Bonjour ... from Paris! :)

What's the best thing that can happen to you on an 10-hour flight from LAX to CDG? Scoring the exit row. Something to be said for arriving early at the airport. There are a few practical things to know about an exit row:

1. Arriving early still does not guarantee you the seat you want as someone may have already snagged it when boarding a remote destination and using your originating airport as a connection.
2. Even if you ask for it, and the person who assigns the seat to you says they got it for you, you may still find yourself one or two rows behind.
3. Mentioning a disability, physical condition (I've had knee surgery, I have a bad back), will almost guarantee you will not get the exit row seat, in which case, the person will smile to you, nod, and ... see #2 above. Why? because:
4. In case of emergency you've got to be physically fit to help the crew throw people off the plane, into a shark-infested ocean.
5. The plane fare you pay for guarantees you a seat, not the seat you want. If you do happen to score the exit row, be insanely grateful. If you don't, consider being graceful about it, as, rumors claim, complainers are typically the first fed to the poor, starving sharks.

With tears of gratitude streaming down my eyes I gleefully sat down. A few minutes later, 3 Italian men in their 40s arrived and threw a big fuss at the attendant, for they were told they'd gotten exit-row seats. A few minutes later, 2 American women in their mid 50s threw the same fit while repeatedly reminding the attendant they'd told the clerk they both had knee surgery in the past. One of them stormed off the plane saying she was going back to the gate agent to complain to them. I was hoping we'd leave her behind ... but weren't so lucky.

Mom, Dad and Annabel were all there to pick me up at the airport, which was an awesome surprise. Annabel is frickin' tall now. I couldn't believe it. After a delectable dinner at "Le Café Marly", by the Louvre Pyramid, Annabel and I left the parents behind and had a very nice walk along the "Quais de Seine" over to the "Caveau de la Huchette". Lots of swing dancers were there, we had crazy fun to the wild boogie tunes of Jean-Paul Amouroux.

Today I woke-up around ... err ... 2pm ?. Hung out with my grandma for a good chunk of the afternoon. Despite Annabel's incessant begging, I'm staying-in tonight, catching-up on e-mail, blogging ... and a good sleeping schedule.