New Years Eve in Paris

Well the first leg of our journey is done, the flight from Detroit to Paris was a good flight much better then previous flights because we were in Business Class. I’m used to long flights in cramped seats with either a screaming child or someone who is somewhat intolerable. I remember when Lou and I flew back from Australia in the cheap seats we were stuck beside a cowboy who couldn’t stop talking. He had met his girl friend online well before online dating was the norm. It was a sad story, he had fallen in love with an Australian girl who had gotten cancer and passed away and certainly we felt his pain but he would talk and talk and talk and at times would wake up Lou by asking her if she was asleep only to talk some more. Eighteen hours of this in a cramped space will make you want to pull your hair out.

Business Class is a foreigner to us on our travels but it is amazing what frequent flyer points can do, the food is significantly better, free alcohol, multiple movies, Gorillas in the Mist and the space and ability to totally recline your chair made the 8 hour flight almost enjoyable.

When we arrived Lou had one of the worst migraine headaches she has had in a very long time. I have learned after many years that my headaches are like child’s play compared to her migraines. I have also learned that the best thing to do is pump her full of some drugs and get her to sleep, unfortunately we had to deplane, go through customs, get our luggage (which almost took an hour to come out) and find our way to our hotel in downtown Paris.

I knew the train system was not going to work so I grabbed a cab and we headed towards the Villa Luxembourg, a very nice hotel in Montparnasse. This one gets a recommendation from me for a nice clean hotel in a good area central to a lot of the sights.

First order of business was to get Lou in bed to see if she could shake her migraine before our New Year’s Eve plans. While Lou was catching a nap, I took a stroll down the streets, doing people watching and checking out some shops. I love to going into foreign stores and seeing what and how things are displayed. Unlike the Americans, the French like to separate things, so you have one store for produce, another store for cheese, and another dedicated to wine. In one quick trip you can buy food, clothing, fishing gear, tires, a hamster, get your eyes examines, a family portrait, and take out a loan all at your local K-Mart Super Store.

I stopped by for a beer and a sandwich at a local pub and some more people watching then returned to see how Lou was doing. She was feeling a little better and we were planning to visit an old friend for dinner who helped us set up our DGH Globetrotter trips to Ecuador.

Heather and her family are really great people, she runs CNH Tours, specializing in trips to Ecuador and the Galapagos, I highly recommend her if you would like to go to one of the most amazing places on earth. Her husband Marc works for UNESCO preserving World Heritage sites. The conversation was awesome, Marc is incredibly interesting, he had just finished doing a report on the gorillas of Bwindi and a colleague was working on one for the Masai Mara. They have two young boys Justin and Emil who are really great kids.

We jumped in a cab and arrived at Heather’s house just about on time and 20 Euros lighter. Heather had made a fantastic meal, which included smoked salmon, caviar and oysters for appetizers, tournedos of beef, potatoes baked with bay leaves, great veggies followed by a salad course, then a cheese course, then a chocolate fondue finishing with a sorbet. Wow!

The two times we have visited Heather and her family have been really cool to get a slice of Paris home life. Thanks again Heather!

As the night progressed Lou began to feel much better but was not up for a wild night and neither Heather or Marc were game for heading downtown so we just enjoyed the meal and company of two good friends.

Although not a wild and crazy night somehow the simplicity, great food, conversation and watching Heather fret about her best friend’s 15 year old daughter who was having a New Year’s Eve party two floors up made the evening one that I will not forget soon.

It was off on leg two of our long flights early this morning. This time we tested the train to the airport and did very well until we got to the airport. Charles de Gaulle airport is very confusing to me and there was little to tell us which terminal, and then which gate (the gates are as far apart as our terminals), needless to say the 3 hours we gave ourselves to make it early quickly melted away until we were running to make our flight. What’s a good trip without inserting some unneeded stress.

Well it’s off to Johannesburg, frois gras, lamb, cheeses, sorbets, I really could be used to Business Class.