Afterwards I went
for a stroll to get some lunch. I stopped at a café around the corner
which had stuff I could point to. I spotted a chicken and salad sandwich
so I went up and ordered a Sandwich de Pollo, pronouncing it
exactly how it looks. The guy didn’t understand though! I said it again.
Pollo! Chicken! But he still didn’t get it. I was not going to flap my
arms like a chicken and squawk! I eventually I pointed at it and he’s
like “ooooh blah blah”. I could not understand how he got that word from
Pollo but apparently, after I asked the reception guy later, it is in
fact pronounced in a completely different way.
I didn’t really get
up to much that day just basically happy I was on my way to Barcelona
the next day.
I did go out later to get some dinner. Reception guy told me there was a Burger King somewhere in the area. I was ecstatic that I would be able to get a real meal, well somewhat so compared to what I had been eating the last few days.
.: 19th April 2003
Today the
shops are finally open! I had a flight to Barcelona at 1:45pm,
and as the shops opened at 10am, I only had about 1 ½ hours to
have a quick shop.
Top priority on my
list was to buy a suitcase. I was not carrying around those plastic bags
any longer!
The day before I
found where all the department stores were. I headed to a place called
Ingles Carte. This store was very similar to Myers. I had a look through
their luggage section, but the cheapest I could find was a suitcase on
special from €90 to €60. I decided to check out some other places first.
I went down a nearby alley to another shop I have seen the previous day.
This one was a shop I had been to in London. I had a look around but
everything was pretty plain. Just before I left though, I checked out
the specials rack and found a gorgeous satin ball gown skirt with a
beaded train. It was only €27 down from €100. I quickly tried it on and
it fitted perfectly. I bought it. I’ll probably never wear it but hey
for that price!
After looking in a
few more shops for luggage I decided that I would have to go back to
Ingles Carte and pay the extra. At least it was probably good quality. I
really wanted to get a hard top one so I could put all my bottles and
steins in it, but they were really expensive. On my way out I also
picked up a book on Holy Week. It’s just too hard to explain to people
that they are not Ku Klux Klan processions. Now I can just throw them
this book to read.
Back at the Hostel I
repacked everything and then checked out. It took me three trips to get
everything downstairs. I then carried them back to Ingles Carte as there
was a taxi rank out the front. Again the taxi driver could not speak
English so I pulled a random word out of my head and said “Aeropuerto”
which apparently is right and he understood.
At the airport they
had a self serve restaurant so I quickly got a meal of water, chips and
Jambon de York roll.
I was soon on my way
to Barcelona!
Again the flight was
a bit bumpy, especially the landing but at least it was a quick 1 hour
flight.
At Barcelona airport
I decided to be a snob and catch a taxi again. With all my luggage I was
not attempting public transport. Next time I travel, all I am taking is
a pair of jeans and a few tops. This is ridiculous.
My Barca taxi driver
was comparatively young but I gathered he did not speak a lot of
English. I sat in the back by myself for a while. He had on the radio
some Arab/Indian music. He finally commented that he didn’t usually
listen to this music, but that it was something like a European version
of Ministry. It was some big long concert with this stuff stuck in the
middle. I told him that I liked that kind of music when it is mixed with
a club beat. He agreed and we started a conversation about all the music
we liked. He turned out to be pretty cool.
He dropped me off
right outside my hotel which was a nice change. When I checked in the
guy said that I would have to change rooms the following night as it was
the only one available for that night and someone had already booked the
room for the next night. I didn’t care, I was just happy to get a room
at such short notice. The hotel was called Nuevo Triunfo and it was
about 700m from Las Ramblas – the main drag in Barcelona. I was paying
about the same rate as I did in Sevilla but this place was much better.
Firstly it had a lift. It also had a TV, private ensuite and all other
things that make it comfy. I went upstairs and flaked out. I decided to
just stay in that night. I had bought some stuff at Sevilla airport so I
had that for dinner along with a drink from the vending machine
downstairs. I turned on the TV to find Lord of the Rings on. Except it
was in Spanish. I though this was hilarious so I watched it. I even
SMS’d Kirsty to tell her of my find.
