Roland Garros 2008 - Day 6

Woke up feeling much better than I had the day before.  I didn't do any drinking to speak of (seems 2 beers at dinner isn't drinking in venue terms) and other than the chronic hip pain I still swear the bed is causing, I was more than ready to go for my run.  While it isn't a sequential part of this day's entry, later in the day I found this site that allowed me to see how far I was running.  It isn't quite a mile around the perimeter, mostly because it isn't quite the perimeter.  Still the map shows that if I do 5.5 laps, which has been my current pace, I am getting in just under 5.4 miles.  Not too shabby, honestly.  I did walk for 3 minutes on the third lap again, but it truly was a fairly solid run.  The only thing was once again it was a run that managed to keep my heart rate fairly low.  I need to figure out how to push the rate.  Supposedly, the virtual fitness trainer I signed up for at LifeTime will help me do more and more intense interval training, but for now I just take what my body gives.

Walked in with the threat of rain overhead.  Sweat on the metro like I was a drug dealer at a police convention, but when I got to the surface again, the rain had held off.  Surprising, considering every news channel and Web site we looked at swore we were facing 100% chance of rain.  Truthfully, there was about one hour of rain but it cleared off and play resumed with little interruption.

I like the notion of calling Colleen right at 7:05 AM (1:05 PM CET) every morning.  The international calling card has made that entirely possible and exceptionally easy.  We get to chat about mindless things and I get to feel like I'm still plugged in to what she's got going on.  Damnit, I miss her.  This was a bad choice on my part, but since I really wanted to afford her the chance to not go back to work if she chooses, I needed to keep my employer happy with my work. :)  Still, it has put a pervasive gloom in my mood that I should be at home and with her, not in Paris with these people. :-(

An early day and I actually take the chance to leave.  I know I could stay since it is only a couple of extra hours, but it somewhat belies the notion of shift work.  Besides, I wanted to leave, just starting to feel the blues.

I took a different route back to the hotel.  Some of the folks here take a different metro route that puts them out directly in front of the hotel with only one train transfer, so I thought I'd give it a shot.  Franklin Delano Roosevelt station is busy, massive and aggravating.  The train I needed was packed, so I chose instead to walk back to the hotel.  A stroll down the Champs-Elysses isn't a bad idea, and it was just a little over a mile walk.  It was interesting to see all the people.  Walking through the really densely populated areas listening to my iPhone play list is awesome.  People watching to my own world soundtrack.  I even bent to pet a pug in a pink sweater, though her owner was most displeased at either my forwardness with her dog, or her dog's willingness to be so friendly with a stranger.  Dogs love me, what can I say? :)

The circle at the end of the Champs is without question one of the most terrifying things I have ever seen.  It is approximately 7 lanes wide as a roundabout but there are no discernable lanes marked.  Further, there seem to be only speed guidelines as opposed to limits as motorcycles, Smart cars, and anything willing to haul booty through the circle seems to do so.  I can't imagine trying to drive in it, and walking across it always manages to be the exception to my rule of "jaywalk like you mean it."  I refuse to go any further than the lights allow, I won't attempt to cross without a light, and I don't even lean out to see if traffic is coming.  I've been through it now three times and every time I just marvel at the symphony of chaos that goes on there.

I got back to the hotel and chose to have another 13 Euro Jameson.  Another marvel of French service industry to me, this time I was charged for my mixer separately, pushing the drink total to 18 Euros.  I was just feeling blue and a little good whiskey never hurt anyone, but I am NOT sure I can reasonably drink them any more while I am here.  The price is too steep for me to justify.  I quickly changed and started wandering.

I found a French restaurant near the Louvre that had English translations of all their items and a sesame encrusted tuna steak in a teriyaki reduction sounded really tasty. :-)  I wasn't disappointed, though it got cooked a bit more than I really had expected.  I also selected an appetizer of lentils in balsamic vinaigrette which were awesome.  Add in a half bottle of a very good Bordeaux (I find it fascinating, though obviously unsurprising that wine tends to be cheaper than ever bottled water here) and I was quite happy sitting looking out onto a section of Paris I can honestly say I hadn't seen before.  I got some interesting people watching in, though the traffic was really close to the table and I did get a couple of gulps of some sort of petrol fumes.  They gave me a card, but unlike London and Melbourne, it didn't list any form of Web site, so I didn't keep it and now I don't remember the name. LOL

Back to the room and watching some movie with David Duchovny and Julianne Moore, though I can't tell you the name of it as I didn't see it from the start.  It was funny as the movie was in English with French subtitles, so I didn't have to read the movie.  I literally was in bed and in a deep sleep at 10 PM.  I had to be tired.  I had planned to call Colleen, but maybe it was the wine, maybe it was the mood, or maybe it was just that my body feels beaten up by the bed, but I was out like a light and missed my chance to call her.  Have I mentioned how much I miss her?

Cheers!