Back to Paris

On the morning of  November 6th  dona and I ate a small breakfast at the hotel and headed toward the Nice train station.  Our train was to leave at 10:35 in the morning and we were traveling 1st class.  1 class only cost about 20 euros more and we both felt after our trip from Rome we deserved some luxury.  Our railroad car was the first car and we had to walk a long way on the platform.  The train arrived on time and we go on.  the seats were great and I had plenty of room for my big suitcase.  We met on the train a lady who came from Alaska who had been a month in south France learning French and seeing the sites.  She came and sat in our area as at that time seated in the seats were only Dona and me.  We talked about learning French, what we saw when we were in Nice and what it was like back home in Fairbanks Alaska and Chicago.  The conductdor came up to us and said we were talking to loud and please lower our voices.  We did not think we were talking to loud but we obiged him and tried to talk softer..    The train  got into Paris at 4:20 and we headed for the taxi stand.  It was raining in Paris and there were many people in line waiting for a taxi.  We did not have to wait to long and before we knew it we were in a taxi heading to mouffetard street. I had rented for us a similar apartment for Dona and I close to the other apartment.  I would have taken the other apartment but it was not available..  The owners directions were that this was a pedestrian walkway off of Mouffetard at the 104 address.  Part of Mouffetard street is closed on saturdays and the cab could only take us to about a block from the pedestrian walkway called Passage des Postes.  I figured out the other day that this passage is called this because if you take it the other way it leads to the post office.  When we found the passage, I was not sure which door to put the code.  I also was confused as to the fact that their was no gate to the passage.   I did see doors however that had the entrance key pad..  The instructions were that the door was on the right.  I tried to press the code into some of the doors but the doors did not budge.  I saw a man and a child go into one of the apartments and I asked him if he knew where the apartment might be.  He said that their were a number of apts in the areas that were used by tourists and he told me not to be discouraged.  I went across the passage and put in the code and it worked.  I then looked for a door with a lock box.  There were no lock boxes.  The owners directions said that it would be on the first floor but the apartment door that was in that building did not have a lock box that I could use my code to get the key.  There were steps and I climbed the steps to see if any other doors might have the look box.  None of the doors did.  Poor Dona had to follow me around as I was checking the doors. She stayed in the halway of the door that the code had worked.  I saw a door on the other side of the passage that I had not notice before.  Could it be that the code would work in that door too.  It was worth a try.  Voila, it worked and I saw the door on the inside had a lock box.  Huray I found it.  I put in the code and it worked too.  I unlocked the door and Dona and I now had a place to stay for the next 10 nights.  I was so happy and relieved that I figured it out.  We got the luggage in and looked around.  The apartment is on the first floor with no steps leading up to it.  That is a plus!  The apartment had a kitchen with a dinette table and a preety large couch.  The computer,Tv and efficency kitchen is under a loft that holds a queen zize bed.  The stairs up to the bed looked a little more sturdy than the other apartments lovv.  Then there was the other bedroom with two bunks.  the top bunk is very high up and I doubt if Dona or I will ever use that.  The bathroom was similar to the other bathroom in the other apartment.  We looked in the refrigerator and found that the previous tenant had left us some cheese.  Delicious bree cheese.  We had some crackers from the lunch ,the place from Rome had packed for us, and we sat there eating cheese and crackers and some salami that was left too.  These tidbits were very tasty!  We then decided to take a walk and go the mexican restaurant that i had told Dona about as we were not that hungry after eating the cheese and salami.  We found the mexican restaurant that Glenda and I had gone to before.  We both got chix burritoes and beer. On the way back to the apartment we stopped at the grocery store where we picked up some fresh groceries of coffee, milk, eggs bread, paper towels and a bottle of water.  Cona bought some wine, and beer.  We left for the apartment but when we got there I had a difficult time remembering again what door it was.  I remember what the tour director said about Venice. Everyone gets lost for 2 minutes and then they find their way.  I figured if I could find my way in Venice, and I did, that I could remember or find the right passage and door. Sure enough I found the right door and all the codes worked.  We both agreed that the apartment is very cute and useful. Neither one of us stayed up long and we both headed for bed.  Dona slept in the little bedroom with the suitcases and the bunk beds and I climbed up into the loff.