Bienvenue à Paris!

  Mark's flight to Paris Charles De Gaulle Airport was uneventful.  He took a taxi, a Mercedes SUV, to his hotel.  Mark attempted to speak to the driver entirely in French and was rewarded with a smile.
  The Mercedes taxi cruised along smoothly until it reached the Boulevard Périphérique.  The Périphérique is one of the busiest roads in Europe and is considered the boundary of Paris and its suburbs.  There four lanes of traffic came to a complete stop.  Mark said “Bienvenue à Paris!” and the taxi driver laughed.
  Mark's hotel is in the 14th Arrondissement of Paris, where many businesses are located.  There are 20 arrondissements, or districts, in Paris. The lower the number of arrondissement, the more desirable it is.  The 1st arrondissement is where the Louvre is.

  When I spoke with him this morning, he was calling from his hotel.  Once again, Mark spoke French to the hotel staff and was rewarded with smiles. Though he was in the executive lounge, I could hear very loud, obnoxious female laughter in the background.  I could barely hear my husband speaking.  Mark said it was Happy Hour in the hotel (7 p.m. Paris time) and there was a large party of well dressed, elderly Americans enjoying the freely flowing wine.
 (*Cringe*.  All the times I've been to Paris, I've never heard such a racket.  And I've never seen a drunk French woman either.  It's just not the French way.)

  Mark is amused that he just arrived in Paris and he already has a day off coming.  May 1st is a French holiday, Fete du Travail, or Labor Day.   He's going to take the day to look for an apartment.  His company is putting him up in a hotel until May 13th.  Mark's thinking of getting a place in a B&B after the 13th, until he finds an apartment he's satisfied with.
  Mark's hotel costs 160 euros, or about $211.00 a night.  In Paris, that is an absolute bargain for a hotel that caters to the needs of international business travelers.  When the Paris Air Show begins in June, that very room will almost triple in price to about 430 euros-about $550.00 a night.  And they'll be booked solid too.

 Nothing like getting off a transatlantic flight and going straight to the office, which is what Mark did.  He is trying to get over jet lag and adjust to the local time, not an easy thing to do.
 His hotel is a ten minute walk to the Metro and a twenty minute Metro trip to his office. I don't think he'll put up with that long.  My husband's driven in LA, Boston,  and Rome.  He was the only American working at his company in London who  actually drove in London.  Knowing my husband, he's looking into getting a French driver's license and buying a car.  This should be interesting.

I'll be perfectly fine using the Metro.  Once you get the hang of it, it is so easy and convenient.  And if even if I get lost, I won't panic.  I'm in PARIS, after all.

The lines at the Louvre.  Go early and during the week if you can.