entropy
Dec 2, 04, 8:39 pm
Trip report: Paris/Italy Thanksgiving Week
The plan: OAK-IAH-CDG / SNCF Paris-Firenze ( 5d) -Paris (2d) CDG-IAH-OAK in BusinessFirst
And so it begins:
I took the BART, to the AirBART to get to OAK, arrived approx. 11:30 for a 12:40 departure. I walked up to the First class checkin and was greeted with the usual "did you check in with the machine?" :( I replied that I was flying to Paris in BusinessFirst and that she could check me in. She did, and I asked if there was a lounge (there isn't) and she replied that unfortunately no lounge here. So, I made my way through security (5 minutes) and waited around the gate area for about 40 minutes and we boarded. We departed 5 minutes late, and arrived 15 minutes late. My connection was already boarding when we landed and I rushed from the arrival gate in E to the departure in D. It is kind of depressing that they still do not have the completed international facility in E as it is a complete waste of a beautiful terminal.
No line when I got to the gate as everyone had boarded, they told me no need to hurry as they asked for my passport. I took my seat in 3J. The staff quickly grabbed my jacket and handed me a menu. The FSC came by and greeted me by name and told me that the flight would be 8:32 and to let her know if we needed anything. They handed out menus and took orders on the ground, unfortunately, as I was late, they were all out of lamb and I had to settle for chicken. Funny enough, the menu was identical to the transcon I took the day before, with the exception of an additional appetizer and the cheese.
After takeoff, they came through with our drinks, some champagne, I forget the name but it is definately not the Piper anymore. The service as usual was flawless. Next came the appetizer cart, smoked salmon along with wine and water, and rolls. Service was relatively fast and efficient, water and wine constantly refilled. Next came the cheeses and then the sundae, the ice cream seemed a bit melted.
Then, I got up, brushed my teeth and went to sleep. The seat was pretty comfortable as a bed, but the cabin temperature was very warm. I woke up when they started the breakfast service, which began with orange juice. The hot cinnamon roll was quite tasty, and I took the cereal and yogurt, although the yogurt was quite small. We landed about 10 minutes behind schedule. Arrival was quick, although my bag was late off the plane, I'm assuming they lumped all the late transfer bags together and did not put them in the priority case. I was disappointed, they looked at my passport and let me through, no stamp, no questions.
I went to the hard to find AA AArivals lounge which CO's J customers can use, took a shower, had some snacks, it was a very nice lounge. And then I schlepped (it was a very long walk) to the RER and took it into the city. Got a nice salad at Cafe Depart near St. Michel. Then walked around the Luxembourg Gardens, it began to rain, and I continued to walk about, finally ending up at Bercy station 2 hours before my train departed. The train, I had a couchette, was reasonably comfortable, although the seats were somewhat unclean. EU Customs officers checked my passport and questioned me about my entry.. I was amused, they did not ask to see any of my bags.
We arrived Firenze 30 minutes late, my sister picked me up from the station. I was a bit disappointed with Florence... it was way too touristy for my taste. My sister, despite having been in Florence for two months did not know too many Italians, but more importantly to me, did not have a clue as to where the good restaurants are. Fortunately, she still had class and I was able to wander around the city on my own. After her first couple suggestions turned out to be disastrous, I sought out places far away from the squares and attractions and found places where nobody was speaking English. That was the way to go. I found a couple great coffee shops.
Being a gay jew, the main attraction in Florence is Michaelangelo's David. He is truly impressive, and despite my sister's insistance that it would be tough to get in, there was no line and I got in right away. One day I found the local synagogue, which is a very impressive structure, with interesting history as it was occupied and nearly destroyed by the Nazis. After that, I ended up meeting an elderly couple who were originally from near Cleveland (where I am from) and we had lunch at Ruth's, the Kosher restaurant outside the synagogue. Although tasty, it was definately very overpriced. We took a day trip to Bologna, and a short hop to the Prada outlets for my sister.
