Au revoir gay paris

DAY NINE

Versailles was amazing! I stayed there for half a day and probably saw a tenth of what there was to see, but too much has been going on for retrospectives

I’ve been humming La vie en rose all day. I’ve hummed it on the Champs Elysees where I alternated between that and Aux Champs Elysees – which is something like the French version of 99 bottles of beer on the wall – I’ve hummed it on the metro, I’ve hummed it at the hostel, and hummed it on the toilet while I was ouing.

Paris is beautiful, but I’m sick of the tourists and I’ve lost respect for myself for being one. Tomorrow I’m going to sit in a park and get a coffee and try and get the ‘real Paris’ although I think that disappeared around the same time that they installed a lift in the Eiffel tower.

I met a cool Quebecan? last night and we headed off to Montmartre and walked around street markets that were running as part of some festival, and in the background you could hear a huge gospel choir singing ‘amazing grace’ outside the Sacre Coeur, which is even more beautiful at night, and isn’t so congested with tourists. I am so sick of being asked if I want a keychain of the Eiffel tower, or a picture of the Eiffel tower. Why would I want your picture of the Eiffel Tower?

My new friend and I had some great conversations by mime – the whole thing was like a really long game of charades which is fun at first and then gets a bit annoying. She knew English quite well, apart from colloquialisms and I was able to ask her – very fluently – where the toilet was, what was the time, turn right, my name is Megan and I speak a little French. Just another way to distinguish myself from the bad bad tourists.

Things I did today:

Champs Elysees

L’arc de Triomphe

Dali exhibition – amazing – they didn’t have the really famous one which is apparently in NY (might see it there), but had a lot of his earlier sketches, where you can see the beginnings of the weird elephants on spindly legs and melting clocks etc.

The Louvre – Mona Lisa – her eyes didn’t follow me round the room. Thanks for nothing Leo.

I actually got out of the Louvre after about half an hour which feels like a waste but I couldn’t breathe and I felt a little nauseous from all the people snapping away and pushing each other to get the best shot of the more famous paintings.

Anyway, I’m off to Roma on the overnight train tonight in the first class cabins! The girl I’m staying with at the backpackers is going on the same train – she’s really cool, but she’s travelling second class. How embarrassing!!!