Homeless to the LOUVRE

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Fell asleep in no time in this dark corner of the station. Very elegant station I must say. I slept for about an hour and then my train was there to take me to PARIS!! Well not quite actually I had to do a couple of trains to avoid those nasty reservation fees. The train left from Antwerp at around 630 and I was fast asleep in no time. We came to a stop sooner then I expected and the anouncer came on saying something or other totally in French. It turned out this was the last stop. There was construction on the track in front and we had to catch a bus to get to the city of Amiens. This trip led us right through the battle fields of the SOMME. Mostly flat farm land it was hard to imagine what it would be like just 70 years ago.
Jumped on the bus with the rest of them. Took off to get to Amiens through the country setting. Saw some pretty cool architecture around the small towns we went through. Its really all about the church for most of this part of the world. Its very clear where the money is going into. Got to Amiens and decided to explore the town with a bit over an hour till the next train to Paris came. Walked in to see the massive Notre Dame cathedral they had there. Wow quite the tower. There is a few cathedrals called Notre Dame but arent the one your thinking of in Paris. Walked back and grabbed a couple beers for the train.
Got on the train to Paris Est. Only took a bit more than an hour to get there. WOW it really hit me that I was gonna be in Paris today. The city of all cities some say. It has also been called the most BEAUTIFUL city in the world, and I was gonna be there to enjoy it. I got out of the staion and realized just how bloody big it was. I was in one of the 5 Major stations of Paris. Each station served different countries and cities. Well I either had to find a place quick or think of something else. Maybe leave and the come back.I bought my ticket and took the metro from the station to the center as best as I could by the Notre Dame. There were guys just hoping over the damn thing to avoid paying. GENIUS. Tooke the metro from deciphering from the metro map and found my station. Jumped off near the Louvre.
Wandered around and found the nearest Mcdonals. This was a high tech Mcdicks actually. They had ppl with machines as you were in line that took your order and paid them. There was also a computer program you could use to order and pay. Got myself a coffee and after making sure they had it (because they dont always do) and jumped on the net to book the cheapest hostel I could. Well I found one that was decent and even close to town for 27 Euro a night. That was the best deal I could find. AHHHH shit Ive been homeless for the past two nights why not splurge eh. The place was called OOPS. It was described as Paris's first art designed hostel. Ha whatever that meant. The pain in the ass about trying to book this hostel was that everywhere that was cheaper you had to book the whole room and pay for all the beds rather than just yours. I never have seen that before in any city. Stupid french and there stupid rules. HA Im glad that I found something anyways.
But now I was downtown anyways and I might as well explore even though I have the big bag with me.Ok well im gonna go to the LOUVRE and check it out. Just have a quick look and maybe do it tommorow. Walked through this sqaure and saw some steeples peering out from the city line. There are not too many sky scrapers around Paris so thats kind of unique. Walked around the corner and through a HUGE ornate gate which turned out to be the LOUVRE. WOW i walked through the huge ass northern square and went south. Walked through the entrance way and saw Napoleans statue there. Even more impressive was the Glass Pyramid in the middle of the LOUVRE. WOW i have been looking forward to seeing this in real life ever since I read the Da Vinci code. Amazing. It was so impressive to see all the work put into this place.
People were all lounging in the square and some were even putting there feet in the fountains. It was like it was made for it though. TONS of ppl though man. Saw the line up wasnt too bad and decdided to check out how much it was gonna cost to get in this sucker. Well half price was after 6 today and Friday so I might as well do it today. I lined up. Put my two bags through the scanner and took the escalator down below the pyramid. They checked my bag for me for nothing which was great. It was 500 now so I had an hour more to explore around weightlessly before they would give me the discount.
I went back outside and continued south down world reknowned path to the Arc de Triumph. Straight line all the way. Beautiful everything. There were gardens and fountains all sorts of scenic stuff. It was bloody hot as well. I got as far down as the Plaza of Concordes. Crazy big intersection that I ran across. Not the best idea I had. But there was construction going on everywhere. I walked up saw the Arc in the distance with all the flags outlining the street. Turned around to be a few mins early with the lines and everything. Saw this cool statue which I thought was pretty powerful of this lady with a tiny torso but a huge muscular build. High expectations in those days. Just be thankful ladies. Hahha. Missed the line and went downstairs. I was here in the LOUVRE and I was pretty damn stoked. The lady said oh your free. Actually where are u from. I said ummm Canada. Oh no you have to pay. SH ITTTTTTTTTTT should of said the Uk she would have totally let me in for freeeeeeeeeeee.