Finally, I left Firenze on the overnight back to Paris. The train was a little late, but they actually gave us drinks and something to eat unlike the departure from France. I chatted with my cabin-mate for a bit and then went to bed. Upon arriving to Paris, I took the Metro to the Opera stop, and checked into the LeGrande Hotel. I was staying there owing to the Flyertalk Amex 2-1, upgrade deal, and checked in at the 5th floor lounge as recommended. The agent, Mathilde was very helpful and friendly, as it was 11 AM they had no rooms yet, but she told me they would take my luggage to the room when it was ready and to return later in the afternoon. So, I went up to the internet computer and checked my email, had a glass of tangerine juice (fresh squeezed), and took off for the Louvre to kill a few hours. Although touristy, it is still an interesting place. Again, a bit too much church imagery, but the works on Napoleon's rise were very interesting.
I returned to the hotel and was greeted by name by Mathilde and she told me the room was ready and that my luggage was there. She handed me the key and I went to check it out. Apparently, I was given a full suite, there was a living room with a couch, a table with four chairs, a TV, a bathroom, a desk, and then the bedroom with a large bed, a chaise, a dressing room and the main bathroom. I was impressed. One could get lost in it, and the price on the placard was 900 euro a night (I was not of course paying anything close to that).
So, as far as the most important thing in Paris, that would be cuisine. I actually thought the club lounge was pretty good for breakfast, although most days it was quite crowded, as they were very lax in checking who belonged there. They had cerels, fresh juice, bacon, sausage, fruits, cheeses, salmon and you could order eggs or pancakes.
Now, Restaurants:
1) Chez Josephine Dumonet - EXCELLENT, a little expensive, I'd say 50-70 euro pp. Great service the food is amazing. Its on Rue Cherche Midi
2) Les Pipos - my favorite place I went, at my father's recommendation. Its a small divey place near the ecole polytechnique. I got the steak and pommes frit, great stuff and very reasonably priced
3) Allard - Also another great place, near St. Germaine.
4) Georges - At the Pompadieu center. Very cool place, but I had an 11 PM reservation and was not seated until after 12. Very upset. Food was pretty good.
Also, go to a bakery and pick up a baguette. They are great to eat while walking the streets of Paris.
Of note was the Musee of Arts et Metres, which has Lavoisier's lab amongst other things. This is cool if you're an engineer.
When I was ready to depart, I packed everything but (!) could not find my passport. I looked all over. checked the pockets. I checked out and asked the agent what to do, she told me to go to the police and file a report, which I did ( flight -3 hours), got all filed (-2:45), called the embassy, they said no way to get it on a sunday and no way to enter without it. So I called CO and Cxl'd my flight, nothing available until tuesday (+2 days), 300 change fee :(
Then I went back to the hotel, asked if I could stay again, she offered a standard room for 350 a night, I said no way. She refused to rebook my other reservation with offer DEPART. So I returned to the Club lounge, went on the computer, and made a new reservation wtih DEPART, then walked to the agent and checked in. He was very accommodating and understanding, asked if I'd like the same room (hell yeah) and told me they hadn't cleaned the room yet, I said OK, he gave me the keys and I took my stuff back to the room. The Hotel information book was open on the desk, I closed it. What do you know? ONE PASSPORT. *sigh* I felt like an idiot, of course. (flight - 1 hour)
I walked back up to the lounge and showed the agent, and he asked if he could try seeing if I could get on another flight today. I told him I'd already plunked down the extra $$$ and I might as well enjoy Paris for 2 more days, after all, there are worse places to be stuck than a 4 1/2 * hotel in Paris.
I put the passport in the room safe.
On tuesday, I took the Roissy bus, which was 8.30 eur, and right across the street from the hotel. At CDG in 45 mins. CO checkin was a bit of a zoo, and they actually subjected me to intense questioning. I asked the BF Concierge if they could swap my IAH-OAK (4 hour layover) with a IAH-SFO (2 hours) but they were oversold. Got my BP's and invitation for the Concorde Lounge. When going through security, some woman left a big red case in the line, and ran away, and we told the security and they were just kinda looking, the woman came back and pushed her way to the front of the line. some people seem like they have never travelled before. No shoe removal required.
