My Final Thoughts on the Trip of a Lifetime

We left Paris on Saturday morning, nearly 3 hours late, and missed our afternoon connection which would've put us in around 5:30 p.m.  Instead, we're toughing it out in the Delta Sky Club (one of the perks of our ticket class), and I have a chance to write my final thoughts on our trip of a lifetime.  I asked Cheryl what she wanted me to include and she said that, at first, she wasn't too keen on a month away but that time with family and all the wonderful things we saw were priceless.  I agree.

And what of my thoughts to add on our 30 days in Paris?  C’est magnifique!  I’m glad we had the extended time because there was a lot to see and (mostly) I (and occasionally Cheryl) felt our age some times and took things easy.  But, geez, when we did see things, we saw a lot of things.

Montemarte (twice).  The Eiffel Tower (up close several times).  Paris views from the rooftop of Galleries Layfayette, the Eiffel Tower, Monteparsne, the Pompidou Centre. Les Invalides and Napoleon’s Tomb (and his hat in the bar where he was too poor to pay his bill!).  Musee d’Orsay.  The Louvre. Versailles. Giverny.  Wonderful French markets for food, vegetables, and fruit (March Enfant de Rouge).  The beautiful Seine River.  Notre Dame Cathedral (and the very moving Crown of Thorns). The list seems endless.

France is, indeed, a wonderful country.  While I had gotten prepped by following a site called “Les Frenchies”, not everything on it was useful.  For example, they built up the fear of pickpockets and thieves.  As long as one is careful with their stuff, there’s no need to be afraid – any time, day or night. Another bit of fearmongering came around use of taxis vs. the metro system vs. Uber, with many disdaining the first two for the latter.  That couldn't have proven to be further from reality.

The ability to get around is truly extraordinary.  We walked.  We took the wonderful metro system of subway trains that reached everywhere in the city.  We used the RER (French railroad system) to reach further out places.  We took Uber when our energies were flagging or the walk/metro ride was simply too much at the moment.   It is so easy to navigate.

The cafes and restaurants are bustling – all of the time – day and night.  The food was universally good and we ate everything ranging from at our apartment (3 times for dinner) to breakfast, lunch, and dinner out at places from the very average to the very exquisite.  One doesn’t go wanting for food, either, as there is a grocery store nearly on every corner.  As mentioned in a post, though, these grocery stores have very little to offer in fruit, produce, or meat.  The French get those from neighborhood markets and those, too, are relatively plentiful.  It is very different than the way it works in the US but certainly works for them and worked well for us, too.

And those French people.  While we got signals from some (mostly TV caricatures of the French), the people were really nice and fun to be around.  Almost everyone, it seems, speaks Anglais (English), except most of the cab and Uber drivers who seem to be from North Africa.  For those that don’t, if you simply try to say a few words or phrases in French, it almost always works out.  Those French who do know English appreciate the effort and don’t mind quickly switching to a second language.  It is truly impressive how many of them speak a second (or more) language fluently.

Although the country struggles with many of the same things economically as we do in the US (e.g., inflation), their president is an honorable man although not universally liked in France, similar again to the US.  The homeless problem exists as you can see the unhoused in a lot of places, but nothing like I’ve seen in American cities (e.g., Philadelphia).  They’ll miss having Cheryl around because, good soul that she is, never fails to drop Euro coins in their cup with a warm “God bless you” attached.

My wife and children and families were all really good to me while I was there.  I mentioned having ups and downs health-wise but no one let that interfere with everyone enjoying themselves.  They always made sure I was well taken care of and, when feeling good (which was about 90% of the time) got to do what I wanted to do and go where I wanted to go.  It was a real treat to have each of our three children for a week at a time and give them this gift of the City of Light.  Having Jeff get engaged to the lovely Leigh Carville was an added bonus.  And, having dear friend Connie Melton along with nephew Ray Creamer and Brenda was icing on the cake.  Everyone got to enjoy themselves and create lasting memories of time with Cheryl and I in, perhaps, the world’s most beautiful city.

But all good things must come to an end, eh?  I look forward to retrieving our beloved friend Hope from her kennel where she gets A-1 care when we’re gone. And, I’m sure she’ll be glad to visit the dog park as much as possible with us.  I relish the thought of getting back into my daily exercise routine.  Cheryl can’t wait to get back on the ice and work toward her silver medal of achievement.  And, while some may think this is the doldrums for sports, we’ve got the Cavs playoff chase and the Reds to follow avidly.

So in closing, thanks for indulging me with reading the blog.  Creative writing has always been fun for me, and I hope you’ve enjoyed my observations.  We’re starting to talk about our next big trip and throwing around ideas like the Panama Canal (where my father was stationed for several years in the US Army pre-WWII), but haven’t settled on anything yet.

Thank you again for your time, love, and support.  Until we see each other (hopefully soon), au revoir!