Day 174 – Let’s go to Paris!
I woke early to say goodbye to Christelle before she headed off to work early. It was fabulous catching up with her after so many years. Whilst it would have been amazing to meet her three boys, we were grateful that we could use their bedroom in their absence. I received an email from an old friend in Australia a couple of weeks ago saying she would be in Paris this weekend and asked if we would be in the area. Well, Belgium, France, yeah we were kind of in the area so when I received another email this morning asking if we were able to meet her and her husband I thought, what the heck. Let’s go to Paris!
I spoke with a half sleepy Steve and he agreed (as he is the driver) so I immediately got online to research where we could stay. I booked a youth hostel for four nights at 400 Euro for a family room, the cheapest accommodation in Paris. Then I emailed my friend to let her know we were going to be in town. We got ourselves organised to leave Fleron. We managed to wash the rest of our laundry so everything we owned was clean again before we left. We charged all electronics; packed the car; bought groceries at ‘Carrefour’ so we could picnic anywhere along the road to Paris and off we went.
We stopped for lunch just inside the border of Belgium at a large roadhouse. The boys enjoyed the chance to use their scooters on a concrete track that looked as if it had been built for that purpose. Back in the car for more driving and I read up on Paris on the way. Thankfully the GPS got us through the traffic in the outer suburbs of Paris perfectly to our hostel. I was worried about car parking because I didn’t know if they offered parking or not. I was relieved to learn that they did have car parking so we can leave our car safely for the next 4 days whilst we use public transport. Plus, the area was a little dodgy looking. From our hostel window we could see a few ‘secret handshakes’ taking place on the street!
We ventured down the street to find the Metro stop and the local supermarket. Just as we left it started to pour with rain so luckily we were prepared with our umbrella and raincoats with us. We grabbed some groceries for dinner and picnic supplies for tomorrow. Back at the hostel I cooked good old spaghetti bolognaise, staple backpackers food, whilst the boys enjoyed sitting at the tables drawing. The showers in the hostel were cold and the worst we have come across and worse than any we experienced even in campgrounds (except for the 4 second wonder shower I had once). Maybe when we stay in Calais I’ll book something better so we are guaranteed a decent shower. How will I ever wash my long hair in cold water??
Did a bit of research on Paris for kids on the internet, 3 Euro for 2 hours wifi which is pretty good. Now have a list of places to go and things to see over the next few days. I haven’t included photos for this post yet … although there really isn’t anything that exciting about a day sitting in a car or the youth hostel we are in! If I come across any decent photos I may add them in. Check out our first day in Paris for some cool photos!
Hi Karina, Steve, Harris and Patrick
I’m so glad we didn’t put you off going to Paris. Steve will be happy!
We had a little foray into the outskirts of Paris and yes, it’s a side not many tourists venture to.
It was great to meet you all…your travels are very inspiring and looking forward to keeping track via the blog.
Robyn, Vic and James
Hi there, Thanks for taking a peek at our site. We did have fun in Paris but glad to leave it as well! We loved the drive to Calais with the beautiful countryside. Thanks for reading.
Karina and the boys