.: 20th April 2003
I
studied the map of the city that the guy at reception had given me.
First stop today was definitely Sagrada Familia. One of the main reasons
for coming to Barcelona. There was a metro station around the corner
which was handy. It also had a direct line to the Cathedral. I went and
bought an all-day pass after finally figuring out how the machine
worked. I then put the ticket in the turnstile but the bar would not
move. After a few tries I realised it was stoopid and that you had to
bump the bar first and then go through. That was probably not the way to
make it work but it did it for me.
I had
planned to be more aware of my belongings in Barcelona after everything
I had heard. But I felt pretty safe most of the time. It probably helped
that I could have passed for being Spanish. I decided to see how I went
and kept a keyring on my backpack zips and also took out all the cards I
did not need out of my wallet and left them in my room. I also kept my
bag in front of me on the subway with a firm grip at all times.
As I
came out of the station I turned around and was greeted with an awesome
site. The Templia de Sagrada Familia stood right before me looking like
a big, giant, melting, icecream cone. I loved it!
The
Sagrada Familia was designed by Antoni Gaudi in the late 1800’s. He died
in the 1920’s when he was hit by a tram. He had gone a bit crazy by then
and even used to wash himself with cornflakes. When he was taken to
hospital, no one recognised him and he died shortly after. His designs
are like no one else and can be found all over the city. I intended to
see most of them. This Cathedral though was his most famous design but
unfortunately it’s not even finished. When he died he did not leave any
plans and so it was pretty much guesswork after that. They are still
finishing it off today and don’t plan to complete it for a very long
time.
I went
through a park first which was situated by a small lake in front of the
Cathedral. I had a quick look around before I took out my camera, but
there were only families around and little kid playing in a playground
nearby. I took a couple of shots and walked through the park to the
Cathedral. Stalls lined the opposite side of the road. I went and had a
look. Lots of different to get later. The Cathedral was very interesting
to look at, nothing in the world compares to it’s intricate details.
People were going inside but I decided that I wouldn’t as the line was
pretty long. I guess I should of because you would probably get really
good views from up there. I walked around to the back, or was it the
front?, of the Cathedral. This side had flying buttresses and carved
effigys and stuff. This side also had markets and I picked up a bottle
opener, spoons, a shoulder wrap and some other little things.
For
lunch I went to KFC across the road. While there I wrote out some
postcards to send to some people. After that I took the Metro up to
Diagonal which is at the top of Passeig de Gracia. I walked down to Casa
Mila, another Gaudi design. This building was an apartment block with a
very interesting exterior and roof. The outside had balconies which were
made to look like waves rippling across the side. I walked down a little
further and stopped at Casa Batlo, again Gaudi. These apartments had a
similar design to Casa Mila but it was painted a lovely blue and had
mosaic on it. It was here that I had a close look at the pavement which
I now noticed had a cool swirly pattern on it. So I took a photo. I
continued down the road checking out the designer stores which lined the
avenue. At one shop I saw this gorgeous white dress, I took a photo of
that too. Halfway down the road it started to lightly rain but I kept on
going. By the time I came to Placa de Catalunya it was pouring. I
quickly walked through, not only to get out of the rain but because
there were a few dodgy people in that area.
Placa
de Catalunya was at the top of the famous La Ramblas. It was still
raining but I was soaked so I continued my walk. I had already walked
halfway across the main city area and now made my way to the end, down
near the harbour. On the way I had a look through some markets and
stopped to watch a few scams, like the Mickey Mouse cut out that appears
to be dancing by itself in time to music played from a stereo nearby.
There is really a fine piece of string running from the stereo to a
nearby backpack. The vibrations make the cut out ‘dance’ on the string.
I later saw a crowd of people so of course I went to have a look. In the
middle was a guy with the old nut under a box scam. I stood back and
made bets with myself as to who the ‘associates’ of the scammer were.
It was quite fun to just sit and watch. I took a few subtle photos too.
