Challenge 38 - TO PARIS FOR LUNCH AND BACK (OVERLAND) IN A DAY

04.50  Alarm goes off.  Paris vs bed?
06.45  Fall asleep on train. Mouth gaping, emitting drool.
07.47  Waterloo, couldn't escape if I wanted to.
08.15  Waiting for Helen at St Pancras, initiating conversations with strangers so that I can tell them I'm going to Paris for lunch!  Helen arrives and stops this childish practice.
08.55  Board a slightly grubby Eurostar.
09.45  Tunnel.  Time travel forward 1 hour.
12.15  Gare du Nord.  Bonjour Paris!
13.00  Arrive at Restaurant Dumonet, in St Germain, after white knuckle taxi ride.  Hungry.
13.15  Complimentary glass of white wine and cauliflower veloute amuse-bouche.  My bouche is amused.
13.30  Waiter takes order and laughs at our over-ambition.  Recommends we share a dessert - too scared to argue but question his judgement.
13.45  First course - stuffed morels, and endive and roquefort salad.  Enormous and enormously good.
14.15  Second course - confit de canard, and chateaubriand with bearnaise sauce.  Huge and hugely good.
15.00  Third course - hoping for a 'wafer-thin mint' but presented with an apple pie the size of a dinner plate.  The waiter was right (of course - he's French).  Despite feeling sick, scoff the lot.
16.00  Over coffee and chocolates, try to convince English bankers on next table to put our lunch on their expenses.  Think I've pulled - they leave us a heart shaped crouton.....and an unpaid bill!
16.30  Leave restaurant and our new chum Thierry, vowing never to eat again.
17.00  Attempt to walk off lunch via Seine, Notre Dame, L'Hotel de Ville and our Parisien highlight - a button shop.  Failed.
18.15  Taxi back to station.  Bus hits taxi.  Parisien road rage.  Horns tooting,  Swearing in French.
19.13  Back on Eurostar.
19.30  Passenger behind us takes out egg sandwich. Look for sick bag but have to make do with wafting perfume-soaked tissue.
20.40  Tunnel.  Time travel back 1 hour.
20.45  Arrive St Pancras.
21.35  Train to Brock
23.30  Home!

Challenge completed - feeling wonderfully decadent, gloriously self-indulgent and gastronomically satisfied. And a little sick.  Thank you Helen for suggesting it and sharing it!