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Our driver, Abe, picks me up at 2:40 p.m. Down to get Sara
and over to 13th for Mitch. Arrive at JFK at about 4:30
pm. I learn another way to get to the airport. Traffic
is awful.
Get checked in at Air France and up to the expensive
snack bar for something to eat.
We have an uneventful flight. Leaves
on time, lots of clouds over the Atlantic, but smooth
ride. I sleep for most of the trip. Mitch has the aisle,
Sara in the middle and I'm trying to cram my fat ass
against the bulkhead to give her a little room.
| Friday,
May 22, 2001 |
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...And Travel |
Arrive at Roissy Charles DeGaulle
airport at about 10 a.m
We see that a bus goes from CDG directly to Montparnasse
Station. It costs 75 FF each. We wait forever, but it
is pleasant to sit outside. We are entertained by a
baggage handler, who is looking for tips--which he never
gets from us. A bus comes, but it's already full and
we don't get on it, probably because we haven't greased
the palm, but we don't have change and he doesn't deserve
folding money. The bus finally comes and we meander
through CDG stopping at every damn terminal in the joint.
There is serious construction going on here. I count
12 cranes dominating the landscape of the airport.
The bus plods through mid-day Paris
traffic. We spot the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame along
the way. It seems strange not to be staying, at least
briefly, in Paris. As we near Montparnasse, we attempt
to go down a very narrow street next to a flea market
where all the vendors have parked their vans. With centimeters
to spare on either side, we inch our way down the street
with the driver getting out every 5 feet to re-assess
the situation and all the vendors coming over to offer
advice.
Eventually we are dumped at the side door to Gare de
Montparnasse.
We leave luggage in lockers in the station and exit
through this door. The plaza is full of stalls and there
is also a grandly ornate carousel. (Our first view of
many carousels throughout the countryside.)
Still working on this one |