Matt (sleeping on my floor), Paul and I left Regent's at 8 this morning and headed to St. Pancras (unfortunate name) International station to board the Eurostar to Paris. While Paul and I got through security pretty smoothly, Matt was delayed and searched because the scanner picked up a Tanzanian spear with a tipped arrowhead in his luggage. The nerve of those security punks! Luckily, we all made the train with time to spare and enjoyed the trip pretty peacefully as the train rocked us to near sleep. I got destroyed in a game of rummy which I suggested and it came even more painfully as Matt was playing his first ever game...
Once we got to Paris, we hiked with our luggage from the station to our hostel which was about a kilometer away. Matt and I have our hiking backpacks but poor Paul has 45 lbs of luggage in a heavy rolling suitcase. I say poor Paul because he was laughing at us as we heaved while he rolled his things for that kilometer... but then when we got to the hostel our room was on the 7th floor (no elevator).
In Paul's defense, Matt just got back from climbing Kilimanjaro and said that the staircase was comparable. Just imagine the physical condition we'll be in in 5 days after climbing this multiple times a day! The view from our balcony, however, is definitely worth it.
On our way down to get some lunch, we met Wayne, Kelsey, Molly and Rachel and headed off to see Sacre Coeur which is the most popular attraction in Montmartre. It was really beautiful inside and completely different from the gothic churches and cathedrals elsewhere in Europe. The prayers were being sung beautifully inside as well.
The view from the Sacre Coeur atop Montmartre was really spectacular as well. In the Paris heat, however, (topping 35 degrees Celsius... 95 Fahrenheit), us guys just needed to cool off in a fountain for a bit.
Wayne then led us through Montmartre on a quest to find the Moulin Rouge which we did.
To get there, however, we had to go through an area of Paris that we won't recommend for anyone... and that we probably won't be going through again. (Think Times Square circa 1985).
Finally, we went back to our hostel to watch some crazy World Cup action. Go Espana!
We're off for more adventures tomorrow so check back soon!
-Simon
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