Caught the TGV from the Gare de Lyon to Geneva Monday morning, idea was to go to Geneva and look around, see what mountains we could see from the train, have a bite to eat, and then return. The TGV is amazing in France, we hit a top speed of about 180 MPH southeast from Paris, while I was sitting down the speed isn't that radical but when standing up and looking out the window, the speed is palpable! On the way to Geneva I figured we might take a look at new watch for Mom, the one that my sister and brother-in-law and I bought Mom 20 years ago has been through a new movement, a new crystal, and the band broke so we replaced that too. Problem now is that said old watch has no numbers on the dial, just dots, so for a dementia patient that's not the best solution. Found a couple of nice black watches at the Swatch store, one with a dressy band and one with a plain leather band, so Mom now has two new watches with numbers on the dials, for much less than a designer Swiss watch. Needless to say the prices of watches when converted to $$$ are outrageous!
Got back to Paris, to the hotel, did some packing, actually Mom and I slept well, then got up Tuesday morning, showered, dressed, finished packing, ate breakfast, got the driver and he got us to CDG, then the fun begins. American Airlines at checkin was fine, then we are given passes to the Admirals Club and we go through security, which means take off your shoes, your coat, take out your computer, take off your belt (a new one here), then have to put everything back together. Then to the Admirals Club, which is at the opposite end of the terminal, so we start walking, and then are faced with up and down two flights of stairs before we get to where the club is, and then an escalator. No elevators to be found by any of the stairs, so I take one bag up/down, leave it at the landing, then help Mom up/down. Get to the club and in a slightly exasperated tone I comment to the lady at the desk and she says 'Well, someone should have noticed and told you where to go'...'but they didn't'...'let me see what I can do to make it easier to board the plane'.
Then I hear something about the plane being at an 'out gate' which means a bus from the terminal to the plane and then the lady at the desk says 'not to worry, it will be fine'. I hope it will!
Appears as though they are going to try to start boarding the plane an hour before departure, the out gate might explain that timing. Looked around a bit and it looks like a plane that can hold 215 people or so is booked to 42, 12 in the front out of 28 and 30 in the back, those lucky people in the back will have rows to themselves!
Cool part about the Admirals Club (besides passable free WiFi) is that Mom has now had three pain du chocolate (chocolate croissants) and that's after a bunch of fruit and toast for breakfast, guess thew walk out here made her hungry!
From Terminal 2A, opposite and down an escalator from gate 37...wish us luck on the journey!
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