what do I look like, an intern?!
Posted by Stephanie Finnvik on Friday, September 16, 2011
Yesterday I rode the velib bike home about a third of the way and then was too terrified to continue and walked the rest of the way. For the record, biking in Paris is not the same as biking in the Netherlands. It is in fact a very convenient way to get around because one, I'm never really leaving Paris, and two, I hate the metro and the masses of people that squish like sardines just to get to work on time, making a bike ride to work much more enjoyable with the good weather.
I guess I've kind of exaggerated the above 'danger' of biking in Paris, but it is quite problematic when I want to go against one-way traffic because I don't want to take a different road given the very very high possibility of it not running parallel and not getting me to the same point I want to end up at. I at least know which direction to go in the morning! I think I want to try to find a path that only allows me to take right handed turns (not to be like Zoolander) but for the sake of easiness of biking in traffic. I'm not sure if that's actually possible though...
Today when I got to work, shortly after I decided that I really should have stopped at the bakery and gotten myself the chocolate croissant. I then thought that if I offered to bring something back I'd be able to go without guilt (because I have a lot of stuff to do). I was told that others needed a coffee. I claimed that the bakery with the chocolate croissants does not have coffee. (Getting the chocolate croissant for me was much much more important than coffee). I was given the reply, "Well you know where Starbucks is." Uh.... Well, it was then discussed that coffee would be nice and that, wait, I'm supposed to be the intern here, which for some stereotypical reason has led to the idea that because of that, I'm the one to go fetch the coffee. Gah. You have to understand too that the bakery is within one block while the Starbucks is probably about 5-7 blocks. Low and behold, I was sent to get coffee. I did get my demand though that I had to have a croissant in exchange. Pif and I set out and when we got to the bakery (new problem), Pif decided that he was going to get all plain croissants. OMG. These are great tasting, BUT they are not the chocolate croissants. I told him he could get all the plain ones he wants but had to get me a chocolate one. I ended up getting my way. I did not walk all the way to Starbucks to get five coffees (none for me) and not come back without a chocolate croissant! :)
I guess I've kind of exaggerated the above 'danger' of biking in Paris, but it is quite problematic when I want to go against one-way traffic because I don't want to take a different road given the very very high possibility of it not running parallel and not getting me to the same point I want to end up at. I at least know which direction to go in the morning! I think I want to try to find a path that only allows me to take right handed turns (not to be like Zoolander) but for the sake of easiness of biking in traffic. I'm not sure if that's actually possible though...
Today when I got to work, shortly after I decided that I really should have stopped at the bakery and gotten myself the chocolate croissant. I then thought that if I offered to bring something back I'd be able to go without guilt (because I have a lot of stuff to do). I was told that others needed a coffee. I claimed that the bakery with the chocolate croissants does not have coffee. (Getting the chocolate croissant for me was much much more important than coffee). I was given the reply, "Well you know where Starbucks is." Uh.... Well, it was then discussed that coffee would be nice and that, wait, I'm supposed to be the intern here, which for some stereotypical reason has led to the idea that because of that, I'm the one to go fetch the coffee. Gah. You have to understand too that the bakery is within one block while the Starbucks is probably about 5-7 blocks. Low and behold, I was sent to get coffee. I did get my demand though that I had to have a croissant in exchange. Pif and I set out and when we got to the bakery (new problem), Pif decided that he was going to get all plain croissants. OMG. These are great tasting, BUT they are not the chocolate croissants. I told him he could get all the plain ones he wants but had to get me a chocolate one. I ended up getting my way. I did not walk all the way to Starbucks to get five coffees (none for me) and not come back without a chocolate croissant! :)