First day alone. Disorented. I look down at my map as I try to figure out where I am, and where I want to go. No set plans, for my purpose was to familiarize myself with the city through aimless wandering. But hunger pangs were setting in, beckoning a directive for something sweet and cheap. I flip through my Rick Steves, but am completely clueless how to get around, even with his simple cartoon map. I slowly walk past the last fountain of the
Tuileries Gardens, looking for someone to point me in the right direction. I see a small girl walking towards me. "Do you speak english?" she asks with a hopeful smile. "Yes," I reply, thinking to myself "well, if you're lost too, then we're both screwed." She pulls out a little sign which basically read, her "brother" has leukemia and she needs money, with a bunch of little smiley faces all over it. Gypsys. It caught me completely off guard. Struggling to politely excuse myself from the trap, a man walks past and says, "It's a scam just walk away," without breaking his stride. I look at him, and turned away. At first I thought, a seasoned tourist. But then I notice the book in his hand is his only possession. He's undoubtably a foreigner, but with the ease in which he walked, I could tell he was a local. "Good, he can help me" I think as I run up to him. Reeking of a lost tourist, I match his pace and ask for help. I could tell he was a little annoyed. But after explaining that I was more than just a tourist, he lightened up. This is what I found out within the first few minutes of talking to him: goes by the name of J.J.;South African bred; French native loved; retired author; and on one of his daily walks around Paris, which I was now joining him for. We walked around the Louvre, across the Seine, through the Latin Quarter, past Notre Dame, and parted at Hotel de Ville. It was both enjoyable and helpful.
First day alone. Disorented. I look down at my map as I try to figure out where I am, and where I want to go. No set plans, for my purpose was to familiarize myself with the city through aimless wandering. But hunger pangs were setting in, beckoning a directive for something sweet and cheap. I flip through my Rick Steves, but am completely clueless how to get around, even with his simple cartoon map. I slowly walk past the last fountain of the Tuileries Gardens, looking for someone to point me in the right direction. I see a small girl walking towards me. "Do you speak english?" she asks with a hopeful smile. "Yes," I reply, thinking to myself "well, if you're lost too, then we're both screwed." She pulls out a little sign which basically read, her "brother" has leukemia and she needs money, with a bunch of little smiley faces all over it. Gypsys. It caught me completely off guard. Struggling to politely excuse myself from the trap, a man walks past and says, "It's a scam just walk away," without breaking his stride. I look at him, and turned away. At first I thought, a seasoned tourist. But then I notice the book in his hand is his only possession. He's undoubtably a foreigner, but with the ease in which he walked, I could tell he was a local. "Good, he can help me" I think as I run up to him. Reeking of a lost tourist, I match his pace and ask for help. I could tell he was a little annoyed. But after explaining that I was more than just a tourist, he lightened up. This is what I found out within the first few minutes of talking to him: goes by the name of J.J.;South African bred; French native loved; retired author; and on one of his daily walks around Paris, which I was now joining him for. We walked around the Louvre, across the Seine, through the Latin Quarter, past Notre Dame, and parted at Hotel de Ville. It was both enjoyable and helpful.
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