Lounge was fine, the snacks were nothing to write home about, but the champagne was ok. Went to board, and the crowd was huge. Did not board until 20 mins prior to departure due to the late arrival of the flight attendants. they called the BF cabin and everyone packed in. There were all sorts of people trying to get through, including people in Y with not even a OP number, as I could see all the tickets out. They made no attempt to only take BF pax. It was a mess. The FA seemed flustered, clearly as they arrived late, and were very late on providing drinks, taking jacket, etc. They had the December CO mag and IFE pamphlet already but still nov IFE. I ordered the steak, it was overcooked. The service seemed less rushed than the flight over, as I suspect that people were not as tired yet. I went for the cobbler this time for dessert, it was quite tasty, in fact, I liked it better than the sundae. The cheeses were also quite good this time although the grapes they gave out were seeded. The FSC introduced himself and welcomed us, and offered his services should we need them. The flight was uneventful, and an hour and a half pre-landing they came by with a lunch, consisting of a steak sandwich with lots of melted cheese, a fruit plate and chocolates. Afterwards I tried the espresso, nothing special after having the real thing in Italy.
Got into IAH 45 minutes late. Immigration was fine, the baggage area was a zoo, they kept changing the carousel. I went to the E pclub and took a shower, they're very nice. I was asked if I needed a suit pressed. It was my first time in that club, it was very nice. Bad cellphone reception, and I had a lot of peopl e I needed to catch up with, but I did find one spot, so I recharged my phone and iPod.
The IAH-OAK was reportedly on time, but when I got to the gate at boarding time + 5, the plane had just pulled in. They were still showing On Time departure on the screen as they did in CDG. I don't understand WHY they can't change the darn sign once they know, the gate agent knew, still shows on time on the boards. On board, they had the pathetic cold plate and that pecan cluster caramel thing. When the gate agent announced the delay, she suggested the pax go find something to eat as they get nothing in Y. We got into OAK 50 minutes late. Luggage was another 25 minutes. entropy was not happy. entropy also had a whole 2$ in US currency. So he found a shared cab that took credit cards. Home 45 minutes later.
hit the pillow at 10AM paris time!
The plan: OAK-IAH-CDG / SNCF Paris-Firenze ( 5d) -Paris (2d) CDG-IAH-OAK in BusinessFirst
And so it begins:
I took the BART, to the AirBART to get to OAK, arrived approx. 11:30 for a 12:40 departure. I walked up to the First class checkin and was greeted with the usual "did you check in with the machine?" :( I replied that I was flying to Paris in BusinessFirst and that she could check me in. She did, and I asked if there was a lounge (there isn't) and she replied that unfortunately no lounge here. So, I made my way through security (5 minutes) and waited around the gate area for about 40 minutes and we boarded. We departed 5 minutes late, and arrived 15 minutes late. My connection was already boarding when we landed and I rushed from the arrival gate in E to the departure in D. It is kind of depressing that they still do not have the completed international facility in E as it is a complete waste of a beautiful terminal.
No line when I got to the gate as everyone had boarded, they told me no need to hurry as they asked for my passport. I took my seat in 3J. The staff quickly grabbed my jacket and handed me a menu. The FSC came by and greeted me by name and told me that the flight would be 8:32 and to let her know if we needed anything. They handed out menus and took orders on the ground, unfortunately, as I was late, they were all out of lamb and I had to settle for chicken. Funny enough, the menu was identical to the transcon I took the day before, with the exception of an additional appetizer and the cheese.
After takeoff, they came through with our drinks, some champagne, I forget the name but it is definately not the Piper anymore. The service as usual was flawless. Next came the appetizer cart, smoked salmon along with wine and water, and rolls. Service was relatively fast and efficient, water and wine constantly refilled. Next came the cheeses and then the sundae, the ice cream seemed a bit melted.
Then, I got up, brushed my teeth and went to sleep. The seat was pretty comfortable as a bed, but the cabin temperature was very warm. I woke up when they started the breakfast service, which began with orange juice. The hot cinnamon roll was quite tasty, and I took the cereal and yogurt, although the yogurt was quite small. We landed about 10 minutes behind schedule. Arrival was quick, although my bag was late off the plane, I'm assuming they lumped all the late transfer bags together and did not put them in the priority case. I was disappointed, they looked at my passport and let me through, no stamp, no questions.
