I LOVE PARIS....so decided to stay with a Host Family found by googling Host Family Paris - came up with Veronique and Michael who live in 13e Olympiades station - after lugging my suitcase up the stairs of many of the Metro stations(Tip # 1 - get a wheeled backpack so at these stations you can carry it on your back) - it was not difficult to find - although an area of contrasts - passing the Polizie then the large African Housing area to get to the apartment. Booked on line to have French lessons there which were very good but found myself speaking mostly english as they like to practice their english.
HINT: Firstly buy a Navigo Pass for 1 week - the week starts Monday irrespective of what day you buy it but if you plan on doing a lot of getting around - it saves you a bomb because a normal Metro fare is 1.70 Euros and Navigo is 5Euro for the card and then 18.75 Euros for a week - and it is soooo convenient. Also if you plan on seeing museums and art gallerys get a Museum Pass - you go into a different line when entering and are given preference becasue you have already bought your ticket..
Had a list of what I wanted to see - remembering almost all museums closed Mondays! I have been before a few times and seen most of the major sites, so in my week long stay I went to:-
Rodin Museum - met and had photo taken with Rick Steves - a famous American travel author (I didn't know him just the Americans were in awe so I asked him for a photo)
Musee d'Orsay - crowd huge so returned early next day
Versailles, fantastic and opulent palace but the best part is the gardens - both formal and country - met a lovely Canadian family Corinne, Kaitlyn and dad, Jerry - hung around with them all day...invited me to their holiday home in Costa Rica in January but I will be in Patagonia then but who knows down the track - I may just visit them...the beauty of travelling alone - meeting great people..
Catacombes - miles of skulls and bones - about 6 million people buried there...a little spooky - the fellow I was walking with had bought a new phone and both here and in a cemetery he went to, it stopped working...ooooooooohhhh!!
Also went to Musee de l'Orangerie - near the Louvre - just terrific with Monets 6 - 7 metre long paintings lining the walls - Monet painted them from 1914 - 1926 and gave them to the French Government just before he died in 1926 - they are so beautiful and so tranquille - it was very special.
Also decided to do a Fat Tire Bike Tour to Giverny to see Monets gardens - just amazing - the lasrgest selection of plants making up the gardens and lily ponds that Monet lovely to paint.
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