Another week flew by as I entered 'the real Europe' with mom by my side. We rode the Eurostar train to Paris from London, riding backwards the whole time (which was a bit of an issue for half of us... The older half... Who needed gravol to make it without having a fit) but nonetheless we managed to get there. I was feeling a bit anxious about leaving the English language behind in the British Isles, but seemed to manage okay for the majority of the time in Paris. There were the few odd people who were primarily part of the older generation that didn't speak much English but for the most part we didn't have any issues no matter where we went with communicating. It was customary that whenever we walked into a store or Cafe that we received a greeting in French. I am proud to say that whenever I said my 'bonjour' reply I seemed to be accepted as possibly one of the natives. Whereas mom on the other hand would always receive an English reply of hello or welcome in response to her butchered 'bon-jore', I suppose it also didn't help that until the very last day she was still mixing up her 'ouis' and 'sis'. Too many "work trips" to Mexico I suppose!

The first day we spent as anyone should when they visit Paris... Not in the city at all! Instead we did what would be expected of the Disney queen herself- Paris Disneyland! It was here that mom's worst nightmares came to fruition... She fell ill at Disneyland!! Oh the horror! Luckily for everyone it was just a case of girl who cried puke and the day went on! We spent a whopping 12 1/2 hours straight in the 2 Disney parks and managed to go on all the rides that we wanted to during the day. It was quite similar to California Disney, slightly smaller and not of the same quality.. Or so I'm told!

The rest of the week we spent living the Parisian life! Eating French delicacies, having meals at the cafe on the petite avenues, visiting all the sights, and doing our best to avoid all the pickpocketers! We had a small bakery right beside the front door of our building so we had fresh baguettes and croissants for our sandwiches every day. We weren't the only ones either as every night and morning they were lined up to the door with people getting their fresh breads. We had some of our dinners sitting at the picturesque Parisian cafes that we've all seen in photos with the seats facing out towards the small streets where you could watch the world walk by as you eat. Throughout the week we managed to get in all the sights including the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Notre Dame, and Arc de Triomphe. The last of which we climbed up the over 275 steps to get to the top of...(without realizing what we were getting into when we started!) Needless to say, when we were offered the opportunity to skip the line at the Eiffel Tower and climb up the over 600 steps to the second floor instead... We opted to take the elevator! Now onto pickpocketers... Which are everywhere!! (Allegedly). Everywhere you go and everyone you meet has a warning for you about pickpocketers. I kept an eye out for them but did not see any, which perhaps is a testament to their skill for one group of pickpocketers alone last year managed to collect over €4,000 a day. I have come to my own conclusion that the foolish ruin it for the rest of us... I would assume that it's common sense not to leave a wallet/cell phone hanging out of your back pocket but apparently not for some people! The other people to watch out for are the pedlers on the street with their handfulls of (stolen) selfie sticks and Eiffel Tower souvenirs. I assume the stolen bit based on the fact they pick up their bags and run in under a few milliseconds anytime one of them sees the police!

Mom and I seemed to be pretty good with keeping an eye and hands on our belongings. Mom even managed to break the zipper pull off of her purse and give herself a blister from the amount of times she ran her thumb along to make sure that it was indeed closed. Another issue that she managed to have was one that followed her over from Canada.. And that has to do with restaurant food. On two separate occasions, one of which we ordered the same meal, she had surprises in her dish. One was a piece of plastic in salad, and another was an actual 1-inch long metal clasp cooked in her chicken! The plastic resulted in the offering of a free coffee, whereas the other cafe didn't offer us anything! We weren't sure if the lack of procedures for these situations was because they never happened... Or happened so often it would cost too much to give everyone something free!?

Mom also got to witness first hand my bird issues. Once again this morning as I was trying to enjoy a delicious banana and Nutella crepe, a tiny bird the size of my fist came out of nowhere to attack! Mom had the exact same thing to eat, but no, it waited for her to finish so that it could prey on innocent Sara. Luckily it ran into mom's shoulder and unlike the last times I got away so that I could enjoy my last few bites!

And now after a great couple weeks it's time for goodbyes tomorrow as mom heads home and I head to Belgium and the Netherlands!

Au Revoir.

Love,
Sara