Experience in backpack to Europe

After i back from my trip, my friends ask me : you backpack to Europe?

I said : yup

They ask again : How many people going ?

I said : 2

They will come out with the facial expression of "waaaaa....you so brave..........."

Well, i don't know is it because i was so Brave, or i had confident in Europe. Anyway, Amsterdam,London and Paris were backpacker friendly, they are quite safe too, of course crime can happen every way so must be smart.

I feel graceful that this trip was so fascinating and safe. It is difficult to get a companion who willing to travel with you. I mus thanks to Allysa - although sometime she is full with complaints :) We also very lucky in getting the cheap flight ticket on the travel date which we wanted. Also i would like to thanks to my parent who support me on my decision to go on this trip.

Is a great new learning experience for me. Never think that my dream will come true. Never think that i will be at Paris one day, walking and relaxing on the street, admire the master art piece in Louvre, enjoying theater in London, seeing how red light district of Amsterdam looks like...This time, i see the real Europe.

Total expenses for this trip = RM7500 (flight ticket, hotel, food, transport, shopping...)

If take out the unnecessary expenses, it can be reduced to only RM6000. Amazing huh! spend 9 days in Europe and only use RM6000! This is consider the standard of a flash packer. It can be further reduced RM500-1000 if you stay in hostel dom. :-)

So why afraid? Hmmm...i think i must go back to Paris again. Perhaps after 5 years times ??!! YEHA!

Total spending in Paris

Hotel for 3 nights = E110

Postcard = E4

Key Chain & Magnet = E10

Hardrock T-shirt = E26.45

Metro ticket = E17.50

Dinner = E6.52

Eiffel Tower entrance ticket = E13

Starbuck coffee and tumbler = E14

Stamp = E1.70

Expresso coffee = E2

Subway Lunch = E6.50

Bowl = E5

Photo Frame = E8

Coaster =E12

Louvre Book = E12

Monalisa Postcard = E1

Louvre entrance ticket = E9

Toilet = E0.50

Chocolate = E14.90

Long Champ Bag = E55

Train ticket to airport= E8.50

Total Spending = E337.57 (RM1687.86) for 3.5 days

(necessary spending = E 171.52, unnecessary spending = E166.05)

In Paris, i shop as much as i can. Perhaps this was already the last stop. Furthermore i love the things here! I even carry back a bowl with eiffel tower printed on it. I wanted to buy the mug as well, but i am afraid my bag can't fit. I also get my first consider "branded" Long Champ bag. 50% cheaper than get it in Malaysia. I reached Charles De Gaulle airport quite early. Allysa continue her journey to German and Switzerland. This terminal was different from what i had transit on my last trip to Lyon. Its looked old and dull. As usual the tax refund counter was pack with China people.

Good bye Paris, good bye France! Here i ended my first backpack trip to my beloved Paris and Europe. Thanks god that i had a safe journey home. :)

Louvre @ Night

910pm, i sat at a bench outside of Louvre. My leg almost broken, so tired. Imagine i had walked from 5pm to 9pm?! And my walking speed was quite fast! I wish to continue walking but i really can't. So i took out my camera and shoot some night scene and video tapping.
While i turn around to shoot the video, a group of man on bicycle passby me. One of them ride directly toward me! I got shock and stepped a few steps back.

He said : You are afraid!

I replied : I just get shocked! (actually i though he want to pull my bag! choiii... here is not malaysia la)

He waive at me say : Have a nice trip Mademoiselle!

And continue riding his bicycle. What the .....does it consider a romantic encounter???hahahaha!
My Da Vinci mission not ended yet. I wanted to find the Rose Line. It was so dark outside. While i am worrying whether can i find or not, it appeared!
Yeah!!!! I found it !!! I wanted to find the pyramid too but its actually covered by grass and not allow people to step on it. Only Prof Langdon in the movie and kneel down and pay tribute to "holy grail"
This was my last night in Paris, it was such a great great night. Eiffel tower was on my left, Louvre was in front of me. 目视着人类的两件瑰宝，无限满足。Really feel no regret in my life already. What a good fortune that i had a chance to come here and had all this good memory. :)
I watched 2010 after back from Paris. My heart so pain when i saw all the artifacts, paintings had been destroyed. I asked my parent, if the end of the world came and all mankind die. After many many years, will the second generation of man still able to draw Monalisa? will they also build Eiffel Tower? Will they sculpt the statue as what in Louvre? Will they compose the music as nice as what Mozart & Beethoven did?

I pray and pray, the end of the world never come. The world is so awesome, it was so beautiful. Let its keep its beauty, let all these things remain here ever after a long long time.

Louvre - More exhibit

This was Code De Hammurabi - crave with an ancient law code.Armoire Boulle
I fall in love with this sword. It was so so pretty! I cant stop looking it for more than 5 min. Its description board writtien " Epee des grand maitres de lordre de Malte Martin Guillaume biennais " So long and all in French. All the description here was only french! Had try to search online to see who its belong to but failed.
I knew that i won't be able to see all the things, so as smart people as me, i bought a book from Louvre, a mandarin one ooo, it had 300 pcs of famous exhibit in Louvre and only cost me RM60. All color printed! So So cheap!
This was some kind of music box?!
I think we can only see this kind of staff in movie.
I can't stop laughing when i saw this. Hahahaha! I asked that guy, what is this? He also no idea.Most of the things i able to view were from Egypt.
Ancient jewelry, a must see item for me. :)
This door look like the one in Night Of Museum II.
When i walked around, suddenly i had a strange feel. Oh mummy! I did dare to go closer but my six sense told me it was real mummy. Because the thing look so old, so aging,its much more different from the replica and from the movie. You can feel their spirit within...

