From Paris

11:00 AM

Bonjour! I am currently sitting in the Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport! Unfortunately, I can't find free WiFi, so I'm writing this offline and I'll have to post it once I find internet access. So far travel has been relatively low stress! Before and during my flight from KC to Chicago, I read my travel book about Amsterdam and the Rick Steves' one about all of Europe. Grandma Barb - I found a spot I think might be fun for one of our night walks in Amsterdam, so remind me to show you so we can decide if it's worth it! Kansas City to Chicago Ohare was simple, and I walked around in the airport for about an hour just to keep moving.

Then I boarded my flight to Paris. I sat next to a really nice business lady who is traveling to Paris for a week and then Vienna for a week. The plane didn't have touch screens to start and stop movies like I was spoiled with last time, but I was still able to pick between quite a few. The good news is I slept for a good portion of the 7 hour flight, once I got comfortable that is. Also, due to the combination of my eavesdropping skills and the loud volume at which the people behind me were talking, I learned I was sitting in front of two physicists (one German and one I think Albanian?). I've never even heard of someone being a professional physicist, and there were two sitting next to each other right behind me!

I landed in Paris and the airport was definitely set up different than any one I'd been to. I started out by just following the crowd, which took me to the general correct direction. I'd printed off my boarding pass from KC to Chicago and then Chicago to Paris from my home computer, but it wouldn't let me print my boarding pass from Paris to Köln (Cologne). So upon arriving at the airport, I knew I needed to find the Lufthansa (my airline) counter. I wasn't sure which way to go, so I looked on a screen to find my flight. Since I arrived around 9:15 am and my flight doesn't leave until 7:50 pm, my flight gate wasn't on the screens yet. Instead, I found the gates for flights departing to Munich or Frankfurt - other German cities probably also using German airlines. Since they were both in the same range of gates, I headed towards that direction. I had to go through a line where they check and stamp your passport (yay! another stamp to my collection!) and she told me go up and then down the escalator. I figured out how to get up - but got totally lost at the down part. I found the Lufthansa baggage claim, and I figured they could at least point me in the right direction. Well, no one was manning the information desk. As I'm standing there, probably looking very confused, the lady who sat next to me on my flight came over and asked me what I needed. She told me she doesn't work until tomorrow and it's still probably too early to check into her hotel and proceeded to help me navigate my way through the airport until I found where I needed to go. God is good.

Once I found that, it was simple (minus the long line) to get my boarding pass. My luggage is already on it's way. So now I'm just hanging out in the airport. There are TONS of shops (in French - boutiques), so I'm going to try and find some place to get my watch battery changed (as I grabbed my Minnie Mouse watch - yes, Robert Langdon style - a few hours before it was time to head towards the airport, I realized it doesn't work).

Also, a quick shoutout to John Tierney - I thoroughly enjoyed reading your text when I turned on my phone when I landed in Paris. "You can receive unlimited texts for free in germany? You are such an absurd human being. Don't pay 50 cents to respond to this. Use facebook" I'm glad at least someone is reading my blog!

Liebe von Paris! (Love from Paris!) Auf Wiedersehen!

5:30 PM

After 8 hours in the airport, I still have 2 more hours until we start boarding the plane. All this reading is putting me to sleep!! My eyes are closing, so I'm trying to switch this up and add some more to the update. Along with reading, I've done a lot of people watching! I briefly chatted with two young girls and their mom who are on their way to EuroDisney as we were both trying to find our way around the airport. I also met a man with a British accent who is from Cincinnati in the "Lift" (elevator), and we were both looking for the shops in the airport. The airport is circular and has 6 floors....I think. I walked around to kill time and find somewhere to eat. It is arranged much more like a vertical mall than American airports. Also, the moving walkways are not just straight...they go up and down and over hills. In the middle of the donut is a fountain, and above it are "escalators" criss-crossing from one side to another, going up a floor. Unlike American escalators, they aren't stairs, more like moving ramps. I tried to take a picture, but it didn't turn out. I wish I had some pictures for this update, but I didn't really see a need for photographing the airport.

I was, however, tempted to take pictures of some of the outfits I have seen. Out of courtesy, I did not. Here are a few observations I have made about fashion choices: Manpris (capris for men) are totally and completely acceptable here. I've seen less than ten pairs of flip flops. No one wears sweatshirts...only jackets or sweaters. Also, tshirts are rare on women and older men. The absolute worst outfit combination was his-and-her matching: bright orange shirts and capris (both man and woman). The man balanced out his top by wearing black socks rising to his calves with Birkenstock sandals. Classy.

Through all the people watching, and also through reading Rick Steves' book, I'm still trying to wrap my mind about the idea that this is someone's home. When I was at Notre Dame this year, that was a big realization I had - my friends at school call someplace way far away from me "home". And now I'm seeing that same thing here. It's so common in America to idealize Paris as a place of romance, wonder, and awe. But Paris is not like DisneyWorld, it is a place that people live and work and have a family. It is not just a place people visit. Furthermore, I'm sitting in a country where my language is foreign. It is a very weird feeling, and I am very grateful that virtually everyone working in the airport speaks English. It has made it significantly easier to get around.

Right now I'm sitting across from three little girls. At first I thought they were speaking French, but I recognize some words as German. They aren't speaking German, though, so I think maybe they are speaking Dutch. Regardless, they are ADORABLE, and all practicing how to say monopoly. moh-NOP-oh-li. It looks like they just bought they game.

Well, it's about time for me to break down and buy some caffeine to keep me awake!

Liebe von Paris! Auf Wiedersehen!