At the
end of La Ramblas was a statue of Christopher Columbus who is at the top
of a huge column. He is supposed to be pointing to America (which for
the idiots, he discovered) but in fact he is actually pointing to Africa
hahaha.
Due to
the traffic, it took a bit of effort to make it across to the roundabout
in which Columbus was standing. Sitting around the base of the column
were other statues of people and lions. I made it across to the other
side of the road where there was a market. I poked around in there for a
bit. Just general knick-knacks and antiques. The funniest thing I saw
though was a board covered in uniform patches. On it was a WA Police
Force patch. I laughed hysterically.
I then
walked back to the hotel and went to bed.
.: 21th April 2003
Today I planned
to visit more Gaudi stuff. He designed this huge park at the
base of the mountains to the west of the city. I caught the
train up there and then started a long walk to the park. The
last stretch was 400m up a very steep hill. I was so glad it was
spring and not summer otherwise it would have been unbearable. I
finally reached the top and went inside. The place was pretty
cool. Everything was typical Gaudi, mosaics and weird designs
everywhere. I loved it. There were so many people though.
Walking up the steps near the entrance I completely missed the
famous mosaic lizard as it was covered in people getting their
photo taken. The place I liked the best was a sandy oval that
had great views of the city. The area was above a open air hall
area and held up by huge columns. I sat down on the famous
benches that you always see in the Barca tourism brochures and
watched a group of guys play soccer. I think it was soccer
anyway, or a similar version as they were doing all weird things
with it. But they were still amusing to watch. I walked around
for quite a while and then popped into the souvenir shop where I
bought a Gaudi book and some postcards. Back outside I attempted
to ring a hostel in Paris that I wanted to stay at. I couldn’t
get through though. Around the corner I found a deli. I was so
happy to see one because they are not as frequent as they are in
Australia. Inside I stocked up on water, juice, a roll, chips
and some other things to last me the rest of the time I was in
Barca.
I then made my way back
to the station and caught the train down to Las Ramblas. I got off
halfway down. I was looking for the Cathedral which is in the Barri
Gotic area. My map was not very detailed but after heading in the
general direction I found it. I stopped nearby to watch a street
performer who was doing all sorts of cool things. My favourite was the
crystal ball juggling like David Bowie in the Labyrinth. When he
finished I went over to the Cathedral. It was pretty and all but Sagrada
totally kicked its ass.
Out the front was
another street performer who was doing a living statue act. He was
dressed up in a funky jacket and painted bronze, on his back were huge
angel wings. He looked cool.
I then headed back to
Las Ramblas to look for a net place. I finally found one in a games
arcade. It was huge, computers everywhere! Brett was online so I talked
to him on MSN, it was good to finally have a proper conversation with
someone without having to speak a mixture of languages, even if it was
only typing. Afterwards I had a look at the markets on Las Ramblas. I
had seen a cool incense burner there the day before but by the time I
found the stall someone else had just bought it. Got dinner and then
went back to hotel and crashed.
.: 22th April 2003
Flew out to Paris this
morning. On the plane I sat next to this French chick who was going home
after staying in Valencia for awhile working at her boyfriends bar. She
didn’t speak much English and I didn’t speak much French but we figured
it out. She was trying to tell me where she was from saying that they
had a famous car race there. I finally figured out she was talking about
Le Mans!
During the flight a
little kid who was sitting on the opposite aisle to me puked up. It was
gross, but funny.
It was only a short 1
hour flight to Paris Orly. At the airport I rang the Aloha hostel on my
mobile as I could not get in touch with another hostel I had been
looking at. Fortunately they had plenty of beds so I jumped in a taxi
and was on my way.
