France on Strike

The big news in France today is the general strike that has been going on for the last day or so.

Somewhere between one and three million Frenchmen and Frenchwomen took to the streets in 200 French cities and towns yesterday to protest the current economic problems. How not working is supposed to help their economy kind of escapes me, but we'll ignore the politics of this for the moment.

As a result of the protests about a third of the flights out of Orly airport in Paris and 40% of the regional train schedule were cancelled. In addition about 10% of the nations electrical output was reduced.

The French seem to enjoy going on strike and they do it a lot. The last time a whole bunch of French folks went on strike was all of two months ago.

If there's a strike on while we're there, we're not likely to even notice it unless we run into a demonstration on the streets. French people adapt well to strikes and they tend not to shut down services that would keep tourists from coming to or enjoying their country.

For instance, during yesterday's strike, the Paris metro ran a full schedule and the international flights out of CDG weren't impacted.

Mass strikes like this usually begin genially and end up with young people throwing bottles at the cops while they fire tear gas back in return. Generally the protest culminates in the burning of a few random cars and everyone goes home happy. Yesterday was no exception to this general rule.

Walking Tour

My list of must see sights in Paris on this trip is pretty small.

1. The Orsay Museum
2. Versailles
3. Saint Chappelle/Notre Dame
4. Nighttime bateau mouche trip

If you've never been to Paris, the Louvre and Le Tourre Eiffel are probably things you need to check off of your lifetime list, but I think I'll skip those this time through. Also, I think the ladies are plotting a shopping day, and I'll bow out on that as well.

After that, it's pretty much up for grabs for me. There are a few other "lesser" sites like the sewer tour (or the catacombs, but only one underground visit) and the advertising museum (with my advertising professor wifie) that I may want to visit time permitting.

One thing I'm planning to do is to take several walking self-tours in Paris. I've found a really good book called "Frommer's 24 Great Walks in Paris" that happens to be published by my employer that I'm going to be using.

I got this book a few months ago and have only recently begun to really go through it. It contains 24 themed walks that each cover less than two miles and should take a couple of hours each. Some of them really sound interesting and I'm going to try to knock out several of these while we're there.

Realistically, I don't know how many of these walks I can cover given our limited time in Paris and weather will certainly have an impact on my walking tour plans. Paris really is one of the greatest cities on our planet and there's no way to cover it all in the short time we'll have there.

If you want to join me on any or all of my pedestrian excursions through Paris, you're more than welcome.

There's also a service offered through the Paris tourism board that matches a local volunteer with a small group like ours for a free walking tour. I'll investigate that as we get a little closer.

So much Paris, so little time!

What Not to Pack #2

At the risk of outraging our medical team, I'm leaving the hand sanitizer at home. Here's my rationale--I don't carry the stuff around with me over here and I travel all the time--in fact I'm writing this from a hotel room in Troy. I spend my working days at universities, which are heaven on earth for germs. So if I don't use the Purell on this side of the Atlantic, why should I add weight to my luggage by toting the stuff with me to Europe?

The bathrooms of France typically come with soap and running water as standard equipment, so if you just follow common sense hygiene protocols and wash your hands regularly, you'll be just fine.

Also, I'm sure at least one of you is going to pack an industrial sized bottle of this potion anyway, so if I have a hand sanitizer emergency, I'll bet I can mooch off of you.

The only time I ever do use hand sanitizer is at Jazz Fest in New Orleans, and, trust me, it's necessary to douse yourself in gallons of the life saving goo when you're at Jazz Fest. If you've ever been to Jazz Fest, you know exactly what I mean.

If you do feel the overwhelming urge to bring hand sanitizer with you, remember the whole stupid "liquids and gels" rule limiting what you can carry on and how you have to pack it.

What Not to Pack #1

Here's my first suggestion on items best left unbought or left at home if you already own them. Remember, you're a grownup and you can bring whatever you want with you--this is just my humble opinion. My dear spouse has already warned me that she's planning on writing an impassioned defense of today's what-not-to-pack item.

Today's suggestion on what not to pack is that inflatable mini-flotation device known as the neck pillow. The idea is that it's supposed to make you more comfortable on that long flight across the Atlantic.

I think these are a total waste of space in your carry on bag. The deal is, that you're going to be miserable anyway packed in like a sardine on that 10 hour (or whatever it is) flight from Houston to Paris, and that silly neck pillow isn't going to help you a bit. I've tried them and, if anything, I find them more uncomfortable than just suffering suffering stoically and telling yourself "I can put up with anything for 10 hours" over and over.

The thing that helps me the most is the GPS image that they have on board that shows you where the plane is in relation to where you've been and where you're going. It really helps me know that we're making progress and that the flight will be over at some point.

Packing List--#1 in a series

With less than three months to go, it's time to start thinking about packing for the big trip. So I'm going to give my highly opinionated list of things that I believe should consider taking with you (and I'll also suggest a few things best left at home). Please feel free to pass on your must-have items for inclusion in the list.

My overall rule for packing is to try to keep it as light as possible, although I don't always succeed at this. When planning what to bring with you, try to keep in mind that people have been living in France for thousands of years and everything necessary to sustain life is available over there. So if you forget something, or regret not packing something, don't fret. You can very likely buy whatever you need over there too.

I do suggest that you carry on a change of undies and socks and the minimum number of personal items (cosmetics and sundries) necessary for a day or two should your luggage not arrive with you in France.

Today's entry is that all-purpose tool, the Swiss Army knife. You never know when or why you're going to need it, but you definitely will somewhere along the line to repair small electronics, open up a bottle of wine, cut a piece of cheese or bread, perform minor surgery or who knows what else.

The thing to remember about this item is that it needs to go into your checked suitcase and not your carry on bag or you're likely to donate it to the TSA. I've lost several knives over the years when I've forgotten they were in my carry on and they got confiscated in the interest of public safety.

Found while looking for something else

Another fashion possibility

Here's another sample of current Paris fashion for you ladies to consider as you ponder shopping in the City of Lights.