|
|
Parisian Christmas gluttony!
|
Sometime around Thanksgiving, as the world was swinging madly into holiday gear, we started talking about what the hell we were going to do with ourselves over the holidays. Having somehow successfully dodged the family guilt trip for the second consecutive year, we had to decide where in Europe was the most ideal choice for some holiday lounging, eating, and other general X-mas related festivities. Paris was close, definitely festive, and quite obviously the best choice for holiday gluttony. Randy's friend Dave, who is absolutely hilarious sober and exponentially more so drunk, had some free time and was going to come out and join us for the week. The plan seemed to be coming together quite nicely when a friend of ours offered up his Paris flat for a bargain basement price; that pretty much sealed the deal. So on Dec 20th, after another enthralling round of Peugeut puzzle packing - we (and all our crap) drove up to Charles De Gualle and picked up Dave.
|
|
Chilling in our fortunate central Paris apartment.
|
At this point in time, our friend Mathias (who loaned us the Parisian apartment) is speeding off toward the coast for a two week sailing holiday in Brittany. At around the same time we arrived in the lush courtyard of his upscale apartment building. Unfortunately for us, at that very same moment, three of Mathias' elderly neighbors happen to be having one of their regularly scheduled people watching sessions from their windows. Here is what they saw - three heavily burduned youths, one derilct looking old Peugeut, and a large excited dog entering their posh residence. Up to this point I had largely dismissed the stereotypical Parisian snootiness, but the next 30 minutes brought it back and then amplified it. The three disgruntled residents rushed immediately to the door and barred our entry. "Le chien est interit ici". From here the situation got really fun. After one of the residents rushed off to call the actual proprietor of the apartment we learned that the proprietor didn't even know Mathias and was under the assumption that she was only renting to Mathias' flatmate. After a quick call to Mathias, he added the oh-so-important fact that the proprietor happened to be slightly crazy. The wary tenants let us know that at that very moment she was working at her lingere shop just around the corner. From this point the situation unfolded as follows: haughty pensioners put on happy face and cajole us into going and talking to the crazy proprietor in the hopes of maybe convincing her to let us stay at her place, crazy proprietor has no intention of letting us near her place and demands for us to give her Mathias' key, Mathias now has no key to his apartment and we have a car full of luggage and nowhere to stay in Paris. The three residents gave us a smug satisfied smile, secure in the knowledge that their building is now safe from three american hoodlums, and retired to their lair.
|
|
The tower from the river.
|
Things were not looking good. Randy and I were pretty much broke and couldn't afford to fork it out for a hotel in Paris for a whole week. We did some quick legwork and found a two star hotel with a closet that was within our price range. Yet in an amazing twist of luck, Dave had the number of a guy from an apartment rental agency. This guy found us a delux four bedroom apartment right next the the Center Pompideau that, either because of last minute booking or our pathetic attempts at bargaining, we managed to get for less than any of the hotels we had just been looking at. So it all worked out in the end, except for poor Mathias who may or may not have an apartment when he returns from his holidays:(
|
|
The team in front of La Défense.
|
(click on photos to enlarge)
|
|
|
Paul using lamplight for a slippery ascent of the classic La Baleine.
|
After more than a year of exceedingly good luck with the weather, mother nature has finally seen fit to bring our european adventure back into the proper perspective. Like gamblers riding a hot streak at the craps table, we've certainly been pushing our luck by extending our trip. In a game against the odds, the house is bound to even the score. The law of averages has been dealing a few events our way to bring things back into perspective: Europe can be a rainy, wet place. This autumn has proven that point to a t, gradually cranking open the tap as we've moved deeper into the season. Making matters worse, the generally quick drying sandstone forest has transformed into a foggy, moist, drippy swamp land. Yikes!
|
|
Courtney enjoying a beautiful break in the weather at quick drying Mont Pivot.
|
And yet, it seems just when things are getting the grimmest, mother nature keeps us holding onto a slim thread of hope, granting us the occasional perfect, crisp, dreamy Font day. Thank god for those days and what we managed to make of them. John rose from his sick bed (a never-ending, morale-destroying, nasty illness) and promptly cleaned up at Cuvier before collapsing once again at night fall. Paul steadily picking his moments to dispatch each problem he set his mind to. Lyn hammering it to her body day in, day out even on the wettest of rock. Dave led the way as always showing grit and determination in facing down an uncharacteristic slump. And Courtney unflappably kept drumming area with her positive outlook through it all. For someone in love with climbing like me, plently of positive inspiration abounds. - rp
|
|
John Wainright working out the moves on C'etait Demain in preparation for his amazing one day assault.
|
(click on photos to enlarge)
|
|
Ex-patriot Dave (climbing Take It Easy) cruising through Drei Zinnen on his last day in Europe before returning to the States for a work related vacation.
|
|
