Day 49
Location 13: Paris
Dec. 19, 2022
The first half of my day was spent in bed, recovering from over 31 hours of traveling.
The second half of my day was spent out of bed with Lucas, my Parisian friend that I had met in Budapest.
Our pre-dinner trip consisted of some lesser-known tourist spots of France: (1) the Arc de Triomphe and (2) the Eiffel Tower:
1. Arc de Triomphe
Atop the hidden gem of the Arc de Triomphe, there is a spot known only to locals where you can take in the full beauty of the surrounding city, including the aforementioned Eiffel Tower. The prerequisite for being granted admission to this secret spot is a 284 step climb up a spiral staircase–unlike in Bruges, there was no one allegedly shot in this stairwell.
Fun Facts: the Tour de France (you know the Tour de France, it's the famous bike race Lance Armstrong won 7 times) (you know Lance Armstrong, he's the famous bicycle racer––wait, is it "bicycle racer" or "bicycle racist"? Bicycle racist sounds like someone who's decidedly prejudice against two-wheeled vehicles. Anyway––Lance is the guy who cameos in Dodgeball: A True Underdog story and, more importantly, has only one testicle) goes past the Arc de Triomphe. My dad also once rented a bike and rode by it. Both facts are equally interesting and cool.
2. Eiffel Tower
After viewing the Eiffel Tower from afar, Lucas and I made the trek to see it up close and personal. This little hole-in-the-wall of a structure was beautiful, and I'm surprised more people don't know about it.
As we took in the view, Lucas explained that people in France don't really wear berets even though they're sold to tourists in the souvenir shops that line the streets of the city. We counted the people wearing berets like we were playing a judgemental version of that game where you count the different colored cars driving by as you sit on a curb eating ice cream with the father figure you met by sitting on his porch on the day he used thousands of balloons to float his house to Paradise Falls.
Fun Fact: I taught Lucas something new about the Eiffel Tower! He learned there's a scene in Rush Hour 3 where Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker's characters fight on the Eiffel Tower before skydiving off with an oversized French flag as a parachute. It was embarrassing for Lucas that his knowledge of the tower's history was afflicted by such a gap. (I just realized this is my 2nd time discussing Rush Hour).
3. Restaurant Chartier
We met up with Lucas's pal Ivi for dinner at a "traditional" French restaurant, which basically means it's full of tourists, it serves escargot, and its waiters are rude.
"Can we get some bread" Lucas asked in French. "You just need to wait" snapped the waiter, rudely. This place really is traditional! I thought.
After 10 minutes, the bread still hadn't arrived. We reminded the waiter of our request, and he shed his traditional exterior to reveal a banter-rich, soft, gooey center. I don't know exactly what was said, but Lucas, Ivi, and the waiter engaged in a back and forth that was half-tense, half-jovial and that ended with us finally getting bread, an extra-rummy rum cake, and some free liqueur. "He said he wants to get you fucked up for your first night in Paris" Lucas relayed to me. It was a great, French time.
Fun Fact: This restaurant, Chartier, is also famous for its low prices and big portions (really). I saw this for myself after spotting their menu's incredible deal on escargot. One portion of "6 snails" costs the low price of €7.50. Fair. But what's amazing is that two orders affords you unbelievable savings–in fact, I had to check the menu four times to make sure I wasn't misreading the price (really).
