Beers of France

Well, fellow voyagers - I feel my time in Paris draws to a close. I packed to return to Tucson on Saturday. I will return to Paris for a few more weeks at the end of October, but then this phase of the project ends. Who knows what will happen after that. I also cleaned the apartment, washed some clothes and made my own dinner (hamburgers and canned corn!) - it's been rough since Debbie left!

As part of my cleaning, I disbanded my beer bottle collection. It was sad, but recorded for posterity. I guess it doesn't seem like so many choices for 3 months in the apartment, but I seldom bought the same beer twice. I had some good beers, and some not so good! I'd say in general that French specialty beers are a bit too fruity and carbonated for my taste, but you can get a few that are more in a Belgian tradition. I guess those were my favorite. If you're interested, Sainte Columbe, Page 24, Thomas Becket and St Rieul were all quite consistently good (especially Sainte Columbe). Hercule Stout (Belgian) and Trappistes Rochefort 10 were probably the best - but you need to take a nap after either one! Perhaps I should try to take one before my trip on Saturday! But even the bad beers had some very cool labels and bottles (one of my main selection criterion). One thing I can tell you, if you like fruit flavored beer, the French styles taste more like soda or very fermenty (if that's a word). Stay away... only one of about 8 or so was good (my professional opinion). Au revoir.

Religions of the world

Hello - today I sampled ethnic aspects of 3 of the world's major religions. Granted, it doesn't mean I indulged in theological or intellectual aspects, but I consider it a positive step all the same. I spent the morning at the American Church in Paris, getting my normal Christian dose on Sunday morning. I have enjoyed attending - it is interesting to see how a church that must draw from an audience so diverse has to work. First, they welcome everyone - I mean everyone. While it is a multi-denominational Protestant church, they want anyone who is a Christian and can speak English. Sort of adds a new meaning to "Open and Affirming".


My next experience was slightly different - the Grande Mosquee du Paris has a hammam (a Turkish bathhouse). Sunday is for men, so I went. It was a bit of a challenge since I didn't know what I was doing, but I managed. I also was lucky that one of the masseuses spoke English well. You enter through the tea house (entrance pictured above). You step through a door to the left and pay your money. You get a towel, some rubber pool sandals, and some soap and head back to a locker room. You need a Euro to put in the locker to use the key (but you get it back). You change into whatever you have (running shorts for me), then head into the steam rooms. There are 3 (sort of like the old Roman baths) - the first is warm and has some showers. The second is hot and has a high dark-blue dome ceiling. You take a plastic bucket, fill it, and dump it over the area to plan to use. There's a central area and others surrounding the room. Of course, you start to sweat immediately. Then theres the 3rd room - you can see the steam about eye level in this room. It is really hot - I went in but the drops falling from the ceiling burned a bit, so I went back to the second room.

After however long you want to go with this, you shower off and then the masseuse rubs you down with some sort of rough cloth. Makes you all pink like a new-born baby! Then you go back into the steam room for as long as you like. When you come out next, you get a massage, which was quite nice. Some sort of scented oil is used – I know the smell, but couldn’t quite place it. That lasts for 10 to 30 minutes depending on how much you pay. When it was all done, I felt quit relaxed. At this point, I returned to the showers to clean up with some sort of soap gel I received. After this, I returned to the locker room to change. I was given a cup of hot tea (in a glass) on my way out and sat in yet another little tea room while drinking the tea. I think it all went ok, except the end – I recommend you take the tea before showering and changing. Then you can cool off a bit. As it was, I needed to go outside before I could cool down. That’s my Muslim experience for the day.

My final religious experience was with Judaism. It wasn’t so theological as the ACP (that’s what they call American Church in Paris), nor so new or unusual as a hammam. It was more biological – I walked to rue du Rosiers and had a Maccabee beer and falafel special at L’As du Falafel in the heart of the Jewish quarter. I did pass the Temple on the way also! It’s what I think of as a well-rounded experience overall!

Me and Jim Morrison

Today I went to Cimetiere du Pere Lachaise to mingle with the rich and famous (dead, but rich and famous). That's me next to Jim Morrison's grave (lead singer of the Doors if you didn't know - one of my all time favorite groups, even if they weren't around very long). There were perhaps about 5 or 10 people who came over to the grave while I was there. There were 2 young girls (maybe 20 years old, but maybe not also) - one was actually singing a Doors song! I thought of a few myself (Crystal Ship for some reason - "Before you slip into unconsciousness, I'd like to have another kiss..."), but refrained from singing. My "Light my Fire" probably sounds more like Jose Feliciano anyway.