I remember i read from a book, there were hundred of mummy in Louvre! Of course most of it were in the basement hiding.

Hmmm, was this the ET bird?

Louvre - is already a jewel by itself.

I had 4 hours for Louvre, so i decided to spend 1 hour for each floor . Well, end up i only able to finished 3 floors. Not finished seeing everything, just able to main exhibits (about 10 items per floor). Crazy Huge!!!!A solo traveler asked my help to take photo for him. After i took for him, i looked at the exhibit and said " it is so interesting" He replied : The roof is also interesting.
We walked together for a short while and head to different hall.
I felt i am walking in a living 3 dimension museum. Everywhere , everyplace there was painting, design...
A kind uncle help me to this photo with the famous pharaoh - Ramses II
Sculpture hall.
Sarcophagus of husband and wife.
Some statue waiting to be exhibited. I read from somewhere, Louvre was always not enough of manpower due to its huge size, so it cant open all hall together.
This is the statue i love the most. I love it when i saw the photo my friend taken. It was beautiful and so real. I just quite surprise that this size was smaller than what i imagine.
This make me think of "Lord of the Ring "
View from inside of Louvre.
The Napoleon Apartment. I only remember all things were red and gold in color. Damm geli. Imagine if i stay in this kind of house, i will go crazy by the color tone.

Louvre - The 3 treasures

The holy grail neath ancient Roslin waits, Adorned in masters loving art she lies,

The blade and chalice guarding over her gates, She rests at last beneath starry night...

-Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown.
Yes, i had always wanted to come here. I had been watching and watching the movie until i can saw the Louvre when i closed my eye. The famous pyramid, it gain more mystery after the Da Vinci Code shown. I plan to go in at 6pm (to save Euro 3 entrance fees) but end up i decided not to waste my time anymore, bought at ticket at E9 (so cheap)and began my journey.
People say, you can finished visiting Louvre in 30 mins, you can also finished in 3 weeks. For 30 min tour (i guess this is what most of the travel group will do), you only need to visit the 3 treasure in Louvre - Victoire de Samothrace (as below pic), Monalisa and Venus de Milo. For me, i had 4 hours. Following the signage to Monalisa, you will came to this Victoire de Samothrace. 虽然已经残缺不堪，可是你还是可以看到巧夺天工的雕刻，充分展现了女性飘逸的美。仿佛有一阵阵的海风在吹过来。
One level up was the place where the beauty of Louvre unfurl. Wow, so many paintings, so huge!
I saw it! Da Vinci's painting!
So Dark the con of Man .. lead langdon to this painting.Another painting by Da Vinci. I not sure was it because of the lighting or my camera problem. The photo that i took on all paintings cant show its true color. The real painting was 1000 times nicer than the photo.

Finally, i saw her....She was so small, but she occupy the whole hall and at least 4 security guards. Luckily tonight there were not much visitors. So i can had a closed contact with her. My friend said : i don't know why it so famous, it just a painting, quite normal maa...

But when i saw it, i know why was it so precious. For me, she was not a painting, in fact she was a lady, a living lady.当第一眼看到她的时候，天啊！这是一副画吗 ？对我来说她是一个实实在在的人。那么的富有生命力。我马上知道为什么她的微笑那么让人着迷了。当你开始注视她的时候，你会觉得她在微微的笑。可是看着看着，她的笑容变得有点调皮了，好像在嘲笑我们这一群无知的人，那么疯狂的热爱她。然后又变成不可一世的样子 ，仿佛她的高高在上是理所当然的 ，是我们这些凡夫俗子所不能达到的。我眨眨眼，她又恢复了那种纯真的笑颜了。

当你了解就是这幅画，花了达文西10多年的时间来完成，也是这幅画，在他临终之前一直陪伴他。你能不感动，能不震撼吗？用心做的东西可以让别人感受到，这幅用了那么多心血的作品，让达文西在逝世很久很久后，人们还是可以感觉的到。
The last treasure - Venus de Milo. I found that it was much more easy to ask other people to took photo for you in Louvre, because there were many solo traveler here and they were happy enough to help.
Where was Allysa ? She decided to save the E3 and go for shopping first. :)

Tour Eiffel @ noon

You must said i had crazy. This was the third times i been to Eiffel Tower. Just because of the sun.Although i am very tired but yet the experience was priceless! The sky was clear and blue. This was the best time to get good photo!
So many people lye down at the field to enjoy the sunlight. Some of them really kissing with each other, gf kiss bf, bf kiss bf...
I wanted to get some special angle for shooting. I remind that one of the Eiffel Tower photo i collected, the angle was very nice and different! I kept on thinking where was the spot that photo been shoot.
Oh ya, i need to cross the road and walk to the opposite building.
Hmm...i found a lot of surprise when i cross the road. First surprise was the cafe which facing just opposite Eiffel Tower. In another word, you can sit down , enjoy a cup of coffee while looking at the tower!!!!! Oh my god, i shall discover it earlier.
But i don't had time already. Here i really feel the is best place to shoot Eiffel Tower. You can capture whole body easily.
The disadvantage being travel solo was no body took photo for you. I had been asking around for help. Among all the photo, only this one look better. Some shoot the tower without top, some senget...
After taken few photo, i walked along the river and shoot from a bridge.
I must thanks to a kind lady who help me took the photo below. Although it looked a bit dark due to the sun direction, but i like it very much.
This was the typical building in Paris. This one was on the way back to our apartment,
I had another important place to go tonight. Always the last was the best. Before that, i need to meet up with Allysa first. Arr....i hope she finished doing her "work".