I suppose if you have to be awake at 3am there are worse places to be. I am sitting on a rooftop terrace in Paris with an (albeit limited) view of the Eiffel Tower. Our hotel room is a tiny attic room at the rather oddly named Hotel Wo on the rue de Stockholm close to the Gare St Lazare. I feel like a character in La Boheme. My tiny hand is frozen, even though it is summer. We are almost a week into our holiday.
The Swiss Alps were perfect – totally glorious. If you ever have some (serious) money to spare then go and stay at the Tschuggen Grand Hotel in Arosa. We were there writing a travel piece for the paper and I cannot think of a more charming way to spend four days. I think I even slept through the night at least twice.
This nighttime waking is nothing new of course. But isn’t it extraordinary how annoying it is and the stupid things you lie awake worrying about.
Just now I was worrying about, in no particular order;
how I am going to lose the two kilos I have inexplicably gained since leaving Abu Dhabi
how we will make it to the Eurostar and then on to Wales all in one piece with all our luggage (including Leo’s scooter) intact
how the girls are getting on with my mother, or rather how my mother is coping with their endless energy
why they didn’t eat the sophisticated cheeses my father tells me my aunt was offering them, insisting instead on eating supermarket cheese – is this a terrible defect?
what to wear tomorrow (today)
where to live if we ever leave Abu Dhabi
will I have more snotty emails and calls from the (only) summer tenants we have at Sainte Cecile – it seems the house is rebelling against their presence and keeps shutting down the electricity and/or water supply at regular intervals
if my husband will ever stop snoring
is my book is good enough
will I ever finish it
So it was much better to come out here and enjoy the beautiful view. Amazing how chilly it is. And how peaceful without the sound of my brain whirring. Now I just need some gloves.
Copyright: Helena Frith Powell 2010
Hôtel WO (Wilson Opera) is not near gare St Lazard, although you might think it is after a look at their room prices, it’s near gare St Lazare. Bon séjour
Jacques
Oh good point, well it was 3am…will change it xx
Realx, take it eeeeasyyy – just like Mika sings.
However:
Most probably you will gain 2 more kilos before your holiday in France is even over. ( I got 4 kilos in France this summer in 16 days, thanks to croissants, Tarte aux fraises, cheeses, wine…). It was worth of every kilo, but now it has been fighting back every day for desires.
No, he will not stop snoring – husbands never do. I have listened mine doing it for over 16 years now (and I am counting the years been married only).
Your book´s going to be perfect.
Any help? 🙂
Thank you Nina, I feel better, well apart from the snoring bit…Hxx
Re summer tenants at Saint Cecile, we sympathise so much for this is one of the reasons we’re reluctant to rent out our house in Italy, even though the cash would be useful. People in Britain love the idea of renting that beautiful house in the south of France/Tuscany but invariably find the reality very hard to cope with. I once heard of someone with a house in the Dordogne whose guests asked for some money back due to the noise the farmer in the neighbouring field made with his tractor! And the fuss my own friends make in Italy when confronted with a few exotic looking bugs or stray scorpions! And don’t talk to me about power outages. It is a truth universally acknowledged that there only has to be the threat of a drop of rain for the Italian electricity supplier, ENEL, to plunge the countryside into darkness. The reality of the place in the sun villa holiday: an idea for a piece perhaps?
Maybe the fancy cheese was too smelly for your girls to eat? LOL
Ah, I sympathise on the sleep thing, being one of the best sleepers in the world…but..on the odd occasion when I’m wakeful, I always think of people who go through this night after night. Almost every night when i go to bed, I give thanks for my great sleeping ability- i.e. anywhere, any time.
Not much use to you is the above, but, have you tried aromatherapy? I make a cream with a couple drops of oil, and each night rub it on the soles of my feet, little circles on solar plexus point. I’ve recommended this to loads of people and it does help, really, try it.
Hope the rest of your hol goes well!