So I walked the 100 or so metres to the other hotel and checked in - seemed ok. Internet was dodgy and kept dropping out, but hey, nothing unusual. Headed to bed fairly late after finding a great restaurant for the most delicious Filet Mignon I've ever had, then slowly sauntering back.
Discovered some red marks on the back of my left hand when I was showering this morning and they were itchy. First thought was - bed bugs! But I then thought no, may have been mosquitoes or some other cause. Packed up and headed back round to the first hotel to leave my bags then headed out to find good coffee and read quietly for a while until it was time to meet Cheops.
Red marks a bit more itchy by that time, and my worst suspicions were being jogged along, but it wasn't anything too bad at that time, and there was little I could do about it anyway.
I'd been bitten by bed bugs in a Sydney hotel once, so I know how it takes up to 24 hours for the full extent to make itself known - and then there's the week or so of itchiness hell until they start to fade. I also know what they look like and feel like.
Once again, my virtual life friend and I recognised each other instantly. It never ceases to amaze me that this happens every time and it's as if we have been real life friends forever.
Typical Paris Cafe scene
I still have great difficulty coming to terms with the fact that I'm really in this place - it's quite surreal an experience. So many films and tv shows I've seen all this in - with never even an inkling I'd be looking at them while juggling a map to help navigate the mad Paris traffic. Here I was at the Arc de Triomphe, having gone along the Champs Elysees and past the Tuileries. Then along past all those places I'll never have the nerve or the dress style to ever go near, and the beautiful art nouveau exterior of Maxims. Very heady stuff while Cheops negotiated the insane Paris traffic that seems to have little rules other than those related to chaos theory (and she tells me the traffic is very very light at the moment).
As lunch progressed so did the extent of the bite marks on mainly my left hand and arm, but nothing to stop further exploration. We had decided to give trying to get up the Eifel a miss due to the length of the queue of people trying to do the same thing - I was just as happy to look up from below this enormous and complex structure and take in the sheer size of it. Haze would obscure most of the view anyway.
So we headed into the Musee, to explore the indigenous cultures of Africa, Asis, Oceania and the Americas. Way too much to go into here, but it stuck me quite strongly, that by seeing all the parts of all of the huge number of cultures exhibited here, there are a lot of strong similarities between certain aspects of ritual life from Africa to Peru, through the Asian region, Maori culture, New Guinea and the Pacific island nations, and the north and south American races. In particular the use of masks in religious, martial and life stage rituals. We also noticed similarities in woven patterns in cultures separated by thousands of miles of sea.
All in all, a marvelous exhibition, even if it all started to blur together after a while, as our feet got sorer and our legs hurt. The other thing that had happened was that my feet were also now covered in red bits and my toes were starting to swell. Generally all getting very uncomfortable.
I was getting increasingly worried about how to handle this when I got to the hotel, and Cheops wisely suggested I visit a pharmacy for something to treat what were by now blistering, angry red lumps on both hands, my face, neck and feet.
So I arranged to speak to Cheops again this evening and discuss our next excursions, and headed into the pharmacy where a lovely lady who spoke English was horrified at the extend of this little lot and got quite angry with the hotel, advising that I report it to the police if the hotel do not make some sort of recompense and take action.
Cream and pills in hand I headed the few yards to the hotel and spoke privately with the manager there, who was equally horrified at the other hotel and his phone conversation with them was stern to say the least. In the meantime I was emptying the contents of my bag into a large plastic bag for fumigating and washing (which he undertook to do himself and deliver to me in the morning).
I'd asked him as soon as I showed him my arms et al, to assist me to do this as I did not want to go to my room with anything that might remotely spread the infestation. He was extremely efficient and understanding, reassuring me it wasn't my fault when I told him I felt really bad at having to land him with this. I was also feeling very grubby by this time too and just wanted to get into a shower.
Eventually, I got to my room with the things I'd had in sealed zip lock bags (luckily this little practice meant I therefore had some clothes to use) and after a hot shower, had cleaned hair and much relieved by the cream from the Pharmacy.
Have no idea what tomorrow will bring, as I know this is going to get very uncomfortable over the next few days, and I'm hoping the welts on my neck and side of my face will not be too bad to go out. I'll have to play it by ear and assess in the morning.
Oh the joys of traveling. In all the really dodgy places I've slept in over the years in so many countries, this is the first time I've had to deal with this while overseas. At least I know what's coming and how to deal with it. If I hadn't had that, I'd have been in tears by 6pm this afternoon and in a hell of a mess. It's much easier to deal with things with equanimity if you're armed with some knowledge.
I'll probably stay longer in Paris anyway - there's just so much to explore, and it all looks so wonderful. And I'll have clean clothes.
Still smiling :)
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