Monthly Archives: May 2012

“But I don’t want to go among mad people,” Alice remarked.
“Oh, you can’t help that,” said the Cat: “we’re all mad here. I’m mad. You’re mad.”
“How do you know I’m mad?” said Alice.
“You must be,” said the Cat, “or you wouldn’t have come here.”

― Lewis Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland

As much as I love Paris, I dread passing through Charles de Gaulle Airport.  I know I’m not alone in this.  I’ve commiserated with many fellow travellers about terrible experiences at this airport, and was almost grounded here one Christmas.  Whether it’s the terrible traffic or getting there on the RER B, the ligne priviligée of the grévistes (striking union workers), getting to and from is often a huge pain.  Once you do get there, the lines are never-ending.  Cones and caution tape block off passageways and doors for seemingly no good reason.  “C’est fermé … ben … parce que c’est fermé, madamoiselle.”  Your gate has moved across the airport, yet no one has thought to alert any of the 250 passengers on the plane until 5 minutes before everyone needs to be on board.  Cue mad dash across the terminal.  You quickly realize you’ve entered a sort of free-for-all zone operating entirely by its own rules, and you’re stuck here for the next few hours (or worse …). Continue reading →