World Trip

Dublin & Paris

May 25, 2005

Got up bright and early and walked along the river. Suddenly, there was a presence in the air. A certain smell, kind of earthy and bready. Yes, the smell of barley being roasted. I must be getting close. The Guinness brewery could be more properly called a factory. The only thing that reminded me it was not Kodak were the constant Guinness logos on the gates and the ever-present smell of roasted barley. I eventually found the tourist entrance to this sprawling complex of beer creation, but was dismayed t the 14-euro tour fee. I opted out, hit the souvenir shop, took a few photos and headed off to the Dublin castle. The Dublin Castle, sad to say, is not longer a castle any more. Due to an unfortunate incident inolving lot of stored gunpowder and some fire, it has been rebuilt more like a palace.

The tour was interesting and I learned a lot about the history of Ireland, the British oppression, and tons of lords, dukes and other important people. I have since forgotten it all. The castle was really nice and is still used to entertain foreign dignitaries and hold important European Union business meetings. I felt like a king, dressed in jeans and a t-shirt, walking on the same carpet as some other very important people who bear the weight of their nations on their backs.

With the Dublin castle having been visited, there was one more order of business. I was to find the Brown Thomas store and go raid the free samples. It worked and now I have about ten tiny cologne bottles off different kinds. I don't have to worry about these being lost or stolen.

Eventually I made it to the airport and am waiting to fly to Paris.

Arriving in Paris was a treat. It was easy enough to find a bus to the center of town, the grand opera house. I was assured at the airport that near there I would find tourist information and was off to get a hostel.

The drive into the city was good too. At one point the bus started smelling really nicely of some kinds of flowering trees that lined the road. Along the way also got an amazing view of a beautiful white basilica-like church on top of a hill.

After getting off the bus and walking around the huge and magnificent opera house, I found the tourist office ... with a steel gate over the door. I was officially screwed. Mike's cell phone got blocked because I did not remember his pin number, I speak no French, and here I am in the middle of the most beautiful city in the world, surrounded by happy people drinking coffee and wine in the cafes, the weather is phenomenal, and I am homeless with 60 lbs on my back.

Eventually I found a calling card so I could use the pay phone and called Klaudia, Mike G's cousin in Paris. Her roommate Krzysiek answered the phone and knew who I was because Mike has warned him. He was very helpful on the phone but did not know where any hostels where. He directed me to a touristy neighborhood with lots of hotels and I went off on the Paris metro. The metro is really well done and it is really easy to get around. I found my way to where I was supposed to be and walked up the hill from the metro station, just as instructed. Along the way I passed a few hotels, just like I was supposed to, but they all looked too nice, and were surely not hostels. Eventually I walked into one hotel on a side street, and even though it was hard to pass up the $35 euro per night charge, I walked out. It was the seediest hotel I have ever seen, and was extremely depressing. I would have rather slept in the subway station.

Now I am thinking that it cannot get much worse and am starting to decide whether it would be better to sleep in the train station, subway station, or under a bridge. And then a cop car proceeds to almost kill me. Here is what happened. I was getting ready to cross a one-way street which was heading up a hill. There was no traffic from the correct direction, and halfway up the block was a cop car going in reverse, which I paid no heed to. So I was in the middle of the street when I realize that this cop car has his gas pedal floored while going in reverse, and I catapulted myself and my backpack across the street. The cop car drove right past me in reverse and skidded to a stop in the intersection. This can't be a normal happening as all the people on the entire block stopped what they were doing and stared. I pinched myself, made sure this is not a messed up dream, and silently walked on. Eventually, after about and hour and a half of walking, somehow uphill all the time, I found a genuine hostel, and talked myself into a vacant bed. Hostel Coulaincourt is the nicest hostel I have stayed at so far.

I decided that the night was still young (around 11 pm now) and headed off up a hill, because someone told me there is a nice church there. I walked and walked, but this time it was so much easier without the baggage. I got to the top and there were little restaurants and bars and it was really cozy. As I walked I talked to these American tourists going the other way who told me that the lights on the church were JUST turned off. A little dismayed that I would not be able to take nice pictures, I continued.

When I got to the top I realized that this was not just some nice church, but the Basilica of the Sacred Heart, which I saw on the bus ride from the airport.

The lights being turned off were a blessing in disguise. I ended up taking a bunch of really long exposure photos, which came out really well. I soon headed back to the hostel for a night of sleep.

The hostel is very nice. My room is on the top floor, and I am staying in the top bunk. I fell asleep with a wide view of the Paris skyline.