Finally Made it to Paris

Mission accomplished. I’ve been in Paris over 12 hours and managed to stay awake until past 8pm. Actually, I was eating dinner at 8 and I’m now typing this just after 9. Kudos to my accountant(!) who suggested that I download an app to help prepare for and prevent jet lag. Following the app’s instructions I tried to reset my body’s clock for the last few days by going to sleep earlier, waking up earlier, making sure to see bright light in the morning, and eliminating screen time for a couple of hours before bedtime. Despite getting only 2-3 hours of sleep on the plane, I didn’t feel as icky as I usually do on my first day in Europe. I don’t know if it’s because this is the first time I’ve been on my own on “jet lag day” or because of the app’s instructions, but I would repeat the exercise on my next trip. 

The plane landed early but customs was glacially slow. Seems we were about the last of the North American flights to land, and I was toward the back of the plane. Oh well. The young woman who I sat with and I provided moral support for each other not only during the long wait but also as we figured out how to purchase tickets for the train from the airport to the city. This involved a bit of comedy of errors, consulting maps from our phones, and eventually a Venmo transaction as it appeared (erroneously, as it turned out) that I’d bought two tickets before she bought any. Once upon a time previous administration and I used to quip that we knew it was time to leave a city once we’d figured out the transit system, but I’m confident that I know the basics of how Paris’ Metro works — not bad after the two-transfer arrival and two one-transfer rides so I could attend a geocaching event. 

The weather today was very Portland-like: cloudy (though I did spy a snippet of blue at one point) and perhaps chilly (15C, which was a bit chilly on the upper deck of the Hop on Hop Off bus). And let the record show that I saw several boy horses from the  bus. 

I learned a few things about Paris today. Pedestrians treat walk signals (or better yet, no walk signals) as advisory, not mandatory. I’m sure there were rules or engagement for the roundabout by the Arc de Triumph though I couldn’t begin to say what they are. Most Parisians speak some English, but are pleased when the conversation starts in French. More tomorrow as I’m fading fast.