Thursday, November 4th
Since I am an earlier riser, I have about 90 minutes or so to hang around in the small lobby and breakfast room before my sister comes down. This turns out to be plenty of time to observe some interesting behavior as guests arrive and depart.
A harried-looking German couple arrives with too much heavy luggage banging and getting caught in the doorway, bickering and squabbling as they struggle to the front desk. The agitated woman stands off to the side sniffling and wiping tears away as her husband sweats profusely and talks to the lady at the front desk in a voice that is too loud and falsely chipper. I recognize the "happy act" immediately, having endured many "vacations" which played out in this exact way.
Cute and stylish gay couple arrive wearing matching scarves and berets, eager to get out and shop for antique chaise lounges and wrought iron bird cages. I wonder if they know that they are a day late for the flea markets!
There is one computer in the busy lobby for general use with a 10-minute limit and a strangely high, uncomfortable stool to sit on. The Internet connection is painfully slow and the keyboard is arranged differently than our American keyboards, making it challenging to type out even the briefest of messages. On two separate occasions, a large, imposingly mannish woman dressed in cargo shorts and a plastic rain poncho hangs over my shoulder, commenting on the keyboard and breathing down my neck waiting for her turn on the computer. I sign off before my 10 minutes are up and sulk impatiently in the reading nook while she surfs the Internet and coughs all over the computer screen.
I catch the end of a heated tirade between an older American woman and the lady at the front desk. The argument is about the broken toilet seat in American woman’s room, and how she should have the rate of her room discounted by 1/3 because of the severe inconvenience of having to straddle a broken seat every time she uses the toilet. Front desk lady is trying to stay calm, but her voice is escalating to match that of the American bully who is threatening to call her lawyer AND American Express travel services to help her handle this dire situation. Front desk lady refuses to budge on the room rate (125 Euros per night) at which point American woman announces loudly for all to hear, “If this happened at home, I could get a replacement seat at a Home Depot and have the whole problem solved in 10 minutes! Why do you people move so SLOW?!” And as she storms out the front door, she announces to people passing by on the street, “Don’t stay here! The service is terrible!”
There have been examples of the Ugly American all over this city, sadly. I try to be extra polite to make up for my boorishly immature countrymen.
Back to Notre Dame today to see if the grouchy old woman at the newsstand is still there (see last year’s blog post on October 14th), holding court over her collection of Archangel Michael statues (something we have seen nowhere else in the city) and interesting vintage religious articles we admired last year but were not allowed to purchase. She is there, crouching behind the safety barricade of her desk, scowling and muttering French insults at us as we look around her tiny space filled with newspapers, magazines and what appears to be her personal collection of icons, holy cards and shrines. No Michael statues at all this year, and since she is more hostile than before, we back out of the shop hastily.
We walk around and then have lunch near the Cathedral (12 Euros for two cups of tea!). Yet another frustrating attempt to ride the bus back to Rue Cler (why is this SO difficult???). As it turns out, the Chinese president is in town and the bus routes have been changed. Back to the old standby of the Metro, a little rest in our room, inexpensive dinner at a sidewalk café and then a walk to the Eiffel and Seine for one last look.
In addition to the Chinese president’s visit, there are hoards of German soccer hooligans swarming through the city, celebrating the recent game. We see 20-30 riot squad vehicles at a time trying to contain the madness, streets are closed, police are everywhere, and as we approach the Eiffel, we see the wreckage of their party…..uncountable beer and wine bottles broken, food wrappers and trash of all sorts strewn about as thousands of fans leave their ugly mark on the city.
Though we are shocked and saddened, none of the locals seem disturbed or all that surprised by this display.
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