Exploring Paris - La Chine Femme
Bounded out of the house as early as 5.30 am to catch the Tube to Waterloo station.
I liked the Eurostar - clean, comfortable and has touch-sensitive panel buttons that open doors with a swoosh, a la Star Trek.
Gare du Nord is a busy busy station. Arriving there, I bought a Carte Orange ticket that was good for Zones 1 & 2 (which was much cheaper than a Paris Visite card). Managed to get to my hotel, the unpretentious and unrated Hotel Tolbiac, which was located at the edge of Chinatown.
Actually it's a bit of a misnomer to call it Chinatown. The area was full of Vietnamese and Laotians and as I discovered later, the hotel was popular with lecturers and students who stay for a few days for lessons at the nearby Cite Universitaire.
The Hotel looked a little dreadful at first. As I was recce-ing the surroundings, in the same corridor, there were a black, a Vietnamese and a few ang mos. Unfortunately, I found out that I was the only female on the floor. At the cheapest rate of 23 euros/night, I have no ensuite facilities. I have to use the toilet (thankfully right outside my room), and sprint upstairs for my bath (again, thankfully, with plenty of hot water).
Everything looked a little tired and I was given a room near the top floor (3 floors of stair climbing up a rickety staircase). But, the only compensation was that the French owner, Karolyn, spoke excellent English and could point out a few sights that I should consider visiting.
***
I found paradise in a park.
I love the Jardin du Luxembourg. Lovely statutes were scattered all over the gardens, and there was a beautiful fountain (known as the Medici Fountain) featuring a giant looking down at a pair of lovers. Many people love to sit at the fountain and sketch, read their papers or just shooting the breeze.
I unpacked my baguette and Edam cheese which I've bought at the Tolbiac Monoprix supermarket and sat down at a park bench to enjoy the sunshine. The French believed that grass is for looking upon and not for sitting - you'll never find the French sprawling on the grass as the English did in Hyde Park.
I liked visiting parks - you can always see dogs and cute kids playing about. Young couples love to stop half way during their walks to kiss and hug - the French are obviously less inhibited than their British counterparts!
Even the elderly are dressed very stylishly in Paris. One old lady who could barely walk, tottered across the gardens in a pair of white heels, dressed to the nines in a chic black coat and gold chains. I positively looked underdressed, with my green parka.
One thing about travelling alone, I realised, is that it brought unwanted attention. Especially from men. It might have to do with the exoticism that Europeans like about Asian women. At Luxembourgh I had a few men asking where I'm from and if I want to be friends with them. Arrggh! One person waxed lyrical in French about "La Chine femme" (the rest I'm not sure what is he talking about). I had a vague idea he is referring to me. Hopped into a bookshop for a French-English dictionary later during my trip to find out that it means "the China woman", aka me, since most ang mos cannot differentiate between Chinese, Vietnamese and other Asian people.
Quite a dream come true to visit the Luxumbourg after gazing at the photos shot by Life magazine. :)
I liked the Eurostar - clean, comfortable and has touch-sensitive panel buttons that open doors with a swoosh, a la Star Trek.
Gare du Nord is a busy busy station. Arriving there, I bought a Carte Orange ticket that was good for Zones 1 & 2 (which was much cheaper than a Paris Visite card). Managed to get to my hotel, the unpretentious and unrated Hotel Tolbiac, which was located at the edge of Chinatown.
Actually it's a bit of a misnomer to call it Chinatown. The area was full of Vietnamese and Laotians and as I discovered later, the hotel was popular with lecturers and students who stay for a few days for lessons at the nearby Cite Universitaire.
The Hotel looked a little dreadful at first. As I was recce-ing the surroundings, in the same corridor, there were a black, a Vietnamese and a few ang mos. Unfortunately, I found out that I was the only female on the floor. At the cheapest rate of 23 euros/night, I have no ensuite facilities. I have to use the toilet (thankfully right outside my room), and sprint upstairs for my bath (again, thankfully, with plenty of hot water).
Everything looked a little tired and I was given a room near the top floor (3 floors of stair climbing up a rickety staircase). But, the only compensation was that the French owner, Karolyn, spoke excellent English and could point out a few sights that I should consider visiting.
***
I found paradise in a park.
I love the Jardin du Luxembourg. Lovely statutes were scattered all over the gardens, and there was a beautiful fountain (known as the Medici Fountain) featuring a giant looking down at a pair of lovers. Many people love to sit at the fountain and sketch, read their papers or just shooting the breeze.
I unpacked my baguette and Edam cheese which I've bought at the Tolbiac Monoprix supermarket and sat down at a park bench to enjoy the sunshine. The French believed that grass is for looking upon and not for sitting - you'll never find the French sprawling on the grass as the English did in Hyde Park.
I liked visiting parks - you can always see dogs and cute kids playing about. Young couples love to stop half way during their walks to kiss and hug - the French are obviously less inhibited than their British counterparts!
Even the elderly are dressed very stylishly in Paris. One old lady who could barely walk, tottered across the gardens in a pair of white heels, dressed to the nines in a chic black coat and gold chains. I positively looked underdressed, with my green parka.
One thing about travelling alone, I realised, is that it brought unwanted attention. Especially from men. It might have to do with the exoticism that Europeans like about Asian women. At Luxembourgh I had a few men asking where I'm from and if I want to be friends with them. Arrggh! One person waxed lyrical in French about "La Chine femme" (the rest I'm not sure what is he talking about). I had a vague idea he is referring to me. Hopped into a bookshop for a French-English dictionary later during my trip to find out that it means "the China woman", aka me, since most ang mos cannot differentiate between Chinese, Vietnamese and other Asian people.
Quite a dream come true to visit the Luxumbourg after gazing at the photos shot by Life magazine. :)
posted by Leng at 11:31 PM
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