Mariellen's (a)Musings: Smooth Sailing and Pleasant Landing

Delta flight 171 was totally booked, so despite the fact that I had a center section aisle seat, I steeled myself for 8 hours of discomfort, crammed into a too-small seat while constantly bumping into some stranger sitting next to me. Then a tall and large-ish guy came down the aisle and said he had the seat next to me. Yup, it was going to be a long flight.

But miracles of miracles, just before we departed he spied an empty aisle seat a few rows back and asked the flight attendant if he could take it! He seemed like a very nice guy from my limited interactions, but HOORAY!

Delta does seem to use the very distant gates at Aeroport Charles de Gaulle, and I swear it’s a mile walk to get to the passport check and then luggage claim, but hey, no hurry – usually by the time this slowpoke gets to luggage claim her suitcase is just coming down the chute!

After the usual delays waiting for a shuttle, then crawling through rush hour traffic, I arrived at the WONDERFUL apartment on the quiet rue Paul Lelong that I’m renting this trip. Gotta say, it’s now on the top of my list of studios to rent – a perfect size for one person, very comfortable bed and furnishings, exposed stone & muted colors, some really fun design touches, in my favorite 2^nd arrondissement, and very reasonably priced (120€ per night, or about $165). With a convenient ground floor location, the sun streaming in my open windows (along with fresh air and the sounds of quiet laughter & conversations, heels on pavement, occasional motorcycles & cars, bells ringing at Basilique Notre-Dame des Victoires down the street, and the distant rumble of subway trains about a block away), tons of interesting shops to explore, and my favorite rue Montorgueil just a couple blocks away - with all of this a girl can't help but have a sunny disposition! This apartment is aptly named "Mon Cocon." And that it shall be for a week.

One of the surprising (and, frankly, irksome) things about securing this apartment was that, although I was able to pay the rent on my Visa card, the owner/manager required the damage deposit of 400€ to be paid upon arrival by cash or check. I didn’t have that much left over from my last trip, so I had to buy euros at the airport and carry a bunch of cash. After letting me into the studio and showing me around, the wonderful property manager William was just about to leave when I remembered that I hadn’t paid the damage deposit yet. He said “Oh, you don’t need to – I can see that you are reliable person – really, meeting someone is all the security deposit you need, isn’t it?” What a wonderful way to do business! Of course, he does have my credit card number, so if he finds something broken after I leave he can let me know and charge me, but still…. And now I don't have to worry about hitting a cash machine for a few days!

Here are some photos of the apartment. And here’s the online listing: http://rive-gauche-rive-droite.com/30-moncocon