I figure get the MOna LIsa out of the way first and then enjoy what I can with the time I have. Sounds good. SO i followed the signs up and up and up. Wow so now I realized that all these buildings surrounding me were the museum. OH MY GOD. 3 hours isnt gonna cut it. Ha oh well do what I can right. I made it up to the top and started my way down the Massive hall. 30,000 PAINTINGS thats what they have on display at any given time at the LOUVRE. Can you believe that. Naploean was somewhat of a thief in my eyes. I came across many unbelievable paintings including Leonardos Madonna and Child. My jaw literally fell to the floor just examing this painting up close with my own eyes. No one else really even cared about this one. They ALL wanted to see the Mona Lisa.
There was a room for it, in which it was on hung ordinarily amongst many other masterpieces. There was about 200 ppl in this room all crowding in to get as close as they could. Everyone was taking pics. It was a bloody well paparazi lightning fest. The sign was very clear as well NO PICTURES. But this happens everyday and all day. I guess they just gave up after awhile. AHAHA. There is about 2 ft of glass in between the painting and the atmosphere. I remember very clearly my mom telling me when we were visiting the Leonardo Exhibit at the Royal museum back home that she said it was very small. Those words stuck in my head as I walked through the maze of a museum. To me it wasnt small at all. It was average size of a potrait. But I guess some people would expect something GODLY about this painting that it disapoints them in size. NOT ME. I know its just a painting. Someone decided that it was the BEST painting in the world sometime and the rest of the world hs agreed ever since.
Very cool to see this masterpiece. I have been waiting most of my life to see it. Directly behind the Mona lisa was one of the biggest paintings ever made. Very beautiful. I seem to remember a puzzle of this painting.
Soooo many paintings. Most Italian artwork from that period is very similar. Not that it got boring just repeating over and over. Not that big of a religous fan either so I started getting a bit tired already. HAAAAAAAA i hadnt even done one hall yet. Next I wanted to see the Artifacts. Kind of a confusing building if youve ever been around it. I saw the Spanish artwork and then went through the artifacts part. So many things. I cant even begin to tell you what I saw. Greek, Roman, Egyptian, all of the great empires all had Massive amounts of artifacts. I went back through because I missed one very important artifact I couldnt leave without seeing. Venus de Milo from ancient Greece.
Around 9 I got soooooooooo tired. I went through the acient ground work of the palace below. So cool. Saw the Egyptian tombs and even a preserved body. Cats all kinds of crazy stuff. I had to have a rest. THe museum closed in 20 mins so I grabbed my pack and left.
Ahhhh ok make it to the hostel now. WOW i cant believe I just was there. I jumped on the metro and after a few mins of banging on the glass I got the attention of the lady at the metro at information hiding in the back. She told me where I could find Les Golbliens in this massive ass city. Took the tram there and made my way down the street through the hordes of ppl lining up at the movie theatre. The hostel was not too far away thank god. The lady at the desk was swamped with ppl needing things. Took me 20 mins to get sorted and they didnt have a key for me! 27 EURO and no key come on now.
Got inside and laid my stuff down. Met a guy in the room from Turkey who was younger maybe 18. First thing I wanted to do was to have a shower. I was drenched in sweat. After that I went outside and found something to eat. A few doors down was this little cafe place was pretty cheap actually. I think I paid 2 Euro for a cheeseburger and got a drink and some chips for 3.00. Not too bad for Paris I thought.
Went back to the hostel and jumped on the internet for a bit. Met the other roomies. ONe was from Germany, another Poland, and this American girl came in later. I was trying to find a place to go out and check out the town around here. Didnt find too much and I felt like getting a good sleep in this expensive ass place. So I went out for abit walking around looking if any place was good for a drink or two. Found a couple places and a had a drink and then walked back to the hostel. Got to talk to my mom for a bit on skype which was nice.
The American girl had lost her phone and asked me if i had a phone. I said no but i could skype it as everyone else was sleeping. Luckily she found it pretty quick. Then I washed up and jumped into bed around 2!!!! Nighty NIghT

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Photos

metro
Paris is hugeass