Settling in

Trip Start Jun 29, 2008

Trip End Oct 01, 2008

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Where I stayed

Belleville, in rented room of an apartment

(Paris hotels)

Flag of France Paris, Île-de-France, France
Thursday, July 3, 2008

I met Mado's son in law today - a French Canadian. It was very good to have a chat with him, and he was able to translate some of the things Mado and I had had difficulty expressing to each other. I wish I was perfectly bilingual like him. I'm so jealous of people like that.

Went out with Luis tonight, was quite fun. Had dinner and drinks til about 10pm. It was still light! It only gets dark around 11pm, which has added to the confusion of crossing many time zones in a day. I walked around a fair bit before I saw him, and bought some funny postcards. It was good to have some company, I am getting a tad lonely, isolated by large communication barriers all around me.

My sense of direction has become reversed again, like it did last time I was in Europe. I subconsciously know where North is by the sun, and navigate accordingly, but because I am now in the Northern Hemisphere, I think North is South, or East is West. It's all reversed. I've never come across anyone else who has experienced this, but this is the second time it has happened to me. I snapped out of it after a day or so last time

Brie

. But it resulted in me walking for a long time in the wrong direction looking for the Seine River. Usually I am able to navigate quite well.

I just have to say that the métro is so convenient! I am amazed at how poor public transport is in Australia after using it. It is super fast, always on time, and comes every 2 minutes, so it is basically there as soon as you walk onto the platform. You can reach all of central Paris in a couple of minutes. Sydney needs to follow by example!

Photos are yet to come, I've taken a few but the SD card doesn't fit in my computer for some reason. It got stuck, much to my panic, but I finally got it out, (hopefully) without damaging the laptop or the card.

I've booked two tours for the weekend - one in Burgundy - tours of Castles and some wine tasting, then the 2nd tour is to the Champagne region (Reims), which is a wine tasting tour of places such as Moët and Chandon. The Champagne region - the place where the only real champagne is made. Anywhere else, it's just sparkling wine. I also want to book the Loire Valley for Bastille Day.

Overview of Burgundy trip:

Whether it's wine tasting in the cellars of Chablis or a tour of the architectural gems of Vézelay, Burgundy has a lot to offer travellers.

Vézelay is a tiny village in Burgundy surrounded by vineyards and sunflower fields. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, it is a favourite with tourists because of its picturesque setting and the famous basilica of Saint Mary Madeleine
Brie & Baguette
. Just outside of Vézelay is the, Château de Bazoches, a medieval castle which is the family home of French military engineer, Marshal de Vauban.

Wine tasting in the cellars of Chablis is an experience in itself in Burgundy. The dry, light, white wine gets its name from the sleepy town of Chablis, where bottle upon bottle of ageing wine lies in underground cellars.

The land of fine food and wine, Burgundy is a great place to enjoy the good life and appreciate the architecture of France.

Overview of Champagne tour:

Explore the beautiful region of Champagne and celebrate with a glass of bubbly on a tour of one of the most famous champagne houses of Epernay.

Champagne is a picturesque region in France with neatly tended vineyards and small villages. A tour of the Moët & Chandon cellars of Epernay is a delightful experience. This champagne house produces more bottles than any other and a tour here is a great way to discover how champagne is made. The cellars of Mumm are also lined with bottles of ageing wine and champagne tasting at the end is one of the best parts of the tour!

With champagne tasting in the house of Moët & Chandon in Epernay, this tour celebrates the good life.

Loire Valley Castles and Wine tasting overview:

The day starts with a visit to the Château d'Amboise, symbol of a new style of architecture: the French Renaissance. Leonardo da Vinci gave life to the castle. You will see all his inventions when you visit the Clos Lucé, his residence.

At the end of the morning, you leave for Chenonceau where lunch is served in the castle's Orangerie in summer or in the Village in winter. At the beginning of the afternoon, there is a visit of the Château de Chenonceau, called the "Château aux Dames" built on the Cher.

The last stop is Montrichard for a visit of Monmousseau cellars -an important wine producer in the region- where you will taste three vintages.