THE WORST THING!!!!!

The Worst Thing......!!!!! ON DAY ONE!!

What is so interesting about overseas travel is that you have to function on a much higher level than you normally do. Nothing is familiar, you don't know how things work or even where you are at any given point in time and this is generally done having had no sleep the night before.What makes this lovely is that you literally are like a child and you can ask for help. And you can't be too proud or too ashamed to do it.

 WINDBLOWN CHOOCHI

 RER B train from Charles de Gaulle Airport goes to Paris.  I watched a YouTube video and pretty much got it right.

PARIS 

But I, along with several other befuddled tourists could NOT figure out how the bloody ticket machine worked at 5 am and why it hated us and our perfectly good euro money.

So I asked for help. A lovely local gentleman tried and tried and he couldn't get it to work either. So he bought me a ticket on his credit card, which I paid him for of course but just thought that was lovely.

ULTRA COOLBATHROOMS at AIRPORT

Next, I was befuddled again at the ticket taking machine, a lovely young woman from Beijing waited to help me get through. We spoke on the platform and when we got off in Paris she wanted to make sure I knew how to get to my rental because I was not getting Wi-Fi reception or phone service.

We said our so longs and I had thought since I‘had about 5 or 6 hours before I could check into my apartment that I would wander around Luxembourg Gardens or perhaps find it charming square to sit and read or maybe get some free wi-fi and soak up the local scene.

These are very popular forms of transportation. Even business guys in suits.

But to my amazement I couldn't find any small local cafe that had wi-fi and food that I could reasonably eat. So I wandered over to a news stand where I bought a map and some water and the nice gentleman there suggested I put a SIM card in my phone which he struggled to do for about 20 minutes but then realized that my phone must not be unlocked. He was pretty good natured about it all and really gave it a 100% effort. I paid for my map and my water and moved on.

Temptations

I continue down the road weaving and wobbling with two wheeled bags in a dog on a leash over cobblestones dragging myself starving, sleep deprived and confused into, if you can believe it, Starbucks. Yes, I am ashamed to say the first cafe I visit it in Paris was Starbucks.

I'm staying in the Latin Quarter so called because it's where the Sorbonne is and everyone spoke Latin to each other at one time. So highbrow.

And I'm also saying the say that the first meal in Paris was a prefab Turkey wrap which was not so good. But before I even got to unwrap the wrap I realize that my passport my credit card and my money were gone. All the sudden what was semi-abnormal and unfamiliar became hell. You start becoming this out-of-body crazy person pacing mumbling tearing everything out of your bag putting it back tearing it out again walking around in circles in total panic confused muttering "I can't believe this happened I can't believe this is happening."

Lovey square near my apartment

Both my IDs were in the pouch, all of my credit cards and all of my money. I literally had no ID no passport no credit cards no money. I literally did not have money to buy food.

I don't even know what you do in these kinds of situations other than call your family or go to the embassy or in my case run back to the news guy and hope that he had some suggestions. All I thought was that it had been dropped out of my purse as I walked and had been lying on the street for way too long for it to still be sitting there.

Big bulldog in pastry shop

So I was in Paris less than an hour and I was already broke and without any form of formal ID or any way to get back into my country or even on a plane.

So I dragged my exhausted starved and confused self back up to the news stand and he looked at me and said "did you leave something important?"

And this man became the angel of my trip. He pulled out my passport my credit cards my money and said "I kept them safe for you." I screamed and hugged him and gave him €10 and said thank you. He wouldn't take it but I insisted.

So in an a period of 12 hours I've had three helper angels and three lovely dog loving angels on the street who stopped to talk to Choochi. Two of them who were elderly couldn't speak English but  they were so dear and sweet.

Choochi crammed under the airplane seat. Not one complaint.

And Choochi has been a total champ.  Not a whine, not a bark, not a whimper, not a growl  - just amazing.  Incredibly adaptable and good natured, full of curiosity and love of adventure.

So most of the photos are of Choochi since she doesn't know how to take pictures yet of me. We'll have to ask for some help to get photos with both of us!