Aaaaah! Finally, i travelled a bit these last two weeks! YAY, YAY! Firstly, i've been to Paris on the 11th of May, with Mister Darren. We arrived on wednesday at Orly Charles de Gaulle Airport, where for some random reason, Darren's luggage arrived with the one from Prague....huh? We finally found them and then headed to Villeparisis, the suburbian town where Nath and Nico live. After having been warmly greeted by Nath and Devi, her enormous dog, we had a quick breakfast and went straight to bed to be in a good shape for Benabar's gig. The gig was in the main Villeparisis venue, but unfortunately there were only seats and no pit, so no way to dance...I was a bit desapointed, but as soon as the supporting band, Loic Lantoine and his crazy cello player, came on stage, i forgot my frustration and started appreciating the music. The duet was really weird and destabilizing but once i got used to it, i really liked it. The poor cello player snapped one of his cord during the first song, and had to bravely undergo the situation throughout the gig. After this likeable duet, Benabar came on stage and delighted me. His gestures and his way to move suprised me at first, as i pictured him more elegant or more reserved. He was actually quite straightfoward and full of energy and that was a good surprise. He improvised a lot too and played with the audience, not afraid of even teasing them a bit. His rhetoric was perfect as usual, and the words he chose always just right. He was just charming.
The next morning, Darren and I decided to spend our spare time visiting Paris, as Darren had never been there before, and as far as i'm concerned, the only things i know about Paris are the venues, a couple of bars, and the eiffel tower by night....We first headed to Chatelet-Les-Halles where i started shopping, dragging Darren, nice enough not to moan about it. I quickly spared him and we walked towards The Louvres. We saw the Cour Carree, as well as the Pyramide, where Darren got harrassed by a bunch of german girls that came and took pictures of them near him, thinking he was the typical french guy! You should have seen their face when i asked Darren to come round in English! Later, we crossed the Jardin Des Tuileries to go to Place de la Concorde. Personnaly, i think the Obelisque is ok, but that black and gold fountain on the side is just purely cheap and taky. shame! Then, we inevitably shuffled our dirty trainers along the endless and boring Champs Elysees (That Vuiton thing is SO UGLY! how can it even be allowed!) until we reached the Arc De Triomphe. Then we took the Metro to go to the Eiffel Tower, and on our way a guy annoyed us to draw Darren up. I told him there was no way, but the guy went on "it's for my personnal collection, i dont want any money, etc..." Darren, as gullible as ever (and probably flattered hehehe) , answered that we should let him do, as it would probably be quicker. I gave up, sulked and let the 2 gentlemen come to an agreement... 3 minutes later, the guy was done and asked for 40 euros. (by the way, his drawing was shite) I told him there was no way, I dont pay people to piss me off, and Darren was all amazed by how easily french people could lie. Cultural heritage, dear.... Once we got rid of the leech, we took the lift to the top floor of the Eiffel tower, as any self-respecting tourist. At first i complained about the bloody price (10 euros) but finally i enjoyed it a lot, and i thought it was worth it. The view was wicked and if these numberless group of chinese people wouldnt have been there pushing us and screaming in our ears, it would have been perfect. After that, we fought with the RER as it was ( unexpectedly?) on strike , but we arrived safe at home.
The next day, we tumbled into the 10th and 5th "arrondissement", looking for a morrocan restaurant "Founti Agadir" i wanted Darren to discover. Once there, we had a couscous and a tajine, as well as a "salade a l orange" and all this for a really good price. To help us to digest, we went to the Jardins du Luxembourg, and lazed a bit in the shade of this very hot day. Later we went up Boulevard Saint Michel where i saw the Pantheon, hidden between two big buildings. Then we went to L Ile De La Cite, to see Notre Dame and some of Paris famous bridges. We had a crepe and a beer outside, in a bar facing Notre Dame, and it cost me bloody 30 euros. nice.... Then we headed to L Ile Saint Louis, where we had an ice cream at Berthillon. This shop is meant to have the best ice creams in Paris, but let me tell you that, it' s true, it was good, but to me, there's no need to do such a fuss....I have to admit too that the shopkeeper annoyed me a bit with her conceited and posh airs... We ate our ice cream on the Pont de la Tournelle and then lazed around with the locals, on a bench on the Seine bank, just looking the Bateaux-Mouches go past. Later, we walked on the opposite bank, walking under the Pont Neuf, Pont Saint Michel, and above the Pont Des Arts, where all the youth was celebrating birthdays and having wine-basted picnics. Making us feel a bit hungry too, we wandered until we found a nice little creperie along the quays, with a lovely decor and staff, called Creperie Saint Augustin. The price was a bit high due to the setting but it was definitely worth it. |
