I took a flight from Paris to Prague on Czech airlines. I'm utilizing a lot of cheap airlines on this trip. I'm finding that they are not as much fun but much faster and cheaper. They are also a bit quirky. This one had no online check in so you had to line up at the airport 2 hours ahead of time. They are often not on time, this was an hour late. Bring your own food and drink, nothing is free on the flight. And pay careful attention to the baggage allowances. American carry on size is larger than European. Its usually based on weight rather than size and there are restrictions on carry on weight as well. Sometimes the tickets price is based on how much luggage you bring on. So weigh everything and give yourself extra for souvenirs.

So, the check in line wasn't bad after all because I met Michael who had just come Limoges as well. He was there for school, he's a bio chemist who's finishing his PhD. We started chatting and he was heading into town to catch a train so I tagged along. He was very nice to give me directions and tips. I gave him some new English phrases, "bees knees" and "stick to your ribs".
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We said goodbye and I headed to my home for the next few days, the Ahoy (hello in Czech) hostel. Really nice people, good price, great location.  My only complaint is that the mattress, pillows and blankets are thin. Not the most comfy. But no matter, tomorrow I start exploring Prague.

One of the things I like about train travel is being able to appreciate the scenery along the way. You get to see the farms and vineyards. The huge windmills are everywhere along the route from Limoges to Paris. Mostly farmland and cows. Occasionally a huge fortified château flashes by in a small village.

I love the fact that I get to see people's backyards as well. The front yard is your face to the public, the backyard is your true face. It feels like you get a sense of who is living there, it really is an intimate view. Toys everywhere indicates a family. Meticulous lawn probably means retired.  Sometimes I wonder if you can tell income level by a backyard. Are pleasure gardens with only flowers more for the upper class versus a very practical garden growing food for the middle and lower class? That might be interesting to see if that correlates at all. Seattle might not be a good example with all us urban farmers in the mix.

What I've seen:

• Rusting train cars
• Cows of unknown breed
• Fluffy lambs
• Graffiti
• Lilacs
• Trees just starting to leaf out
• A tiny dog on the train that reminds me of my dog Buttons that I had as a child
• Ducks
• White tailed deer

I love Paris but I don't know if I could live here. It's too urban for me. There is lot of green space but the streets are too dirty. So many people piled on top of one another.

​But part of me wants to live here, the architecture is amazing, the food wonderful, and the art is everywhere. Perhaps for a year, long enough to become part of the neighborhood and get a taste. And maybe that would be long enough to properly see the Louvre. Could you imagine going on a weekly basis or even working there?

Things I have seen and done here:

• The Lourve late at night, quiet and mysterious
• Three year olds with better scarf tying skills than me
• Renoir Garden and studio, it felt like home.
• The last Vineyard in Montmartre
• Hung out by the Seine
• Talked to local artists
• Had great political conversations with locals
• Walked up and down Montmarte many, many times
• Figured out the Metro
• Wandered backstreets and alleys
• Ate good food
• Saw the Modern Masters at Pompidou
• Drinking café at the bar like a local
• Monet's water lilies

Hi everyone. So blogging from Europe is turning out to be harder than I thought.  Typing on a Kindle is not easy. So I will try to post short things here but I'm liking Instagram better beacuase I'm a visual person any ways. So keep an eye on the sidebar where I have  direct feed. I will sporadically update this when I can.