It was a very nice sunny day. A touch of fall in the air. I have wanted to get to Pere Lachaise, so I did it. I got the free map and circled the names I recognized - Balzac, Sarah Bernhardt, Chopin, Delacroix, Max Ernst, Marcel Proust, Oscar Wilde, Gertrude Stein, (Jim Morrison, of course)... Then I located where the graves should be and spent a few hours walking around finding most of them. The cemetery overall was quite impressive, with a chapel, crematorium, various memorials and monuments. In particular, there were a number of memorials for Jewish deportees, and those who died in various French wars, and calamities. It was nice because it wasn't so busy as most places - quite peaceful.

I had thought of maybe going to Montparnasse Cemetery also, but was done in by Lachaise. Instead I opted for Jardin du Luxembourg and seeing the special exhibit of Tiffany glass at the Musee du Luxembourg. The park was quite full due to the nice weather. And the exhibit was very nice, but I was surprised it was basically two rooms, so not too much. You could see it all in about 20 minutes - and it was expensive (more than the Louvre). Well, I wanted to go. But there are 2 Tiffany windows in the American Church in Paris, and I can see them for free.

On my journey back to the apartment, I stopped at 3 different cafes - once in Luxembourg (I was going to eat, but the waiter didn't really wait on me so I had a glass of wine and left). Once on the way down to the river where I had an omelet and beer. And finally in Place Dauphine for a coffee (that was the best). Au revior.

Smells of Paris

Bonsoir - a week without Debbie now. And the only night I've gone out for dinner was one night with co-workers from IFS. I went with my hat in my hand in the morning and asked if I could join them! We did go to my favorite Italian place (Livio in Neully) - so that was good!

Otherwise, it continues to cool off. Nights are in the high 40's now and it is usually in the low-mid 70's during the day. But skies have been clear, and it has been very nice. On Thursday, I did go out a second time. I attended a dinner / study thing at the American Church in Paris. It was a nice meal, but the discussion was VERY intellectual! That after a week of running workshops at work! It was all about science, evolution and religion! Ouch. Well, it was interesting to listen to, and also fun to sit with 3 flight attendants from United Airlines who were here overnight, walking around, and just decided to come in for dinner and check it out! You never know who you might encounter...

So, I have been thinking a while about what sort of experience it is here. It is a sensory circus for sure - the sights, of course. But actually, you cannot overlook the sounds and smells also. I tend to take those things for granted usually, but even if you don't hear things (that others tell you - I've been accused of that) or don't have a keen sense of smell, you cannot help but notice the sounds and smells of Paris.

Smells - first thing in the morning, it is damp, something you don't often get in Tucson - sort of a basement smell. You walk along to towards the train and will probably notice a urine smell (and hope it was a dog). This is usually aggravated by the cleaners who are spraying down the roads. The garbage containers by the road (similar to those in Tucson), usually are not too bad unless the neighbors have been having fish the night before. I walk by a boulangerie and enjoy the smell of fresh bread and rolls (frequently stopping for pain au raisin). As you get closer to Les Halles, it opens up until you step onto the escalator down to the RER. Suddenly, it gets much warmer and the damp turns to moist (think Florida). By the time you reach the train, it's a bit like before the coolness of a monsoon in Tucson. As you gather with the crowd to file onto the train, it gets tight. You hope for perfume, but sometimes that doesn't quite work out. Then you just hope for cleanliness and deodorant. While you are on the train, it is almost always quite crowded (I was told it is the busiest metro line in the world). So you can just imagine what that can be like. And it has always been warm enough to make me sweat! Once you get to La Defense, one of the best smells is just getting back out into the fresh air. Of course, you must first break through the second hand smoke as everyone lights up when they leave the metro (same thing outside any restaurant you may walk by). It is hard to continue to exhale long enough to get away! Later, after returning to the apartment, sometimes, the Taxi Juane restaurant across the street provides some mouth-watering smells. Those can be off-set by the probably-traditional Chinese cooking coming from the back windows of the apartment. I can take care of that by opening a bottle of rouge from Nicolas and heating some quiche in the oven! Of course, as you pass the various stores on Rue Rambitou, you get the roasting chickens, the cheeses, the pastries, and the cafes. And after a nice meal, there is nothing like the smell of the espresso (which is worth it even if it cost $2 for about 3oz)!

