My big project yesterday was getting me and my backpack from one youth hostel to another. I am now at the Cité des Sciences hostel, so named because it's close to a science park. Getting here did more damage to my leg injury, I'm afraid. I had to take three subway lines, and the walks through tunnels and up and down flights of stairs when one transfers from one subway line to another can be quite long. Carrying the heavy backpack put quite a strain on my leg, and I could not walk without a severe limp when I got here. After a good night's sleep, the leg is somewhat better although far from well. I just have to force myself to walk as little as possible until it's healed.
The weather turned warmer yesterday. I didn't check the temperature, but it felt as if it were in the 70s Fahrenheit. The sky is still overcast and gray, however.
The good night's sleep is due to the fact that I am the only one in my room, although there are four bunks in it. No one rolled in at two or three a.m. and turned on the lights in the room to awaken me as happened in the old hostel.
This is a smaller hostel, which also means that there are no busloads of kids here yelling, screaming, and running around in the morning. On the downside, breakfast was typically French, corn flakes with milk, coffee, bread, butter and jam. Nothing substantial to get one through the morning.
Some of the desk clerks here don't speak very good English, which means that I have more of an opportunity to practice my French with them. I have not yet gotten into any conversations with any of the other hostel guests, however.
Before I left the other hostel yesterday, I had breakfast (a much better breakfast) with the Scottish guy and a newly arrived Japanese guy from my room. It was a bit of a strained conversation, because the Japanese guy spoke very little English and not a word of any other European language.
My plans for today are to take the subway into Central Paris, search for a quiet bench along the Seine River, enjoy the view and read. I'm about to use the Calibre program to download the news from several newspaper Websites and then load it onto my Kindle for later reading. I also have two books in progress on the Kindle.
1 comment:
Hi Jack,
Sorry to hear about your sciatica. Hope it heals quickly. However, sometimes an enforced, low stress existence in a pleasant place like Paris can be a blessing in disguise. It actually sounds quite idyllic to just hang out and read in pleasantly cool weather and meeting the occasional traveler in a hostel.
I did the geezer ride this morning--well, up until I flatted near AJ's on the way out, then rejoining three others about a mile short of the Hidden Hills gate. We stopped for a bagel at the usual place, and I had a nice pumpernickel one with cream cheese. When I got home I realized I wasn't supposed to eat ANYTHING solid today due to my scheduled colonoscopy tomorrow. OOPS! Oh well, one bagel at 9AM shouldn't screw things up too badly.
Keep the blog going, Jack. It's not a boring as you may think to those of us who are trapped indoors most of the day because it's summertime in Phoenix!
Bruce Braley
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