Olives

Last Saturday we got back from one of the best vacations... Paris! Karen and I went for the week with four of our good friends, and we had the best time. Although the trip wasn't without some hiccups. Leading up to our departure it seemed like the city of Paris was a powder keg filled with rioters, protesters, terrorist threats and strikes, waiting to be ignited at any minute... The State Department issued a travel alert... And then about a week before we were all leaving the airlines had been asked to cut flights into Paris airports by 30-50%. I'll say it, I was a bit nervous before we left. But then we got there...

We dropped off the kids with my parents Friday and departed Boston Saturday evening. Early Sunday morning we arrived at Charles de Gaulle airport where we were meeting Bekah & Kyle. An hour later they arrived, our car arrived and we were off! While in Paris we were staying at this fantastic apartment on Ile Saint Louis. Ile Saint Louis is an island in the middle of the Seine, which is the river that runs through the middle of Paris. Here's how it's described:

This small island is like an oasis from the rush of the city. It's almost as if someone dropped a small French village into the center of Paris, as it features markets, bakeries, fromageries and cafés. While much of Paris has modernized over the years, the ile remains romantically frozen in the 17th century. It is remarkably the same as it was centuries ago. It is lined with adorable boutiques, is home to its own unique ice cream, features historic attractions, and boasts one of Paris' best hotels.

And that is exactly how we found it. There's so much to try and cover-- I'll do my best. This post is going to be more of an introduction and thoughts about the whole week, with more specific posts to follow.

You're probably wondering why if this post is about our overall trip-- why is it titled "Olives". Well that's simple: that was the family password. You see, since we were a little on edge, and we were in a busy foreign city-- we needed a word that one of us could say to indicate we needed help or felt scared -- immediately alerting others to our plight. Mostly it was used as a joke or to signal something very serious -- someone needed another drink.

Language. Before leaving I had read that in Paris English was not as widely spoken as in other European cities. Luckily for me, Karen had studied French and as soon as we arrived and she started dusting off her skills, it came back pretty easily. I also made sure to master some basics like: hello, please, thank you, where is the toilet, coffee, wine, etc. While I have yet to travel somewhere that I can use my awesome Spanish skills (I guess you could argue there are plenty of opportunities in Boston), my french was ok. And you would be amazed at how much you can communicate through hand gestures...

People. Also I had been led to believe that may be French people weren't the friendliest sort. I could not disagree more. Everyone we encountered was very friendly and courteous, and if anyone was rude they at least had the decency to do it behind our backs... which I appreciate. And many people spoke English or at least understood what we were saying. And again, Karen and Bekah were both pretty good at laying down some French talk when needed. Later on I've got a good story of some people we met, but that's for another post...

Overall impressions. The people are awesome. Paris is awesome. There's way too much to see. The Louvre is a cluster %#@*, so be prepared to have people all up in your grill the entire time. Buy a "Paris Pass" before you go so you can skip the lines at pretty much any museum (or better yet, get someone else's even if it has expired because no one checks). Taking a bus tour around the city is a blast, unless you're doing it close to rush hour, duh. If you go to the Modern Art museum be prepared to be appalled -- unless seeing naked people hula-hooping barbed wire on the beach is your thing (sorry for the image but I still can't shake it, and you're welcome). Or a naked woman holding a dead chicken that's bleeding all over (sorry, couldn't resist one more). It's pretty hard to find a bad meal. The Metro is one of the most efficient public transit systems around, take it everywhere. Unless you take it to a sketchy neighborhood... Try lots of new foods. Wine is cheaper than Coca-Cola. Drink as much Cafe Au Lait ("Cafe O-lay") as possible (it's basically espresso with steamed milk). There is nothing like a long meal, outside under a heater, with a group of friends, people watching in a foreign city.