Strange things in Paris

5 March 2008: Our next day in Paris was all about stocking up again. I know, it seems to be my theme, but some things don’t change when you are feeding a growing kid, right? Anyway, getting to a Paris bio market (yea, we found one!) was a good way to “test” our skills with getting around the city. And, it wasn’t as bad as the map looks confusing. Actually, it was pretty easy. Bus to the Metro Line 1, to the Metro line 2, go down a couple stops, and figure out where the street the market was on. I do get a bit confused though, then streets are arranged like bike wheel spokes. Also on that street/alley, there were some GREAT stalls/vendors with produce, seafood, and other specialties. It was almost like a farmer’s market. The strawberries were AMAZINGLY red and shiny! The flowers were so fresh, vibrant and beautiful. As were everything else we saw… It was so fun to shop like a Parisian!

We also decided to get some laundry out of the way. Unfortunately, the facilities at the campground were out of order. We had a big bag of clothes and being somewhat lazy, we thought we could maneuver the camper 3-4 blocks down the street to a Laundromat rather than carrying it, and Sean could drop me off while I throw the clothes in a machine. There was a homeless, gypsy-looking lady in there, not doing any laundry, singing and talking to herself and smoking even though there was a large sign of a cigarette and a red circle and slash going over it. I fumbled to figure out how to use the machines, reading French. And, as I was throwing laundry in, she tapped me on the head and said who-knows-what to me. She kind of freaked me out! I guess I was over reacting, but after that, I was paranoid to leave our clothes. And wouldn’t you know it, ONE round of the washing machine took at least 1 ½ to 2 hours. That’s the longest I’ve EVER seen a wash take! And, it completely thrashed our clothes. Whites were grey, blacks had lint all over them, sweaters out of shape and ragged at the edges. Oh well, at least they’re clean. All the while I was standing outside in the cold as to not breathe smoke fumes or have her talk to me. Meanwhile, Sean’s circling a crazy neighborhood full of rush-hour traffic. It was getting late, and there was no WAY I was about to stay for them to dry! And, wouldn’t you know it, she was kicked out by a maintenance guy as we were driving away.

The next day, it was raining when we woke, and Kai had a fever. I guess she caught it from me. So, it was all about taking it easy, which was just fine. We returned to a quiet, “daytime” Laundromat to finish the clothes and then headed to a café where I saw a “free wifi” sticker a few days before. Luckily, I was able to get connected, do some fixes and my computer seems to be working again….crossing my fingers!

Upon returning to the campsite, a camper a couple spots over from us was being hermetically sealed off with tape and white tarp and a bunch of people taking pictures of it. At first, I thought “it couldn’t be that they’re fumigating the thing for termite damage like they do for buildings!” Then, creepy thoughts started running through my head. I started to remember that, as we were driving off a couple hours earlier, there were a couple guys already there, and it seemed as though they could have been dusting the vehicle for fingerprints. Their cars weren’t police cars. And, I didn’t seem them put up yellow “Scene de Criminal” tape around the perimeter. There were no dead bodies laying there. (Maybe they were removed while we were gone.) But, something was definitely fishy! So, if anyone sees anything about “Paris Campground” in the news, either email me or post a comment on this blog. Getting connected while on the road isn’t that accessible or frequent thus far. But, let me know AFTER Sunday, after we leave. Again, I suppose being in a large, strange city is getting the best of me. But, some actual fun in Paris is on the way!