A down day and our first visitor 5-15 & 5-16-15

On Friday I stayed in without any intent to go out, I've had a bit of a nasal drip since we arrived so I tried some Claritin to see if it was allergies.  After 2 days I had a more developed head cold, so I decided to stay home and rest to see if it would let up a little.   It wasn't a lost day though, as I got to watch a stage of the Giro d'Italia bike race.  It was the day after the leader, Alberto Contador, fell and dislocated his shoulder so I wanted to see if he would be able to race.   He is really a phenomenon on a bike, very strong and determined, and I wanted to see if he would have to abandon the race.  He raced and retained his lead, very impressive.

Today, Saturday, our first visitor from the U.S. my niece Elizabeth flew into Paris for a week's visit with us before going to Germany for the wedding of her sister-in-law Simone's brother.  We are looking forward to our week together which will be capped with us going to Strasbourg for a few days before Elizabeth continues on to Germany.  On the way to the airport we got to see a performance of a fiddler on the train to Chas. de Gaulle airport and his violin was the most unique I've ever seen.

The Musee du quai Branly 5-14-14

Today we visited the new Musee du quai Branly.  This is a relatively new museum which exhibits indigenous artifacts from cultures from all over the world.  It has sculptures, tools, musical instruments, textiles, masks, etc.  Great stuff on show from Meso-America; Aztec, Olmec, Inca, and other cultures.  Also great stuff from South-East Asia and Australia.   As we were limited in available time we focused on the above areas, and we will visit Africa, and North America next time.  This is a wonderful museum.  

One of the most fascinating exhibits we saw was an installation which took some 15000 place-names and ethnologic terms to create an animated river of  projected words that is controlled by a computer program which used fluid dymamics to have the words flow down the long ramp leading from the entryway up to the exhibition hall.  Entrancing.

Interesting acquaintance and our first concert 5-12 & 5-13-15

There is a very large brocantes fair at the Place de la Bastille and we had received some complimentary invitations from some dealers.  So we could come back a second time without having to pay the 10 euro/person entry fee, so we did.   We have see some very interesting things for sale but nothing which is so spectacular that we got out our wallets.  We did however meet a very interesting dealer who has a booth full of old tools and industrial related objects and he turned out to be very entertaining and quite congenial.   His grandfather was one of the ironworkers who worked on the construction of the Eiffel Tower and he had a picture of his grandfather along with the crew of workers who were his companions.   We spent probably 45 minutes in conversation with him and enjoyed it greatly.  Thank you Jean-Claude.  


Jean-Claude and the picture of his grandfather.








Then the next day we had our first visit to the new concert hall that was opened just shortly after we moved into the apartment.  It was difficult to obtain tickets for the concert because when I went to buy tickets the first two concerts were sold out more than 2 month early and we were only able to get the last 2 seats together for a third concert.  The new hall is quite lovely and pretty plush, it was built as a concerthall in the round.  Very much like the old DSO hall at DCPA, which they want to tear down, was Denver 35 years ahead of its time?   Is it really out of date or has Paris just built an obsolete hall?  Only time will tell.  Foolishly I forgot a camera, sorry.

Now to the concerts, as there were actually 2.  We went to a pre-concert prelude chamber concert, a string quartet by Dvorak, which was very well done by students from the Orchestral Academy of Paris.  They were very well prepared!   Since there are no tickets required for the prelude presentations we were able to sit in the very expensive and plush seat around 15 rows from the stage. This is where I got my first big surprise on the seating, very comfortable seats but when a person sat down in the row in front of me and folded down the seat the back of the seat actually came back so far that I had to spread my legs or have my knees really bashed.  Somewhat indelicately put, if I farted then only one person in the hall would have heard it, the guy with his head between my knees! In my opinion this is a major defect and I'm so glad that we didn't have the very expensive tickets for the main concert.
The main concert was another piece by Dvork, a concerto for cello and orchestra which was very well executed.  This was followed by Brahm's first symphony which was very enjoyable as well. The acoustics are excellent and we could hear the music from our seats in the second to last row without any problems.

Out on the bummel 5-11-15

Mondays are Deb's day to clean the apartment and I've been banished.  Oh well, make lemonade that's what I say. I had a chore to pick up advanced tickets to the Louvre so when we have visitors we won't be trapped in line waiting for tickets.  
So I jumped on the bus and headed downtown,  about halfway there I got off the bus to walk along a stretch of the route that I've wanted to explore and to find a new grand epicerie (food store) that my sister Gail alerted us to and told us to go.   I did find it and it is very new and modern, it was fun to wander around the store and see what was on offer.
I then headed down the rue de Rivoli to the Louvre and purchased the tickets.  It was about 10 minutes of effort so I decided to head out to the Tuilleries and take photos.   I have been trying to capture a couple of different types of pics, the first is to capture people who are making their living by working in Paris and the other is to capture pics of people who are taking "selfies" (pictures of themselves using their mobile devices).
  
People who make their living here are interesting because the Paris they see is so different than the one that the tourists and us see.   It's not a never ending procession of treks to see this monument or that museum, but a metropolis with which they have to deal everyday.

 Today I happened to be sitting in the shade when I noticed the impromptu vendors suddenly get very alert and make haste to go into a stairway leading into the Louvre de Rivoli.   This is an underground shopping center and exhibition space just west of the Louvre itself and would be a good place to blend in.  They were very intent on watching the circuit of police which periodically cruise the park keeping the peace.  They also confront the vendors to make sure that they are legitimate, i.e. have a vendors license.  Now these guys are trying to sell trinkets at around 1 euro a piece and a license would be very expensive for them.  So when the police come around they make an exit, only to return when the police leave.

