The night before my flight to Paris, I couldn’t sleep. The many photographs taken by friends who went for holidays just kept my imagination ran wild. And the many articles that I have read in magazines just made me too excited to even be sleepy. If only you could see me lying on the bed trying to sleep, in the dark, with a very wide grin from ear to ear…
Arriving at the Charles de Gaulle airport, I was ecstatic - in every sense of the word. It was just impossible to describe the feeling. “I am here. I am in France!” There were just no words good enough to form a sentence. The first thing that strikes me was the spaceship-like design of the airport. Being a sucker for architecture, I just loved it although the couple behind me refers to it as an ‘old army base’ as I overheard while the plane was taxiing.
Out of the plane, I was even more excited riding the moving walkway to reach the main terminal building in a tube that reminded me of the ones found in Aquariums. It was more a conveyor belt to me rather than the normal sturdy metal ones. More so because it was bouncy. That was fun. And this feeling was just at the airport…
Not having a sleep the night before and staying awake throughout the 13 hours midnight flight the next day, I felt very tired. So, I decided to take a taxi to Paris. The original plan was to be more adventurous by taking the bus. The 45 minutes journey to the city cost about 50 Euros. Quite expensive, but I needed it.
Closer to Paris, the traffic got heavier and it gave me more time to enjoy the scenery. On a normal working day, I would be cursing any jam on the road, but today is not a normal day. Today is my first day in France! I was smiling as the taxi stopped several times, caused by the jam. It gave me time to snap, snap, snap some photos.
Finally, I reached the city and the feeling was ten times the one at the airport. Again, the architecture. My God, I love this city. I could get orgasm by just looking at the wrought iron balconies. The buildings - I was breathless. I can die tomorrow feeling contented.
Paris has many nicknames, but its most famous is "The City of Lights" (La Ville-lumière). It is situated on the River Seine in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region ("Région Parisienne").
Dumped my luggage in the room, I stormed out of the hotel after a quick face wash. No time wasted here, my friends. It was amazing that the tiredness and sleepiness were gone! The nice double bed kept calling but my eagerness to explore Paris was much stronger. At 9 am in the morning, I was already on the streets inhaling every second of Paris into my lungs. Even in the early morning, without the night lights, Paris was romantic. My hotel which was on Rue des Capucines, was right smack in the city.
Just a minute walking from the hotel, I found myself at Place Vendome where big names in high-jewellery were located. You can find Boucheron, Van Cleef and Arpels, Cartier, Chaumet, Chanel, Mauboussin and many others side by side at one place. Place Vendome also houses the Hotel Ritz Paris where Coco Chanel made her home for over 30 years. Hotel Ritz Paris was also made famous by the unfortunate crashed in the nearby Pont de l'Alma road tunnel involving Diana and Dodi. The hotel was the last venue where they were seen - happy and alive. Staring at the hotel from the base of the column right in the centre of the square, I felt sad.
May god bless their souls..
Sabri
To be continued….
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