We'll always have Paris

First- late breaking news: Given the state of our state- Minnesota (which is currently closed, since our elected officials can’t find a compromise solution to our state’s budget shortfall), and the impending financial status of our nation- we have decided to stay here until things improve…so gang- WE ARE NOT COMING BACK!!! (OK OK –just joking, but as we read about the weather---hot, humid and almost non-stop rain---and the budget travails in Minneapolis, we are both having serious doubts about returning.  If we didn’t have non-refundable plane tickets and would need to extend our visas (or become an illegal alien), this might actually be a serious possibility!!!

Umm..what's its name??? 

But returning to our adventures in Paris....

I have always loved Paris- although the reasons why have changed over time. At first, because I studied French in school, it was one of the few places in the world where I could actually communicate in something other than English (When I was older, I also discovered that French was also a useful language in the many places that had been conquered and colonized by France, but as a child, this was not part of my education or awareness.) 


Later, as a young adult, I loved Paris, for its ‘attitude’.  Where else in the world would a vendor refuse to sell me something (flowers for friends who had invited me to dinner, combinations of ice-cream flavors or even ingredients for a sandwich) until what I wanted was correct. Those kindly Parisians were helping me avoid uncouth behavior by not selling me the wrong version of whatever it was I thought I wanted.   Of course correct behavior also included speaking French, but at that time, any of my attempts to communicate in French were immediately responded to in English. (I am grateful to all the Parisians who--at great personal risk--helped save me from murdering the French language.)

Isles St Louis from the Seine

(Much) Later, Bruce and I visited Paris together, often adding it on to the end of our other stays, extended journeys and travels in Europe. It is a romantic city, and wandering around the twisting canyons of streets surrounded by ornate deco metal railings, porches and long wood-slatted windows is an incredibly experience. In addition we also wandered along the banks of the Seine, gasping in delight as famous scenes emerged from the mist and rain---misty and rainy and somewhat grey because most of those visits because were in the winter and fall.  In fact this trip was the first time in many, many years that I have been in Paris in the summer…and the contrasts are quite remarkable, with completely different weather - for the first time, it was sunny and hot.  Suddenly, we were wearing short -sleeved shirts and putting on sunscreen.

Artichoke blossoms

Paris in mid-summer and at the height of tourist season is overwhelming.  The center of Paris, the place of the well-known tourist museums, sites and monuments was crowded with shorts-wearing backpack and camera-toting families plus at least one whining kid and a full set of cellphones (one per person). Suddenly the main languages were English (American and British) followed by Chinese and Japanese.  People rushed around, craning upward with cameras pointed, aimed and engaged. With the crowds came lots of (illegal) souvenir vendors, carrying large rings of miniature Eiffel towers (some vendors had large handkerchiefs with strings on each corner, which efficiently displayed the wares and also quickly became cloth sacks as they scooped up their items when any police approached. ( ‘no officer, I wasn’t selling anything—this is just a bag with stuff in it…’

Apricots at a local market

This was a different Paris from our last visit over 14 years ago.  In addition to the tourists and longer daylight hours, I was actually able to speak French with local folks. (I would like to think my French has improved, but I know it has NOT, so people are more willing to tolerate poor French.)  When we ate out, we could easily order ‘un carafe du l’eau’ (a pitcher of water) - something that would have been met with sneers the last time we were here.  We also wanted to see different things this time as well, and so we eschewed the typical tourist areas most of the time, choosing instead to explore other parts of Paris.  I loved every moment of it.  Here are more specific details:  

To begin, we stayed slightly outside of Paris in a smaller town called Cachan, about 15 minutes by train (the RER B) south from the center.  Our hosts were a youngish, soon-to-be-married couple who were also studying Traditional Chinese Medicine.  They were wonderful. We shared wine (one evening when his parents stopped by), got helpful hints for what to see and where to eat (we all have similar food preferences- e.g. cheap and ethnic), and helped feed their rabbit, guinea pig and mouse, the last two days when they were away visiting family.  The town was small, diverse and much less frenetic than Paris, which provided an interesting contrast.

Sacre Coeur

Our sightseeing was mostly outside of the normal tourist areas, and much of the time we walked different neighborhoods and experienced the many different immigrant communities that also exist in Paris (and other parts of France as well).  On our first day, after a brief stop at Notre Dame in the 1^st arrondissment (entrance happened to be free the day we were there) we explored both the Institute du Monde Arab (the huge and beautiful Middle Eastern cultural center nearby) and ate at the restaurant connected to the Grande Mosque de Paris. (Meal details: we had a good Moroccan couscous, earing outside in a courtyard filled with fluttering birds, that reminded us of our host family’s house in Fez, Morocco!)  From there we visited the area where we used to stay in the past (just outside of the Quartier Latin in the 5^th and 6^th arrondissment) and rediscovered a favorite bakery from our last visit (Keyser bakery-- which has the most amazing dense raisin, or nut, or date/nut breads.  Of course we had to buy some to take home with us).