I don't know if that gives an idea, but I know that I will recall the smells of Paris (both good and bad). They have made a impression! Au revoir.

Fall in Paris

Bonsoir - the weather is changing and days are getting shorter. It is now dark when I rise and by 8pm or so. We've had some days that required coats with highs below 70F. But this last weekend was Indian Summer - sunny and perfect t-shirt weather. Debbie and I had a final day before she returned to Tucson on Sunday. We had both lunch and dinner out!

It is also a special weekend in Paris - not sure what the proper name is, but many government buildings are open to the public (ones that usually are not). Also, many museums are free - we took advantage going to the Musee de Cluny (museum of medieval art) on Saturday. This was different, as the building used to be a Roman bath house. It is supposed to be the northern-most remaining bath house. I did feel a bit like I was back in Rome - it is much more open and airy than most historic buildings here. There were also some good tapestries (the "Lady and the Unicorn" is the theme). There were pleasant gardens around the museum also. We joined a colleague from work and his girlfriend for lunch. Olivier lives in the same area as us (the Marais) and we have met him and Joelle once before. Originally, Olivier provided us with info about where to eat and shop. Now, he is asking for our list! We went to a Salon de The' (tea) L'Ebouillante for lunch and had some North African crepe-like things filled with vegetables and cheese. Pretty good stuff.

Sunday, I took Debbie to the airport (about my 4th trip there in the last few weeks). Basically, you must leave our apartment about 3 hours before the plane departs to get through everything. It really makes me miss the 1 hour I needed to plan on in Tucson. I had also made a short trip to London Luton airport last Thursday to get my passport stamped. Deb and my 3 months "tourist" period in France ended this weekend - hence Debbie's departure and my trip. You must leave France and return if you go beyond the 3 months (provided you don't have paperwork to allow you to stay longer). My trip was on EasyJet (a British discount airline). I have now flown on Ryan Air, EasyJet and Southwest - I must say that Southwest has their act together best of the 3 (of course limited experience on the other 2).

Anyway, after Debbie leaving, I was a bit depressed, so I kept busy with activities. Went to service at the American Church of Paris ("Praise and Glory" style at the late service). Then off to the Musee de la Marine at the Trocadero. I wasn't so impressed with the museum (unless you like models of ships - which are pretty elaborate), but the Trocadero is interesting. You have an excellent view of the Eiffel Tower from across the river. And there are fountains and gardens that are picturesque. Most interesting is the people-watching. I saw 3 different protests going on (against nuclear weapons, for the Tamil Tigers - which is interesting by itself, and against China for some human rights issue). I recommend going just to sit and watch. I hope to return in the evening to watch the tower light up!

From there, I went to Invalides to the Musee de L'Armee (Army). I have been before, and what I really wanted to see again was Napoleon's tomb. There was something new that I enjoyed also - a section on Charles de Gaule that covered his history (very modern with lots of special effects). And who doesn't get tired of seeing army stuff - guns, tanks, etc.? I do get a bit tired of the swords and uniforms from the olden days! In the end, I didn't get home until about 7pm, stopping at the boulangerie Vincent for a hot dog mutard (with mustard - this has 2 hot dogs inside a baked roll with mustard - a little different than at the ballpark), a pomme (apple) crumble, a half baguette, and an Orangina (orange soda that taste more like OJ than normal orange soda - a good thirst-quencher). I think my meals will be a bit different without a dinner partner!

All for now. Cheers.

St Michael, Crosses and Lilies

Bonjour - it is time to catch up a bit. Emilee has just left on the RER for the airport and returns to DC. It has been a busy and quick week. On Monday, we picked up a rental car in La Defense from Avis (and a Tom-Tom GPS) and headed for Normandy. We took the "motorway" (can't call it a freeway, as overall we paid about 20 euros in tolls), and then some back roads all the way to the far side of Normandy to Le Mont St Michel (above). Our pilgrimage to this ancient 8th century abbey took us along a causeway, surrounded on all sides by mud flats at low tide. We were instructed that our parking space would be under water by 20:00 (8pm) - tide rises 50 ft in this area! Good thing we arrived by 2pm. There is a town below the abbey with hotels, restaurants and tourist traps. After a quick lunch, we headed to the abbey, built in 708A.D. and dedicated the Archangel Michael. It is quite an extensive abbey with spectacular views. It's hard to imagine it being a working abbey for over 1000 years, even to this day. After the revolution, it was converted into a prison (mostly for religious authorities that wouldn't renounce their religion - doesn't that seem a bit ironic to put clergy in a place like Mont St Michel?). And today, I didn't see any monks, just tourists like us.

