Sunday 15th July

I know I haven't been posting for a few days now.

The last day of London was a little annoying because Alicia and Renata decided to go shopping first thing in the morning. I wanted to go to Buckingham and the Natural History Museum and suddenly Alicia wanted to go to the museum as well. So I decided to go to Buckingham first up. The girls said they'd be back by 1 so I did my thing, walked to the palace , saw the changing of the guards, walked down a bit of St James Park and Hyde Park (they're both far too big to just walk around).

I got back at 1 and then got a txt from Renata saying "Be there by 1:30 your sister is running wild like Steve Irwin in "Zara"". It was 2pm when they got in and then Alicia said she didn't want go anymore and that I should have just gone by myself. Like I had known! Because I can read her mind. I was seriously pissed off so I decided to go for lunch at 3.30. Alicia decided to have lunch, then she changed her mind, then she decided she was. So we just went to a pub near by and ate there. Let me just say how good the food in British pubs are. They're honestly amazing and almost on every street corner (just like Starbucks over there) and the value for money is great. They were playing music of the likes of Queen, Maroon 5 and The Temper Trap. Then Alicia paid for my meal so this changed everything.

That night we went to the contiki meeting and got the tube in. It took a bit of effort and time and newspaper were converted into hats because of the sudden rain. It was only me who wanted to meet the group but we all decides to try another pub down the road. I tired Orange and Ginger Rekordeling after waiting 10 minutes to get served even though I was right at the front. The only thing that blew my mind was how the barman checked my signature on my card. No one else had before that! We got a taxi back and thank god we did because I thought I was going to shit my pants.

Lucky if I got 4 hours sleep that night and we went on our way to the contiki basement. Seriously getting up at like 4.30am isn't pretty. We got a taxi and unfortunately he only accepted cash and none of us had enough pounds. I used all mine up and the ATM claimed to have taken £200 from Renata's card. So we relied on Alicia for money. I jokingly said to the taxi driver I'll give him Euros and he said that was fine. AFTER ALL THAT IT WAS FINE?! Eh.

We got into the bus departing to Paris and this time it took something like 12 hours to get from hotel to hotel. We arrived at 5pm local time and left London at 5am local time. Thought the day I developed a cough, sexy.

So we quickly went to our rooms, funky plane style toilet and shower which was WAY too awkward because it was only a little room with half tempered glass. So you practically had to go in and out naked for all to see unless you were just like me who was crying in the dark corner for dear life because seeing a naked sibling isn't the idea of a holiday memory.

We had dinner and then set off for a tour of Paris city. We got to see De Champs Élysées, Arc De Triumph, Louvre, Eiffel Tower and a few other places we had done already but it was good getting more info off our tour manager Danny. We also experienced snails, formage and champaign. All of which Renata and Justin missed because after dinner they decided to go to their room. I got asked where my mates where by a few people and I just said that they're a couple so you can only imagine. Alicia and I didn't climb the tower again because we didn't see the need in doing it again, especially in the rain. So we found a cafe, had a drink and desert then walked around the area. In the wet. We saw the tower at night with all the lights on and then the sparkling lights at 10pm. We got back by 11pm at the hotel. But we also finally saw where Princess Dianna died. Finally because Alicia never wanted to when we were there solo.

The next morning we got up super early to get into Opêra to meet up with Carla and co so we could see the parade down De Champs Élysées. It was a massive pain to get a view because we had to walk for 30 minutes through road closures and getting directed by French Police and where to go in French. Finally we got a spot at the front by 9am and that was super fanatic except for the pat down / frisking I got and the fact we couldn't see until I got photos and looked into the camera or the small gaps between people. But it was totally worth it. Web if I saw the current president for a second and got a photo from his chin down.

I found it funny that we couldn't have liquids on us on the front as the police checked for this. We found a random bottle of wine sitting in the pile of water bottles. So French.

Afterwards the group of us went to look for lunch and came across a crêperie - Crêperie Framboise, 7 Rue De Ponthieu. The food was amazing and I got photos of it too. We had no idea what the menu was so we guessed it because again, it's similar to English and Italian. When we told the waiter we spoke English he did nothing. When he asked us what we want he goes "ah English?!" no shit. So we got the menu in English after that and most of what we guessed was right anyway. But it was amazing. Craving Crepes on Keilor Rd has been shitted all over because the food was way better and cheaper. HEAPS better.

By the time Carla had gotten back to her hotel room and back to La Fayette, Liz was to meet up with us. That was a challenge and a half. I had to direct Alicia and I through the streets of Paris and that wasn't fun. We sat on the steps of the Opêra building and watched as the gypsies sucked in tourists. It's actually pretty fun to watch. The just did the whole dumb deaf and blind thing so nothing serious. When Carla txt saying she's almost at La Fayette I got up and left the stairs. It's just behind it so I figured Liz would txt if she's there. As soon as I got inside La Fayette she just did that. Lucky it's only a second away. We had a small Target gathering which was awesome! We just did some window shopping inside for a bit.

I said goodbye to Carla and wished her well on her trip and then Liz and I were to meet up for fireworks tonight at the Eiffel Tower. So we went back to the hotel for a nap.

I got something to eat at the local bakery as everyone on the contiki went to the first dinner, show and club. Alicia was too tired and stayed to sleep in so I just went to meet Liz. Google maps directed me through a gypsy market so I avoided it by going down the next street. It showed just one turn and you're there after 15 minutes. Somehow I ended up walking for an hour and almost 4km off track. But after that small hiccup we met up and got to the tower and even though I was crushed to death inside the metro, it was worth it.

The show was amazing. Like nothing I had experienced or seen before. When I saw the tower the first time it was just a sphere in the sky. The second time it was larger and more beautiful. The third time it was when I got off the metro in front of it and even then it was amazingly beautiful and awe inspiring. That's the time we climbed it and I fell in love with the structure. The fourth time was when it was all lit up at night and that blew my mind. Last night was the fifth time. That was the most amazing, beautiful and incredible thing I have ever seen. Ever. I gypsy videos of it too. The theme was 70-80's disco which explains the disco ball and music. Liz, Nic and I all got photos together in front of the tower. Selfies, each other and strangers got the pictures for us. We then saw the army and got pictures with them, although they said yes they weren't too pleased. Who cares, it's Bastille Day! We got into every corner we could to see everything, we just had to soak up everything. The nearby metros were closed so a hike to the nearest was a bit of a pain but we got there.

The girls didn't want to be alone nor did they want me to be alone. So we got the metro at 12 midnight together and decided it was best if we all just slept at the hotel Liz and Nic booked. So I slept on a blanket and had a coat as my actual blanket. But if they felt safe like that, then it was my pleasure. It's just not the safest area where we both stayed, something like Footscray. So maybe it was best I didn't go alone at night. I got up at 5.30, then left at 6 after a nap. The metro was about 25 minutes anyway so it didn't feel like it was worth the metro compared to walking. And that's how I spent my Bastille Day. It was very much so worth it :)