I went to the hard to find AA AArivals lounge which CO's J customers can use, took a shower, had some snacks, it was a very nice lounge. And then I schlepped (it was a very long walk) to the RER and took it into the city. Got a nice salad at Cafe Depart near St. Michel. Then walked around the Luxembourg Gardens, it began to rain, and I continued to walk about, finally ending up at Bercy station 2 hours before my train departed. The train, I had a couchette, was reasonably comfortable, although the seats were somewhat unclean. EU Customs officers checked my passport and questioned me about my entry.. I was amused, they did not ask to see any of my bags.
We arrived Firenze 30 minutes late, my sister picked me up from the station. I was a bit disappointed with Florence... it was way too touristy for my taste. My sister, despite having been in Florence for two months did not know too many Italians, but more importantly to me, did not have a clue as to where the good restaurants are. Fortunately, she still had class and I was able to wander around the city on my own. After her first couple suggestions turned out to be disastrous, I sought out places far away from the squares and attractions and found places where nobody was speaking English. That was the way to go. I found a couple great coffee shops.
Being a gay jew, the main attraction in Florence is Michaelangelo's David. He is truly impressive, and despite my sister's insistance that it would be tough to get in, there was no line and I got in right away. One day I found the local synagogue, which is a very impressive structure, with interesting history as it was occupied and nearly destroyed by the Nazis. After that, I ended up meeting an elderly couple who were originally from near Cleveland (where I am from) and we had lunch at Ruth's, the Kosher restaurant outside the synagogue. Although tasty, it was definately very overpriced. We took a day trip to Bologna, and a short hop to the Prada outlets for my sister.
Finally, I left Firenze on the overnight back to Paris. The train was a little late, but they actually gave us drinks and something to eat unlike the departure from France. I chatted with my cabin-mate for a bit and then went to bed. Upon arriving to Paris, I took the Metro to the Opera stop, and checked into the LeGrande Hotel. I was staying there owing to the Flyertalk Amex 2-1, upgrade deal, and checked in at the 5th floor lounge as recommended. The agent, Mathilde was very helpful and friendly, as it was 11 AM they had no rooms yet, but she told me they would take my luggage to the room when it was ready and to return later in the afternoon. So, I went up to the internet computer and checked my email, had a glass of tangerine juice (fresh squeezed), and took off for the Louvre to kill a few hours. Although touristy, it is still an interesting place. Again, a bit too much church imagery, but the works on Napoleon's rise were very interesting.
I returned to the hotel and was greeted by name by Mathilde and she told me the room was ready and that my luggage was there. She handed me the key and I went to check it out. Apparently, I was given a full suite, there was a living room with a couch, a table with four chairs, a TV, a bathroom, a desk, and then the bedroom with a large bed, a chaise, a dressing room and the main bathroom. I was impressed. One could get lost in it, and the price on the placard was 900 euro a night (I was not of course paying anything close to that).
So, as far as the most important thing in Paris, that would be cuisine. I actually thought the club lounge was pretty good for breakfast, although most days it was quite crowded, as they were very lax in checking who belonged there. They had cerels, fresh juice, bacon, sausage, fruits, cheeses, salmon and you could order eggs or pancakes.
Now, Restaurants:
1) Chez Josephine Dumonet - EXCELLENT, a little expensive, I'd say 50-70 euro pp. Great service the food is amazing. Its on Rue Cherche Midi
2) Les Pipos - my favorite place I went, at my father's recommendation. Its a small divey place near the ecole polytechnique. I got the steak and pommes frit, great stuff and very reasonably priced
3) Allard - Also another great place, near St. Germaine.
4) Georges - At the Pompadieu center. Very cool place, but I had an 11 PM reservation and was not seated until after 12. Very upset. Food was pretty good.
Also, go to a bakery and pick up a baguette. They are great to eat while walking the streets of Paris.
