Paris - France (Day One)

After a relaxing Sunday and the thought of having to spend the rest of the week with my ex-husband, I decided to run-away to Paris. So that afternoon I booked a train ticket to travel with Amelia and did a Google search for a Hotel in Paris. Thank god for Google!!

So on Monday all packed Vincent and Vanessa, drove us to the station in Gent. We got there a good half hour before but by the time I got my ticket there was only 3 minutes left and we had to run and what was worse it was at the far end of the station. Couldn't have been any further. As I stumbled up the escalator trying to catch my breath, I was thinking I will never make the train that was, by this time at the platform. Vanessa yelling at me to hurry up, I managed with the last ounce of my energy to stumble onto the train as Amelia refused to let the door close while Vincent argued with the station master. Great way to bring on an asthma attack and I had no ventolin. After drinking half of Amelia's water my breathing settled down and we were able to relax on the first half hour of our journey. We changed at Brussels with a good 25 mins to spare between change and settled in for the hour and a half it takes to get to Paris.

Only 90 minutes to Paris!! Lord to get to the central coast from Sydney is the same distance. I am so glad I took Vanessa's advice and come to Paris since it is so close.

We got to Paris and Amelia and I parted. I walked to my Hotel called Hotel Modern'Est. Only two stars but clean and close to the metro and the main stations. After showering and resting for a bit, I went for a walk and despite having a map managed to get myself lost and found the Bastille monument shown in the pictures above. The other picture is the boulevard facing away from the monument. I got back to the Hotel with sore feet and was extremely tired.