Parking Drama.

I drove into Nice expecting to just park in my usual garage in the old town. It was very quiet, but for some reason, the garages were packed. I drove around and around the maze that is my usual parking garage. I ended up at the exit and there was no going back. I had to double park and quickly go to the machine to pay...I had only been there about 5 minutes...so it stamped the card , I jumped back in my car, exited, no problem, and then tried again.

I went back into the same garage and ended up in the same place again. There were no empty spots and I could not get back in...so again, I double parked and ran to the pay machine. This time it said "deja sortie" I wracked my double parked brain to figure out what that meant in my case...I knew Deja is a kind of before and Sortie is exit...but it wasn't making sense. So I pulled up to the gate and tried to use the ticket...noh noh noh!...so I backed up as far as I could, but no one could get by me...and the cars kept lining up to get out.

I have experienced so many situations like this now in France that I have officially become brusque, as the French are. I am doing the best I can so leave off!

I spoke to the women behind me (in a black Mercedes SUV , wearing a shaggy fur coat)..She was feeling my pain. She told me to run around the corner to the office. I put the car in park, put on the flashers and ran. The man took my ticket and had to actually do some paperwork to let me out of the garage. He shared my stress. Horns were blasting now and people were starting to gather out of their cars.
When he finished with his paperwork, I ran, ( an older man in a black suit with black hat was lecturing me and I could not understand a word he was saying)  got back into the car...said Merci, Merci all around and left.

I drove off to another garage where I had no problem at all.

BUT!...I realized when I got to the other garage and parked...I had used the ticket from my first try at the first garage in the 2nd attempt. I had already been used to exit before, hence deja sortie. The machine at the gate makes you take your ticket, so I put it on the seat next to me.
When I reentered, I took the new ticket and put that on the seat too.
When I went to pay to get out the 2nd time...I used the wrong ticket. I didn't even consider this in my panic.

These type of things always happen to me.