Paris – November 17th

Some 16 hours later (4 hr layover in Chicago) I arrived in Paris, just as the morning sun was breaking through and reflecting on the Eiffel Tower and Paris itself…it was a beautiful sight from the air! It is always good when one’s luggage arrives!! I then took the metro to the ACF headquarters which was on the south end of the city. Fortunately, Paula and I were here in the spring and learned how to use the Paris metro. However, buying the stupid ticket is most stressful part. An hour later and 3 switched of trains, up and down stairs with my gear I finally arrive at the last metro station. A 10 min walk later in the fall crisp air and at 2 PM, I arrive at ACF headquarters…and it is big! Some 120 staff work there. I am greeted at the front and welcomed in. Hello Kevin from Canada, welcome to Paris! we have been expecting you!! I am taken to several offices and introduced to several key people. I hand over my passport and photos, so they can process my Visa to get into Afghanistan. I am given $50 Euros for food expenses while in Paris….that’s nothing!! I could blow that easy on one dinner. I look at them and ask, where the rest? They laugh. I have to accept that I am not with the government any more and the NGO world is not as generous. So begins my orientation to the world of ACF. A couple of hours later I am done and arrangements are made to meet early the next day for further pre-deployment briefings. Now, to find my hotel, which they apologized in advance if it not to my liking??? Although they said it was a 15 minute walk, I got lost walking (easy to do in Paris) and it ended up to be an hour later – tired, back packs getting heavy and becoming grumpy. I must admit the Paris folks were trying to be helpful and I appreciated it, but they just did not know their directions. I finally found the hotel, called the ‘Formula 1’, which was huge….so, how people could not know, is beyond me? The hotel was essentially a massive dormitory and for $46 Euros, probably the best price in Paris, if you like being on the cheap. The rooms are very small, sparse, with a small tv (no English) and a sink. The shared washrooms are down the hall. There are 2 small single beds and are very hard. I went out for dinner, to a Chinese place down the street and spent my first $20 Euros on a sparse dinner of rice, chicken and veggies. Came back to the little room and proceeded to fall asleep for the next 12 hours.