While the town and abbey were extremely cool, it was probably cooler to be outside and just looking at it. Debbie and Emilee pulled their shoes off and hiked out into the mud. As I had brought only my one pair of shoes, I didn't (but probably should have). Em got some fine pictures - stay tuned for the monthly web upload. We left as the shadows extended in the evening, and enjoyed the affects on the abbey. The ideal situation would be to actually spend the night on the island to see it at sunrise and set. But our hotel room was about an hour or so back east in the small town of Bayeux. We arrived before dark and spent the night in the centrally located Hotel le Bayeux. We walked for a late dinner to l'assiette Normande (a sample of Normandy). The next morning, we took a couple hours to visit the Bayeux Cathedral and the famous Bayeux Tapestry. The tapestry was created to depict the story of William conquering the English under Harold at Hastings in 1066. It is an 11th century newsreel! It was in very good condition, and again hard to comprehend how something can be so old and survive.

We didn't want to spend too much time in Bayeux as our real objective for the day was to take Omaha Beach. We piled into our black Opel Corsa (which I liked quite a bit - rode smoothly on the motorway, handled well on small roads, diesel fuel, 5-speed stick shift, and not too uncomfortably small - for the driver at least). We headed for Pointe du Hoc Ranger Monument. This is a point on a cliff that 300 Rangers assaulted on D-Day. Less than a third survived only to find that the big guns they were attacking had been moved and replaced with decoys. The area has the remains of bunkers and a monument to the Rangers.

We continued on to Vierville-Sur-Mer. Had lunch at Hotel du Casino overlooking some of the Omaha beachhead and then on to the American Cemetery and Memorial. The Cemetery overlooks Omaha Beach - it's what you see at the end of Saving Private Ryan with all the white marble crosses and Stars of David. It is a beautiful and peaceful place. But it marks the final resting place of almost 10,000 Americans. On the hour, there are chimes that play military anthems and American anthems. The beach itself is wide and sandy - a perfect resort-type beach. There was a fly by of a couple British jets, perhaps on their way over to Gold or Sword Beach. And finally, at 6pm the Flag is lowered as taps were chimed. It was all quite moving - hard to relate to a time when people pulled together and sacrificed so much (at least that's how it seems to me). After seeing things that are thousands of years old, this is only 65 years removed.

Stay with me now... We left the Memorial as it closed and made another long drive east across Normandy to Honfluer - a picturesque seaside town at the mouth of the Siene across from Le Harve. Along the way, we got some bum information from Tom-Tom - he kept trying to direct us onto a motorway using an entrance that didn't exist! No worries though, we made it to our Hotel Monet once again before dark. We had dinner in a cafe next to the Vieux Bassin (old harbor), were attacked by mosquitoes, and walked around the town as the moon rose. Quite pretty. The next morning, we explored just a bit and checked out Ste. Catherine's (an unusual church made entirely of wood - only one I've seen like it). When you walk inside, it looks like a couple of large overturned wooden ships.

We didn't spend much time there as our goal for the last day was Monet's Gardens in Giverny. This was our shortest driving day - only about an hour to Giverny, and less than an hour back to Le Defense. We got to Giverny at lunch time. Skies were grey, but not dark, and the gardens were fantastic. While the flowers were a bit past their prime, it was still impressive. And the Japanese Garden, willow and water lilies look a lot like his paintings! Imagine that! We spent about 3 hours strolling and taking pictures before returning to Paris, worn out and trying to digest all we had seen during the 3 days!

In retrospect, this week of September was a perfect week to see Normandy. We didn't hit any crowds (not even at Monet's or Mont St Michel). The weather was fine. Traffic was light. Hotel rooms were available at good rates. It was all excellent. I think it would have been good to have one more day for D-Day beaches and museums. We only saw a small part of this. But certainly no complaints! Au revoir.

Monet on Sunday

We are back in tourist mode this weekend. Emilee arrived yesterday and it is the first Sunday of the month. That means museums are free - well at least some museums.

