Paris and the Great Apt Hunt

The internet has been sporadic throughout the past few weeks. I've been blogging, just not actually uploading anything. So basically, there's a lot more to come, and everything will be out of order. Since I last updated, I've been through Greece, London, Germany, Austria, London again,The South of France, and now, finally, Paris... I've been asked by everyone which city has been my favorite, and I really can't answer. I'd say Malaysia (in August?) was my least favorite, but aside from that, it's all be great.

I tried to go to the Louvre today, but apparently it's closed on Tuesdays. So rather than look at priceless pieces of art, I’m sitting outside the museum at a little cafe, sampling different types of rosé. It’s only 2:00, but in Paris it seems to always be happy hour. Not a bad way to spend a Tuesday.

I’ve been in Paris about a week now, jumping from couch to couch while searching for my own apartment. To say the search has not gone well would be an understatement... To give you all an idea of just how “not well” this hunt is going, take the pros and cons I made of the places from yesterday’s visits:

Apartment 1:
Pros: It’s in the Latin Quarter, just next to the Shakespeare Bookstore, above tons of adorable restaurants and shops. The building is over 400 years old - the wood floors slant, as do the door frames. The place is adorable, and the location is exactly what I’m looking for. And it’s cheap! As the landlord (my potential future roommate) told me, the apt sits along lay lines, beams of energy running through the earth emitting vibes of positive energy. He told me that it’s impossible to be unhappy at this location.

Cons:  The hippie who told me about the energy lines would be my roommate... He’s about 65, American (from Chicago), and before moving into this place he lived in a youth hostel for 2 years. He was the oldest person that lived there, and I think he was proud of this. Oh, and he’d be sleeping on a cot in the kitchen while I slept in the bedroom.

Apartment 2:
Pros: Apartment was big. That's it.

Cons: Rather than located among cute little shops and cafes, it’s above a sex shop. The pain was peeling off the walls, and there was mold on the ceiling in the bathroom. A homeless guy sold roasted chestnuts outside the front door (possibly a pro if you like roasted chestnuts?). The apt was advertised by a girl, but I learned I’d be living with her brother, a 20 something Muslim guy with a really bad lazy eye - the kind where you don’t really know where to look when talking to him. He also told me three times that our bedrooms would be right next to one another. And if that wasn’t enough, the apartment was way overpriced.

Apartment 3:
Pro: Cheap. View of the Eiffel Tower.
Con: I was excited about this place to begin with, as the building was absolutely beautiful. It was a bit far out, in a quiet area, but I figured it would be a beautiful apartment, so would make up for the fact that it was far. I was wrong... When the guy came down to let me in, he took me around to the servants entrance, not through the main, beautiful one. We walked up back stairs, which were covered with a rubber type padding, and when my steps were a little too loud for his liking, he asked me if I’d tip-toe. We walked up 2 flights, then got into an elevator that barely fit two people. And then we made it to the apartment... It was a studio, with a double bed and a small, dirty kitchen. And then he told me we’d be sharing the apartment... and the bed!! And I’d be paying him to share the bed!

In addition to the above, I’ve had three people try and scam me, and had one person stand me up. The last, where I was stood up, was in Le Marais, where I’d been hoping to find something. I stood outside the door for about 30 minutes waiting for the guy to show up, but he never did. And then I began calling him like a psycho girlfriend. I think at the end of the day he had about 8 missed calls and text messages from me, most of which were along the lines of “Please call me, I really want to talk to you! I really want this apartment! If you’ve found someone else to rent it, just let me know - just please call me back!” He never called back though - not shocking though, because I’m sure I really did sound like a psycho. But after so many terrible apartments, I was desperate for this one!

While the apartment hunt is incredibly frustrating, I’m in Paris. And so happy to be here. I have a few friends living here, as well as my cousin, and they’ve all been amazingly generous, putting me up while I hunt for my own place. So things are good.