Hi - it has been some rainy weather here in Paris the last couple weeks. For that matter, it's been rainy since we arrived in June. Only a few days have passed with no rain. I'm told it is very unusual. Fortunately, it is typically isolated and spotty, but yesterday it rained all day. Not very good for the eve of Bastille day. When here in 2009, we went to Place de la Bastile to listed to bands. On the way home we passed lines of girls waiting to dance with firemen. It was a busy evening! This year, we went to dinner with a French friend from work and his girlfriend near Saint Sulpice in the 6e. On the way there and back, we heard no music, saw no queues for dances. In fact, we got home around midnight and the fire station near by was closed down tight. 
Fortunately, today, Bastille Day, the sun has been out quite a bit. The forecast was for more rain, but it was nice for the parade. We did not go to the parade route until after it had finished (did see helicopter fly-overs, but that was all). I went for a run earlier in the Bois, picked up some croissants (and a blueberry muffin) on the way back for breakfast. We had to go to the grocery store as we invited Trevor over for dinner. We will try to make eggplant Parmesan - but no breadcrumb were found. We will be trying to make our own - stay tuned for how this works out!
It's been a pretty quiet week since July 4th. As mentioned, lots of rain. We have had a few meals with various friends - always fun. Last weekend, we went out with Pawel, a former co-worker, and his wife Isabella. They have been in France for over a year now and live out by la Defense. We had our usual dinner with some current co-workers on Wednesday. In both of these cases, we tried some restaurants near our apartment. Sorry to say that they were not great. They weren't bad - just nothing to make me want to return to them. But it is always fun to be out with friends in Paris! Last night's restaurant Le Petite Cour was very nice. I'd return to it - but it's just not in our neighborhood. The building itself was nondescript. You could walk by and never realize there was even a restaurant there. It was especially well disguised as the street was full of bars and cafes. But up close, it had a very nice courtyard below street level. It would have been great on a nice day. We chose to eat inside, away from the cold, damp air. It featured a 36€ formula - with selections of swordfish, veal, pork, and more. The food itself was tasty and good portions. Very nice.
Last weekend, I ran on Saturday morning also - went a slightly different direction. Once I got to the edge of the park, I couldn't tell if I needed to go right or left. First I went right, then decided I needed to go left. Then I decided I needed to head to where I thought Av Victor Hugo was. Well, my half hour run became an hour run and I ended up all the way by Trocadero before getting my bearings - no mountains to focus on, but I did spot the Eiffel tower a few times. Afterwards, Debbie and I went to the American Library (they were having a book sale - we bought 4).
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