To me selfies represent chance to candidly capture people as they attempt to document their holidays and make all the friends and family at home envious.   Yes it's vain, and in most cases not damaging, but it will help them to validate that they're having a great time if only until the next facebook posting.  



Heck I'm doing the same thing with this blog aren't I?  I'm just limiting the selfies and trying to pass along a bit of what it's like to be here for an extended length of time.

Just a walk in the Parc - Luxembourg Gardens 5-10-15

Today we were on a scouting run, we want to work out some logistics for getting around when visitors come.   So we headed downtown and eventually got to the Luxembourg Gardens.  The palace was built by Marie De Medici who was married to Louis IX, today it is the home to the French Senate.  It's an iconic stop for tourists because it is so beautiful.  Today was no different in that regard but they did have a large portion of the park closed off due to creating a historical television program on slavery in France.   The current differences between Paris and Denver are as stark as the Mediterranean and the Arctic as there was snow in Denver.  NOT here!

Hmm, Denver? Paris? , Denver? Paris?, Let's see

Some thoughts from bus-rides from Deb: 5-9-15

***Endlessly patient parents of young kids. The parents board the busses burdened with junior soccer balls, scooters, tricycles with poles on the back to control the bike unbeknownst to the peddler, meanwhile keeping track of their young charges who are usually exhilarated at being out. Other people on the busses are tolerant and patient, getting up to give seats to children, and treading carefully to not trip over the aforementioned scooters and trikes. Kids generally well-behaved, murmuring a timid "merci" for the seats, with downcast eyes.


***Parents of even younger kids, out on the sidewalks with their little "drunken sailors" who are reeling down the way, lurching from side to side, chortling with delight at their new skills. Parents trying to keep a wary eye out for all the many street hazards while allowing as much freedom as possible. Passers-by trying to negotiate their ways around the little tottering obstacles.


***Being offered seats on metros and busses by young people. Gosh, I used to be a young person, offering seats. Humbling. And surprising that some of the young people look like young toughs, Goth-gear and multi tattoos, and have such lovely manners.


***Have been enjoying all the art on walls in the city. Some walls near schools are obviously student/teacher projects in colorful graffiti style. We have several in our neighborhood, and have been pleasantly surprised to see them being maintained and freshened. Others are the blank walls at the end of buildings that must have at one time abutted another building. Many of these have been done with trompe l'oeil effects, for example, figures of people rappelling down the wall on garlands of flowers, or a Rapunzel-like character letting down her hair from a fake window to a lover below. Some are painted with themes meaningful to a specific neighborhood. Warren's been getting some good pictures of them as we wander around the city.


***The huge diversity of clothing in our neighborhood. Black women of some African extraction in vibrant colors, head to foot, with flamboyantly arranged head scarves matching - or sometimes contrasting - with their blouses and long skirts. Bold patterns and great colors - red, orange, hot pink, purple. Various Jewish sects, some with men in black fedoras and dark suits and wives with hair covered by knitted caps and muted, modest clothing. Other groups in yarmulkes but no hats. Lots of Muslim women with their hair covered in characteristic opaque scarves, some in dark colors, others in trendy pastels. Middle-eastern men in long tunics over trousers, often in bold stripes but sometimes even muted pin-stripes.


***And on the topic of clothing, our ongoing amazement at the amount of warm clothing people are still wearing. As we sweated in the sunshine at the bus-stop this morning, we watched an ongoing procession of people wearing what look like winter coats to us, complete with mufflers. I had divested of a light sweater as too stifling and yet people were walking by, each with shirt, sweater, muffler and buttoned leather jacket. We have decided that the French learn early on to be stoic about temperature changes and just soldier on with whatever they put on that morning. We probably stand out totally as tourists by shedding layers as we go.

Another day of usual with some unusual interludes 5-8-15

Today was a usual day, which is to say that since it was a May holiday (there are 4 or more holidays in May, 3 on Friday) we decided to try our luck at some brocantes markets.  Since we found a new bus route which took us right to one of the markets, we took the time where the buses change from one route to another to get some lunch.  So we wandered around Place Gambetta in the 20th to find lunch.   We found a brasserie about a block away and sat down.  Very congenial to sit out on the terrace and very friendly staff.  However not terribly competent, I ordered a filet mignon du porc with small vegetables and a dessert, Deb ordered an avocado mousse with crevettes (shrimp) and beef stroganoff for the main course.  Deb asked for a cider and I asked for a large glass of wine.  So the waitress brings out the cider and a small glass for wine, which she then proceeds to fill.  I'm thinking, Oh I guess I'll get two small glasses to fill the order, so I keep quiet.   Next she brings out Deb's appetizer of avocado & shrimp and a plate of stroganoff, at this point I asked her if this was pork? To which she replied, Yes.  Now I ain't a rancher, but I know beef from pork.  But we decided to see what might come out next, so we shared the appetizer and the stroganoff.  Next she delivers another stroganoff and my dessert.  So we shared that as well.  It was good stroganoff and we enjoyed both plates of it.  When the owner came by I asked him the size of my glass, so when the check came and it was for a larger glass and for a much more expensive type of wine I gently pointed this out and he was very quick to adjust the bill. We didn't mention that that filet mignon du porc was in fact stroganoff.   However another lunch at this place may be a stretch.
  

As we waited for lunch I spotted a man who drove up and parked his van along the street.  He was shortly approached by several people and with each person he unloaded some furniture and they carted chairs and tables off with them.






We did go to two antiques shows and at one of them we spotted a western hat that had a Walcott, Colorado stamp in the band, funny.  Too small and too expensive I'm sure. 

As we walked around the second show we spotted a man on a boat moored in the basin who was sailing a small radio controlled sailboat, so that's the picture.