Making friends is good, especially when they have booze...

Drinking is expensive in France, mostly because there is a 20% tax on all alcohol. Karim and I needed to unwind after a busy two weeks, and since we didn't feel like sitting alone in our apartment drinking copious amounts of the vodka we were gifted, we decided to venture out into the great unknown bar scene of Paris. We were however, being lazy, so the great unknown was 4 doors down from us. There is a small British bar 1 minute away from us called The Cricketer, and we decided to go in, have 1 drink each, and see where the night went. Our 2 drinks (I had a Long Island Ice Tea, and Karim had some real Irish Guinness) cost us 15euros (22 USD), so we weren't planning on drinking any more than that. The bar was pretty slow, a few people sat at tables talking amongst themselves, but otherwise it was empty. Deciding to be social creatures, we sat at the bar and got to talking to the two people working behind it. Ashton, a girl whose parents are English but was raised in Paris, and Will, a lovely bloke from Brighton, UK. They were super nice, and also super bored.

Once our drinks ran out, we just sat there talking, about everything really. Then, they decided it was shot-o'clock. Now I was never much of a drinker, so I didn't really know what to expect. Jager Bombs were the decided shot. They were really generous, and poured both Karim and I a shot as well. It was yummy. Karim was then gifted some free beer that the bloke next to us at the bar (Ashton and Will's friend Jack) decided to give to Karim, since he apparently looked thirsty. We sat and talked about Canada, and how different it really was from France. Poutine came up into conversation somehow...

After having been at the bar for 2 hours, Will decided to test out some new drinks on us. We decided that we should be polite, and not turn down the free booze. I named the drink "The Sewer Rat", as it looked like sewage. It was amazingly delicious and smooth. Whisky, Amaretto, Lemon, Lime and Orange Juice, shaken and then topped up with Pepsi. A little while longer passed by, and Karim and I were having a grand old time. The bar started to pick up around 1:30am, and since Ashton and Will had their hands full with paying customers, we decided to pack it in for the night and make the long journey home. We said goodbye and promised we'd be back soon.

2 minutes later, we were walking in our front door. Our six flights of stairs are so much easier after 4 drinks, and we had enjoyed our evening out fully. A great success over-all if you ask me. I would highly recommend The Cricketer, it was a blast. Sure we paid 15euros for 2 drinks, technically, however, we paid 15euros for 8 drinks, which isn't half bad at all.

Stay Lovely,
Liz