View from Sacre Coeur with roller blade ramp

On another day, we explored the 18^th and 10^th arrondissments (neighborhood), starting with Belleville and eventually walked up the backside of the steep hill on which the Church of Sacre Coeur sits.  This area is a wonderfully diverse area, filled with people from Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Vietnam, India, Pakistan and many countries in Africa (we saw markets specializing in Ghanaian, Liberian, Haitian produce…to name only a few.) The weekly market which we visited was immense and as we walked through we were surrounded by clothings and houseware as well as cheeses, meats, fish, and exotic fruits and vegetables (like taro, yucca and other non-European foods). Bins of colorful olive and dried beans being sold by Arabic speaking vendors. Oh, how I wished I could cook up lots of dishes with what was available.  Instead we walked and took pictures. That day, we ended up eating at an Algerian restaurant (menu: soup, fried fish and coffee) and one of the people who worked at that restaurant was a woman from Estonia who had been designated to talk with us since she spoke English.  When we asked about her accent, we were amazed to find she is actually from Tallinn and her mother teaches in the Dance Department at Tallinn University. (The world is truly small!!!!) 

Vegetables at a farmer's market

From there we walked through the neighborhood behind the Gare du Nord (northern train station, passing first through streets filled with caste-marked South Asians and then through an extensive African neighborhood as we slowly ascended up the back of the hill topped by Sacre Coeur.

Sacre Coeur was packed, but this was because we arrived just as a special mass for 125^th year anniversary of the church was being celebrated. We joined people from all over the world to listen to prayers, music and the experience of an extremely, high church Roman Catholic service with more than 20 clergy and nuns officiating. (Picture many people on their knees on a cold stone floor for 20+ minutes or more at a time….it was amazing).  We emerged  from Sacre Coeur and were faced with a large rollerblade ramp descending toward the Montmartre area below.  We actually saw one, slightly suicidal, young man as he traveled down the ramp, crossing himself before sailing off into the blue (there were actually air bags for him to land on, but we didn’t see this until later.)

Mitterand library and de Beauvoire bridge

Another day, we explored the 12^th and 13^th arrondissment, visiting the new museum of cinema and a smaller Asian neighborhood across the river.  On the way we passed the Mitterand national library (architecturally looking like four open books standing on their ends) and crossed over the Simone de Beauvoir bridge (whoopie). We also saw lots of kids out playing and participating in cooperative exercises and games.  

Locks on bridge over the Seine

On another day as Bruce went into the Musee d’Orsey (it was free, which also meant that it was a 40 minute wait in line to get inside), I sat on a nearby bridge and tourist watched. It was fun to sit, with flat tour boats passing below me in the Seine, watch family interactions and observe a local artist sitting near by, smoking and reading the paper, as he looked hopefully at people walking by.  The bridge itself was a pedestrian and bike bridge and on both sides of the railings people had attached small locks on which were written two names and sometimes a heart. Some of the tourists walking by noticed, but most were in a hurry to get to the Louvre or the Tuilleries, which were on the other side.

Goat cheeses at farmer's market

Other walking adventures…We had  a picnic next to the Eiffel Tower (our picnic included local bread bought at the Cachan farmer’s market plus some amazing goat cheese, humus and
French-style tahini -made by a Lebanese guy with sauted onions, capers and herbs-, and Belleville-purchased olives).  

Canal in the summer

We walked down the Champs de Mars and then over to the Luxembourg gardens, filled with couples and families on a warm Sunday afternoon, where older men were playing chess and young immigrants baskbetball.  On another day we explored an area near Belleville with a small but beautiful canal called La Villette, a side tributary of the Seine.  People of all ages were draped on the banks, soaking in the sunlight, smoking (of course, it is France- after all) and just hanging out.   

We wandered and hung out as well, searching for a ‘typical café’ we had read about that served cheap, but good mezzes and had local music performances. We found the café but were too late for the singing and there were no mezzes on the plat du jour,  but it didn’t matter. On our way back we stopped at a small neighborhood ‘Tuscan pizza ‘ take-out restaurant, and had the best pizza and the most incredible buffalo mozzarella and tomato salad (complete with real e.g. thick and sweet- balsamic vinegar).  It was delicious, and as we ate we watched a Jewish family get ready for dinner and a listened to a local couple with two children having their Sunday pizza dinner while talking in the ‘secret parent language’ of English !!!!

hanging out along the Seine

One more food story and then I will sign off (I need to leave some details for Bruce to talk about). Our final half day, we explored another small South Asian and Tunisian neighborhood near the Gare du Nord.  While the neighborhood was not as large as we were expecting, we wandered into another local Jewish community and ended up having the most amazing couscous in a small Algerian restaurant.  In addition to great food, the meal ended with a fun conversation in French (mostly) about Algerian Independence day (which was that day) the fact that no one else in the Arab world actually understands Moroccan Arabic/Derija (this from the Algerian mom who presided over the small restaurant) and about Texas, since the other person having lunch was from Bretagne (complete with a hard to understand accent.)

Chess players Luxembourg gardens

Luxembourg Gardens

After lunch we literally ran back to the train station hopped the Thalys high speed train and 3 hours later were being met at the RAI in Amsterdam Holland.  Life is good!!!!!

Bruce taking photos....cute hat!!!