Day 8: A Backwards Arrival

Posted on July 7, 2011 by mreece85

This morning started with the departure of Lori and Linda.  I was sad to see them leave and not continue our journey together.  Carolyn and I did some packing, cleaning, and I cooked breakfast.  Carolyn wasn’t feeling very well, so she stayed in while I ventured out for my last couple of hours in Paris.  I wanted to see the Luxembourg Gardens, so I headed down that way.  I saw the Medici fountain that I wanted to see again.  I realized where everyone in Paris jogs.  You never see anyone jogging downtown, and it is because they all must go to the gardens.  It was a nice morning to get out on my own.  I enjoy those moments.

After the gardens I returned to the metro. I finally got my pictures in the photo machine like Amelie.  I mailed some postcards and stopped one last time at our grocer.  I picked up some Orangina since I saw so many ads for it throughout the trip.  It is kind of like a mixture of Sunkist and Tang.
I came back to the apartment to get Carolyn and we went to the Deportation Memorial on the backside of Notre Dame.  I think I got a little more out of it this time because I knew what to expect.  I expected something larger the first time, so I didn’t fully get it when I went.  This time I understood the symbolism in the simplicity.  You walk down into the memorial and you are blocked of the views of the city by tall, plain walls.  If you continue forward, there are dark, sharp pointers.  There is a tiny window at the base that opens to the river.  If you continue inside, 200,000 tiny lights glow before you to represent the 200,000 people that were deported from France.  It is silent, dark, and sets a tone for reflection.
We then went back to grab our things and head towards the train station.  We had entertainment on our line to the station.  These two guys started rapping and dancing by flipping and moving their heads in and out.  They rapped in French to a Snoop Dogg song.  The other passengers didn’t seem too thrilled, but then again, the song was about smoking weed everyday.
I am glad we arrived early to the station.  We had to go through quite a bit to get on the eurostar.  I sat next to a woman who was worried about her luggage.  The ride was relaxing as I read “A Moveable Feast” and napped.  I definitely recommend this form of travel around Europe.
I came into London backwards because of my seating arrangement.  Arriving in London was more of a challenge than we expected.  Our underground station was closed for an emergency, so we had to walk to the nearest station (not that we knew where that was at).  After lugging our stuff to another station, we were on.  I was really glad we ordered our Oyster Cards ahead of time.  It made this tiring situation a little less tiring.  We got off at Victoria Station and dropped our things off to go back out for dinner.  We ate at the Traveler’s Tavern just down the road.  I enjoyed Bangers and Mash with a pitcher of Pimms.  My biceps were feeling the work from the day.
Later we made our way to Harrods.  I absolutely loved the food shops downstairs.  I bought quite a bit, including a bottle of wine that I enjoyed throughout our time in London.  There were sweets, meats, and many other treats to enjoy.  Any foodie would love it.