Monday, August 29, 2011

Ziploc

15 ziploc bags: about $5.00. That is all.

(No, I did not buy them.)

Sunday, August 28, 2011

Nearby Park

I did some more cleaning of the apartment this morning. Lots of dust bunnies hiding in the corners. I figure if I keep telling everyone the mundane pieces of my every-day life, they'll realize Paris living isn't all that different than Chicago living - like the apartment upstairs blasting some TV show.

The Parisians, however, do love their parks and churches. About a one minute walk from my apartment building, there is a park that looks something like this:


Can you spot the Eiffel Tower? It's hiding...

I was going to look it up online, but unfortunately, I can't find a map with the park labeled. So until I walk over there again and read a sign, this will simply be known as "the park around the corner."

And note to self: grocery stores are open only 9am to 1pm on Sundays, heh. At least there was a patisserie down the street that was open (it's nearly impossible not to find fresh bread in Paris during the day). And there's a merry-go-round right outside of it... so maybe life in Paris is a bit different from Chicago...

Saturday, August 27, 2011

Getting Settled

After spending a night in a very minimal hotel in the 20e, I have signed an agreement for an apartment in the 15e. Moving in was a breeze; we got the electricity, gas, internet, and cable all set up in no time. Now I need to go find some groceries, of which there are several stores within walking distance.

A few quick observations about Paris: the city smells something like a wet leaf with a hint of clove and something sweet, all obscured by the smelly guy walking ahead of you, smoking a cigarette. This morning alone, I noticed a remarkable number of people wearing sunglasses far below the surface of the earth in the depths of the metro (subway). Compared to Versailles, the 15e has very few little old ladies being walked by their dogs.

(If you're wondering what these numbers with "e" after them are: Paris organizes its geography into regions called arrondisements, each numbered. Generally, the higher the number, the further from the city center it is. You can think of these as big neighborhoods.)

And a quick view from our apartment's balcony:



Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Flight Day

The suitcase I thought was relatively "light" turned out to be 20 lbs over the limit...


Sunday, August 21, 2011

4 Days to Takeoff

I have started packing for the flight. Slightly freaking out. Thought I'd take a break and create this blog since Bridgette and I keep talking about it. So there.