Shoes

Weird things start happening when you pack for a trip with the Significant Other.

I never really thought about my shoes until today. I got lots; they're all well worn-in so are comfortable and can do the job. These shoes have carried me reliably wherever I have asked them to go.  It turns out that they don't match my wardrobe and they are out of style. I never thought about this.  (I suspect I am soon to learn that my wardrobe does not match my shoes and is out of style.)

We went shoe shopping today. I bought 4 pair, which is one pair more than needed for this trip. The extra pair is to offer choice in the leisure of our home so that we may evaluate which of the 4 pair are most suitable for my application and return the rest. I write this wearing my new pair of "casual walking shoes for use with bluejeans." They are pretty comfortable but, like all new shoes, need about a month of continuous use to become old friends. I am committed to the relationship.

Interestingly, an old pair of shoes (the "dress walking shoes for use with suit and tie") beat out their new competition (after a hasty polishing in the garage), so it may be that two new pair go back for refund. 

I acknowledge that my existing pair of "casual slip-on shoes for loafing around" are due for replacement: I have ShoeGoo'ed the soles just one too many times already.

The Plan

The plan is to first fly to Turkey for a week and a half of more adventurous travel.  This simply means that we are going to someplace we've never been with the intention of seeing as much as possible in a short time.

After that, we fly to Paris, for six weeks of laid-back, live-like-a-Parisian residency.  The most strenuous thing we hope to do in Paris is eat a croissant.

Here is a map of Turkey (click on map to make bigger):

We are flying to Istanbul, which is labeled "A" on the map.  We have a hotel booked in the Sultanahmet district, which is the heart of the old town.  After 4 days of tramping around Istanbul and getting over jet lag, we catch an early morning flight to Izmir, rent a car, and drive south to the ancient Greek city of Ephesus which is labeled "B". The next day we take an evening flight back to Istanbul and stay there another 3 days. There is a lot to see in Turkey, and certainly 10 days is not enough time to see much, but the destination of this trip really is Paris.

From Istanbul, we fly to Paris.  We are in Paris for six weeks. On the third week there, our close friends Dayton & Gaye and Greg & Lauri arrive for eight and ten days respectively.  Together, the six of we are going to have a lot of fun.  We already have reservations in famous, hard to get into restaurants (e.g. Frenchies).

Here is a map showing our apartment location in Paris (click on map to make bigger):

The apartment is in the 4th Arrondissement, just across the river from the Ile Saint Louis.  This area is known as the "Marais" and is famous for being the eclectic 'right bank' locale.  We are close to metro lines, food stores, restaurants, boulangeries and fun.  It seems like a good area to be based.  We plan on walking a lot, but since it is a rainier and darker part of the year, it will be very nice to be close to the metro lines (lines 1 and 7).

Of course, renting an apartment is a bit of roll of the dice.  If it's awful, you can't just check out and move down the street the way you can with a hotel.  We tried to find a quiet location, but that is always difficult in an inner city.  The street is not a major thoroughfare, but it is a bus route.  As long as the neighbors are quiet, we should be okay. 

Here are a few photos from the apartment rental agency's website (just press F5 to watch it again or click on the picture to get bigger images):

We begin ...

Diane and I have been talking about doing something like this for decades. 

Two years ago, we heard of the company policy allowing accrual of annual vacation under special situations. 

Eighteen months ago, I got approval to take seven consecutive weeks off in late 2010 using 2009 and 2010 vacation. 

Twelve months ago, I booked plane flights to Istanbul and Paris (Business Class!) using Frequent Flyer points. 

Six months ago Diane booked hotels in Turkey and leased an apartment in Paris. 

Four months ago, friends (Greg & Lauri and Dayton & Gaye) agreed to visit us in Paris. 

Two months ago, a friend (Tom) agreed to house-sit while we're away. 

Now "all" we have to do is pack-up and leave.

Here we go.