Here's what happened...
It was July, I was on a Contiki tour of Western Europe. The first stop on the tour - Paris! Oh was I excited! I had always wanted to go to Paris! After arriving in the city, we went for supper, then left to go see the most famous sight in Paris - La Tour Eiffel! The Eiffel Tower!
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| The Eiffel Tower |
I was on the trip with my cousin. On our tour were several Australians, a few Canadians (like myself), some Europeans, Mexicans, and Americans. We had about an hour to spend at the Eiffel Tower. However, it was a really long lineup to get to the elevator.
In the small group of six that I went to to the top of the tower with were: Three Australians, one American, my cousin and me. We went to the first viewing platform and got a few photos of the city from there. Then, we went to the top. It was dark by then, so our photos were not great. In all we were at the top of the tower for about five minutes before we had to leave to go back to our bus. Rocket, our bus driver, made it very clear that we had to be back on time. He would not wait.
As we were advancing in the line, there was one group of six ahead of us. Just as they were getting on, one Australian in our group commented that it would be ironic if we missed the lift because it was full. Guess what? It was.
As a result, we did not make it down to the bottom on time and our tour bus left us stranded at the Eiffel Tower!
Fortunately, the American girl and I spoke French. We knew there was a Métro station near our hotel, so we had an adventure getting back! We left the Eiffel Tower at around 10:00PM and did not make it back to our hotel until 1:00AM.
Though it turned out to be a fun experience, it has left a negative impact on me that I still deal with today. I am very scared of being left behind by any tour that I am on. In fact, it was so stressful for me that I did not go on another tour for nine years. I am unusually prompt now for any pick-up times. People have commented on that, but it is something that I will always have in the back of my mind. I was left behind once. Who's to say it won't happen again?
Bon voyage! Et bonne chance!
~Angie
