There are worse things that could happen…
September 13, 2008…than be stuck in Paris because of a fire in the Eurotunnel *sigh*
After five happy days in the French Capital we were due to return to England on Friday but obviously that didn’t happen and we ended up having to extend our trip. Damn shame, eh? I mean of all the places to be stuck 
Anyway, we’re safely back now and actually managed to return on the first Eurostar out of Gare du Nord this morning. All praise to Eurostar at the French end- the whole operation was super efficient, we were extremely well informed throughout and we even got a free breakfast before we boarded. And we had absolutely no trouble getting refunds on the emergency train tickets to Calais and the Sea France ferry to Dover that we’d booked the day before (and making those alternative arrangements was super easy too). Even getting the new Eurostar tickets was a cinch- we turned up at the station this morning and within minutes had new boarding cards in our hands for a train that was due to depart 20 minutes after that. That’s even faster than a regular day!
The journey back took a little longer than scheduled- there was a 30 minute wait on the tracks to enter the tunnel at Calais and the train went through it at half speed through- and there was a smell of burning and chemicals when we entered the tunnel, but that was kind of to be expected and made the journey all the more interesting. Apart from that it was business as usual.
So what did we do with ourselves on our extra day? Well, we got to see the Pope which doesn’t happen every day. Like I said, there were a lot worse things that could have happened….
And Amélie Chocolat got to see him too 
meg posted the following on September 13, 2008 at 3:23 pm.
pictures? need my daily dose!
katie posted the following on September 13, 2008 at 5:19 pm.
any photos of the Pope?
|•••Nin•••| posted the following on September 13, 2008 at 5:49 pm.
I’m just transferring the 4GB of photos that I took right now *taps fingers on computer* so will post a couple when they’re done. Oh that’s 4GB of the whole trip, not just the Pope
filmchris posted the following on September 13, 2008 at 6:32 pm.
How is it you haven’t a posted a self portrait from atop the Eiffel Tower?
Kaitlin posted the following on September 13, 2008 at 7:23 pm.
Sounds quite terrible! Glad to hear you had some fun though and I’m pretty impressed with the service you received!
Elisabeth posted the following on September 13, 2008 at 8:04 pm.
Yep–you could have been stuck in Newark . . . that happened to me once. We got put up in a hotel near the airport and planes started going by about 7 am. Ahhh, memories!
I wish that we had chosen the flight that would have made us have a 6 or 7 hour layover in Paris instead of going through Newark (which was supposed to be that faster route for our trip last year)
|•••Nin•••| posted the following on September 13, 2008 at 8:07 pm.
I have about a week of 365 pics to catch up with, and I think I have the very photo you’re referring to, hee!
Yes, we absolutely can’t fault their service at all. At the French end it was all very easy. Nobody was kicking up a fuss, all the information was there and everyone was able to look after themselves. It also helped that people had listened to the advice and weren’t travelling unless it was absolutely necessary. Most people on the train, if not all, were just holidaymakers trying to get home. I was *very* pleased with how everything turned out.
***
edit – I just added some pics
Melissa in NZ posted the following on September 13, 2008 at 8:16 pm.
D’you know, I saw the tunnel news (you call it Chunnel, don’t you?) and I *wondered* if you had perhaps gone travelling!!!!! Well. Stuck in Paris. You poor things!
I think that’s very cool – looking forward to more pics!
ashpags posted the following on September 13, 2008 at 9:15 pm.
Yay – welcome back! I’m glad that you made it home safely, and that the travel inconvenience wasn’t too bad. Can’t wait to see all the pics and hear the stories! =)
Wiola posted the following on September 13, 2008 at 11:43 pm.
That’s a certainly one good place to be stuck at!!
Hope to see you in the saddle before you are off!! Xx
Isle Dance posted the following on September 14, 2008 at 6:21 am.
What an amazing photo of the tower! Lucky us!
)
*emilie* posted the following on September 14, 2008 at 11:19 am.
no way, you actually went ?? i was too afraid of the crowd…
|•••Nin•••| posted the following on September 14, 2008 at 11:42 pm.
I know, *poor us* hehe. I think luck was clearly on our side for this trip…got lucky with the hotel, got lucky with a free second day at Versailles, got lucky with the Pope, got lucky with the Eurostar back. All in all a great trip
Aww Em, you didn’t see him? The crowds weren’t actually that bad- they were very strict about letting only a certain number through at each checkpoint.
And Wiola, OF COURSE! I just hope I don’t cry through the lesson….although I’ll be back at Christmas of course