Dec 2005

Paris is the capital and largest city of France. Located on the river Seine in the country's north, it is a major cultural and political centre of Europe and the world's most visited city.

Its eponym, "the City of Light" (la Ville Lumière), dates from 1828 when it became the first city in Europe to light its main boulevards with gas street lamps along its Champs-Élysées. The city of Paris is also widely referred to as the "most romantic city in the world."

Administratively speaking, the city of Paris is a French commune (municipality). It is divided into twenty municipal arrondissements (see: above picture), numbered in a clockwise spiral outwards from the Ier arrondissement at the center of the city. Two parks on the edge of the city proper, Bois de Boulogne on the west and Bois de Vincennes on the east, belong to the 16th and 12th arrondissements respectively. If I'm not mistaken, Amanda lives in the 7th arrondissement (the same as the Eiffel Tower).

On January 2nd 2006 I will be embarking on my very first adventure overseas. I will be traveling from Vancouver via Air Canada to Toronto at 10:10 am on January 2nd. (Although I may try to get on the 6am flight with Amanda, who is heading back to Paris. From there I will fly to Paris, France, arriving at Charles de Gaulle International Airport at 8:15am on January 3rd 2006. My tickets are standby (THANK YOU UNCLE HAR!!) so this may change, but hopefully it doesn’t! I’m planning on returning January 14th leaving CDG ( Charles de Gualle International Airport) at 11:15 am, and arriving in Toronto (YYZ) at 2:00pm. My connecting flight to Vancouver (YVR) will depart at 4:00pm, and arrive back home at 6:07pm.