The taxi guy got lost
but we soon found the hostel. I checked in but could not go to my room
as there was a curfew till 5pm. I sat around instead, went on the net
and wrote in my journal. At 5pm on the dot I collected my key and went
to my room. It seemed I was the first one in the room so I picked my bed
next to the window and made sure I got the nice blankets. There were no
pillows so I rolled one of the blankets up and covered it in my
sarong…voila…instant pillow! I slept for a little while but at about 8pm
there was a knock at the door. Now on the reservation form I was looking
at on the net, it asked if you were male or female, so I assumed that it
was same sex dorms, not that I cared. So it was a bit of a shock to find
a guy at my door, especially since I was wearing a pretty see-through
low shirt and no bra!
The guys name was
Michael and he was from New York. When he asked where I was from, I said
“ Perth, Western Australia ” (I always add the WA because I figure not
many people would know where it is). But he’s like “Oh my ex girlfriend
is from Perth!” How much coincidence!! Then when I told him I worked at
City Of Fremantle he’s like “Oh she works at City of Wanneroo!” Weird!
We stayed up and
chatted till about 11pm. He then asked if I wanted to go to dinner. I
told him I didn’t think anything would be open at this time of night. So
we went to bed instead.
I came to the
conclusion that this guy is pretty weird. He’s into all demon stuff and
martial arts and likes to show off. But at least I have someone to talk
too.
.: 23th April 2003
Since we were both only
in Paris for a whole day we decided to hang out together. I only had 3
things I wanted to tick off. Pere Lachais Cemetery, Sacre Couer and
Moulin Rouge. Michael wanted to see Pere Lachais too so that was our
first stop. The metro station was just around the corner which was
handy. Michael also had a stash of tickets so he gave me a few of those
to last the day.
The Cemetery was
absolutely gorgeous. I could have stayed there all day! We headed to the
main office to get a map and then decided on which graves we would go
visit. I wanted to see Chopin, Oscar Wilde, Edith Piaf, Sarah Bernhardt
and Jim Morrison. Unfortunately I only got to see the first and last and
the place was quite big. I also spent a lot of time chasing after a
little kitty hehe. I was determined to get a photo of it sitting on a
gravestone but it kept on running away. Jim Morrisons grave was pretty
dull. It had been cleaned up recently so a lot of the graffiti had gone.
It was funny watching the other people get all excited over it.
Afterwards we went and
got some lunch in a café nearby. We both ordered toasted cheese
sandwiches and cokes. The waitress didn’t speak any English so between
us we both knew enough French to get by. He thought he was so hot shit
with his French but I had to correct him a few times and then he shut up
after he realised I could speak it too.
As he had lost his film
with Notre Dame and the Louvre on it, he said he wanted to go back
there. I didn’t mind so I went too. We caught the train to Notre Dame
and had a quick look through. Out the back I had major deja-vu as I
realised I had been chatting to Dave about the architecture only a few
weeks earlier in exactly the same spot where I was standing. I’m
starting to miss being with all the Contiki people L.
We then walked across
the Pont Neuf (bridge) so I could get some shots of the Cathedral from
the other side of the Seine. Awaiting me on the other side was the
funniest shop I’ve ever seen. I was a shop dedicated to all things
aussie and it was called Australian Dreams. I laughed so hard the camera
was shaking as I took a photo of it. I dragged Michael inside and showed
him all the things that make Australia great. VB, Vegemite, Driza-bones,
the yellow road signs saying Roos next 5k’s. I loved it! On the way out
I picked up a flyer for the Whitlams, they were playing in Paris that
night! It was great!
After I had composed
myself we went and had a look at catching a boat up the Seine. When we
got on I raced up the back to get a good spot outside the boat. I liked
the guy who worked on the boat. He was hot! We got off at the Louvre and
came up next to the Arc di Carousel. Michael bought me an icecream but
had a hard time ordering. How hard is it. “Un chocolat, une peche”. Took
him about 5 mins to get across what he wanted. The line directly out the
front was surprisingly short and we basically walked straight in. We
didn’t even need to pay, apparently it was free that day. Bonus! This
time I got to have a better look at the paintings and sculptures. The
statue of Nike is still my favourite. It’s just so powerful and
striking. They also had an exhibition of sketches done by Michelangelo
which was interesting. I also had a look at some Greek statues where a
lot were based on mythical characters, my forté! Unfortunately because
entry was free there were a lot of school groups around.