Yesterday, we went over to the left bank and through some areas new to us. Some near St Michel were new for us, even though we've been there a number of times. We found a number of small streets that have lots of Greek restaurants (where we had our lunch/dinner at about 4pm). Then we went to another new area southeast of the Pantheon - where Hemingway and Joyce first lived in Paris. Place de la Contrascarpe is a small, busy plaza with lots of cafes and restaurants nearby. In Hemingway's A Movable Feast, he described the area as a "cesspool" - clearly no longer that way. It seems like school is back in session - lots of college age people back on the left bank. And the Bombardier (a British Pub we've been to a couple times, next to the Pantheon) was too busy to stop for a beer! Seems like you could spend many weeks just exploring different areas of town. For every interesting area I've seen, there are probably 10 or 100 that I've never heard of or seen!

Today, we did some museums. We learned of the Musee Marmottan a week or so ago, with its collection of Monet and more. It's in the 16th Arrondissement, all the way over by the forest (Bois de Boulongne). Quite a nice and peaceful area! Much different than our neighborhood! We knew when we left the metro, walked down rue de Passy past older people sipping their coffee - we were not in the Marais or les Halles any longer. Large, stately buildings and wide boulevards. So that is how some Parisians live!

The museum was very nice. But not one of the free ones on the first Sunday of the month! Ouch. One thing that was most impressive was the inside itself - a beautiful high-ceiling estate. There were also some special exhibitions that had photography. One of them had aerial shots of things like sidewalks or other common areas of Paris. Some were from La Defense. The photographer is Yann Arthus Bertrand - it was pretty interesting. After the museum, we were somewhat close to Roland Garros, so we went over to see it. You couldn't really enter the stadium, but we did get to go into the gift shop and entrance area. So we took care of another thing on Debbie's list.

Afterward we took the metro back to Concorde and had lunch at Cafe Renard in Tuileries. Then we went to l' Orangerie for just a bit more impressionism and Monet! We were museumed out! Walked home past les Halles. Once again missed our chance to shop for groceries at the Franprix of Monoplex (grocery stores) as they were all closed. This seems to happen to us quite often! So we chose quiche and tarts at Victor's Boulangerie, and tomatoes at the produce store for dinner. Tomorrow we leave for Normandy - driving from Le Defense where I've rented a car. Bon voyage!

Rentree

Bonsoir - the days are getting shorter. When I first arrived in May, it didn't get dark until after 10pm - now around 8. It doesn't help that it has been cloudy and rainy the last couple of days. Today was the first day it rained the whole way from apartment to RER and RER to the office. Fortunately, I have my trusty IFS umbrella (never got much use before I came here).

This week is "rentree" in Paris. That means that everyone returns from summer vacation and school starts. There is definitely a change. Suddenly, there are many more people on the train. The office is full. Notably, the homeless people have returned. Before August, I would see the same people in the same spots - one guy around the corner always in the same place, another guy in the subway at Les Halles who just stands at the exit doors with a cup for coins. He never moves or even blinks (like the guard at Buckingham Palace). He sort of scares me. I have not see the guy who was always at the top of the escalator in the morning when I go down to the RER. I wonder if they also go on summer holiday? Maybe move closer to the tourist sites. I don't know, but it is strange that the homeless people also disappear during August!

In addition, many of the nearby shops (butcher, boulangerie, brasserie...) were closed and have now reopened. Now I can buy a roasted chicken again or Chinese food to go. Debbie and I have settled into more of a habit of eating at home now - that doesn't necessarily mean we fix too much. So far it has been limited to pasta, hamburgers, and chicken breasts. For the most part, if we can't cook it in a frying pan or microwave, we don't do it. But, there is a pretty good selection of take out choices from ethnic places, bakeries (for quiche or pizza), and charcuteries (sort of like a French deli). This week, our dinning-in meals included lasagna, Lebanese pies, Chinese, quiche and pizza. Our going out has gradually reduced so we probably only go out a few times for dinner, and frequently someone from my work will make the trip and join us. This weekend our daughter Emilee comes, and I expect we will go out a lot more while she's here.

But don't worry - we are still trying new restaurants each week! I have a comprehensive list (along with how well we liked them). We've also been trying to collect the cards from the restaurants, and have a good collection. I wish I would have taken a picture of them also.

Our exploring has also tapered off a bit. I know our time is limited, but some weekends you just don't feel like going to another amazing and famous sight or museum! This past weekend, we did go to Sainte Chapelle, but otherwise just did some walking around. And it was nice not to have anything really planned for a change. It was Jay's last weekend here in Paris. He and I came over here together and our apartments are about a 10 minute walk apart, so it will be a bit strange to have him gone. We got together for a final meal in Paris together. He has a friend Janie visiting and now they are off to Italy before returning to the US. Au revoir, Jay.