Smackie the Frog

The last day in Paris. Oh, by the way, sorry for the delay in getting this up, because technically now it is day 6. But when we got back last night I was feeling really sick. I think it was all of the different forms of transportation we took, each adding a little bit to my motion sickness. So by the time we got back to Brussels, I was feeling pretty terrible, and just wanted to get in bed.

Anyway, the day started out with breakfast again, and then Frans and I headed off to Sacré Coeur, which is a basilica and also the highest point in Paris. I was told not to walk to the top, but to walk down. Well somehow we messed up, and we ended up walking up like a thousand steps to get to the top. And from there we had some amazing views of Paris, even though it was raining on us the whole time. I would say overall the weather has not been great while I’ve been here. I have seen the sun maybe twice, and it has rained quite a bit. Oh well. I knew that that would most likely be the case this time of year.

After going inside Sacré Coeur, we then headed to the Louvre. The highlight of the day happened on that little journey. The Paris Metro can get pretty crowded, and while a group of people was trying to get on, I guess some guy cut in front of a couple of women, because they started yelling at him. And then as the doors started to close on the Metro, one of the women spit right in the guy’s face. It was hilarious.

But back to the Louvre. I have to be honest – I thought the Louvre was terribly disappointing. It was WAY too crowded, and there was WAY too much art. It was impossible to know what to look at, and if you really stopped to look at anything, you ran the risk of being run over by a hundred people. But I did get to see the Mona Lisa, kind of. There were probably 200 people standing in front of it, so I couldn’t get very close. But hey, at least I can say that I have seen it.

At this point our feet had pretty much given up on us, so we just went back to the hotel and picked up our luggage and relaxed in the lobby for a couple of hours. I was only in Paris for 2 and a half days, but it is amazing how worn out you can get in that amount of time. Well then it was time to go to the train, and this time, luckily, our train left on time. It was slightly delayed getting back to Brussels because of an accident that happened on the tracks last week, but we made it back, and I made it back alive, so that is something.

Today, I believe, is a little bit more exploring of Belgium, then a soccer match tonight, and then tomorrow I am off to Amsterdam for two days, and then home. Time really flies.