Back outside we caught
the boat again up the Seine. As we had a day pass we could take as many
rides as we liked. We got off at the end of the Champs Elysées and
started our walk up the famous avenue. Michael spotted the Virgin
megastore and went nuts. I followed him in there but I went and sat on a
bench nearby as I was buggered. I waited for nearly an hour. Every so
often I should straighten this big mat when people accidentally kicked
it up and by the end I had a good repoir with the security guards. I
eventually had a look around and contemplated buying a French version of
Groove Armada’s latest album. I then went upstairs to look for Michael.
Did about 3 boglaps before I actually found him. That place is huge!
Finally dragged him out and we went in search of dinner. Michael wanted
to be able to say that he had had a meal sitting on the sidewalks of the
Champs Elysées. I told him how much that would cost him and we settled
for MacDonald’s. Luckily Macca’s had their own section of the Avenue and
best of all there was no charge! So we sat outside and soaked in the
atmosphere. Little birds were flying around and I even lured one to sit
on my hand and eat my burger hehehe. Afterwards Michael wanted to see
the Eiffel Tower but I was so tired that I told him I’d meet him back at
the hostel. After a few quick pics of the Arc di Triomphe with the
setting sun behind it, I caught the train back. Missed photo opportunity
came when the train went over a bridge and I had a great view of the
Eiffel Tower. Oh well next time.
Back in the hostel
room, two new roomies had left their backpacks. I quickly cleaned up the
mess Michael and I had made and made some space for them to put their
stuff. They later returned. They were a young couple from Tijuana,
Mexico. The guy asked if I’d heard about it. “Of course I have” I
replied, “That’s where they make all the Tequila!” He laughed. The girl
wasn’t quite so chatty but they were nice all the same. Michael later
returned and we all had an early night.
.: 24th April 2003
Michael left
this morning. I pretended I was asleep so I didn’t say goodbye.
I think he knew I was awake though. I’m sorry but he really kind
of annoyed me in the end. I got up a bit later and had a quick
shower before the multigenerational family in the opposite room
got in there. I had a flight at 2pm so I had a bit of time to go
check out Sacre Coeur before leaving.
I caught the train up to Montematre and as I came out of the
station and got that fuzzy feeling all over me, like I had come
home. I’ve always liked Montematre and the Moulin Rouge stories.
I went over to a deli first to get some breakfast. Just some
juice and a packet of peanuts. I quickly consulted my map as
there are many winding roads in that area before making my way
to the Sugar Domed Basilica. I was fascinated by this building,
it was just absolutely gorgeous. It is situated right at the top
of the Montematre hill and overlooks all of
Back at the hostel I
checked out and ran up to the main street and flagged down a taxi. We
drove back picked up all my luggage and made our way to the airport. For
whatever reason there were huge traffic jams that day. We started going
in one direction for about 15 minutes when the driver said that it would
take too long to go that way and that we would have to backtrack and go
the other way. I was a bit concerned at this stage as time was running
out. It took forever to get to the airport and I only had ½ hour before
the plane was going to board. I ran to the Cathay Pacific desk to get my
ticket stamped because I had changed my flights, but the lady said I was
too late and that check-in had closed 10 minutes before. I looked at her
stunned. She looked at me sympathetically. Luckily she could transfer my
ticket over to another flight but that didn’t leave till the following
day, or my other option was to fly to
At the check-in desk the
lady said my baggage was 32 kilos over the limit. Oops! She said she
would have to charge me something otherwise she’d get her ass
kicked but luckily she only charged me 2 kilos which was really nice of
her. So I went and paid that and had a chat with the ladies at the
payment desk. I then went and grabbed some HJ’s, had a quick look in the
duty free shops before getting on the next flight. I was greeted with a
glorious site. A half empty plane!!!! Oh joy!!!! I would have room to
stretch out and sleep. I was so happy!! The flight flew past as I slept
through most of it.
.: 25th April 2003
I arrived at
Trip all over now. L