Of note was the Musee of Arts et Metres, which has Lavoisier's lab amongst other things. This is cool if you're an engineer.
When I was ready to depart, I packed everything but (!) could not find my passport. I looked all over. checked the pockets. I checked out and asked the agent what to do, she told me to go to the police and file a report, which I did ( flight -3 hours), got all filed (-2:45), called the embassy, they said no way to get it on a sunday and no way to enter without it. So I called CO and Cxl'd my flight, nothing available until tuesday (+2 days), 300 change fee :(
Then I went back to the hotel, asked if I could stay again, she offered a standard room for 350 a night, I said no way. She refused to rebook my other reservation with offer DEPART. So I returned to the Club lounge, went on the computer, and made a new reservation wtih DEPART, then walked to the agent and checked in. He was very accommodating and understanding, asked if I'd like the same room (hell yeah) and told me they hadn't cleaned the room yet, I said OK, he gave me the keys and I took my stuff back to the room. The Hotel information book was open on the desk, I closed it. What do you know? ONE PASSPORT. *sigh* I felt like an idiot, of course. (flight - 1 hour)
I walked back up to the lounge and showed the agent, and he asked if he could try seeing if I could get on another flight today. I told him I'd already plunked down the extra $$$ and I might as well enjoy Paris for 2 more days, after all, there are worse places to be stuck than a 4 1/2 * hotel in Paris.
I put the passport in the room safe.
On tuesday, I took the Roissy bus, which was 8.30 eur, and right across the street from the hotel. At CDG in 45 mins. CO checkin was a bit of a zoo, and they actually subjected me to intense questioning. I asked the BF Concierge if they could swap my IAH-OAK (4 hour layover) with a IAH-SFO (2 hours) but they were oversold. Got my BP's and invitation for the Concorde Lounge. When going through security, some woman left a big red case in the line, and ran away, and we told the security and they were just kinda looking, the woman came back and pushed her way to the front of the line. some people seem like they have never travelled before. No shoe removal required.
Lounge was fine, the snacks were nothing to write home about, but the champagne was ok. Went to board, and the crowd was huge. Did not board until 20 mins prior to departure due to the late arrival of the flight attendants. they called the BF cabin and everyone packed in. There were all sorts of people trying to get through, including people in Y with not even a OP number, as I could see all the tickets out. They made no attempt to only take BF pax. It was a mess. The FA seemed flustered, clearly as they arrived late, and were very late on providing drinks, taking jacket, etc. They had the December CO mag and IFE pamphlet already but still nov IFE. I ordered the steak, it was overcooked. The service seemed less rushed than the flight over, as I suspect that people were not as tired yet. I went for the cobbler this time for dessert, it was quite tasty, in fact, I liked it better than the sundae. The cheeses were also quite good this time although the grapes they gave out were seeded. The FSC introduced himself and welcomed us, and offered his services should we need them. The flight was uneventful, and an hour and a half pre-landing they came by with a lunch, consisting of a steak sandwich with lots of melted cheese, a fruit plate and chocolates. Afterwards I tried the espresso, nothing special after having the real thing in Italy.
Got into IAH 45 minutes late. Immigration was fine, the baggage area was a zoo, they kept changing the carousel. I went to the E pclub and took a shower, they're very nice. I was asked if I needed a suit pressed. It was my first time in that club, it was very nice. Bad cellphone reception, and I had a lot of peopl e I needed to catch up with, but I did find one spot, so I recharged my phone and iPod.
The IAH-OAK was reportedly on time, but when I got to the gate at boarding time + 5, the plane had just pulled in. They were still showing On Time departure on the screen as they did in CDG. I don't understand WHY they can't change the darn sign once they know, the gate agent knew, still shows on time on the boards. On board, they had the pathetic cold plate and that pecan cluster caramel thing. When the gate agent announced the delay, she suggested the pax go find something to eat as they get nothing in Y. We got into OAK 50 minutes late. Luggage was another 25 minutes. entropy was not happy. entropy also had a whole 2$ in US currency. So he found a shared cab that took credit cards. Home 45 minutes later.
hit the pillow at 10AM paris time!