The Bold Soul™

Sunday stroll

On Sunday, we both wanted to get out of the house for a while but the weather didn't look very good. Georges suggested we head up to the Champs Elysées and simply walk up one side and down the other. In reality, he really wanted to check out the newly opened Marks & Spencer shop because when M&S used to have several stores in Paris, he said they had the best coleslaw ever.

So, bundled up against the chilly day and comfy shoes on, and with dreams of coleslaw, off we went.

Let me just say, we were disappointed. There was NO coleslaw. None. And in fact, what M&S called a food "hall" was more like a closet they stuck in the back. I have since come across an article that claims M&S added it as an afterthought, originally intending it would just be fashion retail and nothing else. But Parisians love the M&S food products and launched a campaign about it, so this was the best M&S could do. Maybe they shouldn't have bothered after all. Not a very auspicious re-entry to Paris after 10 long years of absence, M&S!

After we left, continuing our walk up the right side of the street toward L'Etoile, Georges started to explain that there is not only a right and left side of the street (I think of the right side as being on the right when facing toward the Arc de Triomphe), but also apparently a "right" and "wrong" side of the Champs Elysées when it comes to the best commercial real estate. Why exactly one has become right, meaning "correct" or "best", and the other wrong, I have no idea, but the right side (in all sense of the word) gets the better sunlight all day. You definitely see more people walking on the right side.

But it's not enough to choose one side of the street or the other. On each side, there are "exceptions" (welcome to France where every rule has an exception). For example, M&S chose a location on the right side and I'm sure they are paying a bundle for it... but they seem to have picked the one bad corner on that side. That article I read says the location seems cursed because nothing that moves in there succeeds. Interesting. Plus, are they catering to Parisians or tourists? Because if it's tourists then perhaps that location's not so bad (except for this being cursed thing), but if they want the Parisians to sh0p there then it's so very, very wrong; Parisians tend to avoid tourist areas whenever possible.

Now, Louis Vuitton is officially on the "wrong" side (i.e., the left) but they are in the one corner (exception!) on that side that IS a good location, so says my husband. It's on a rather open corner in a beautiful building, and LV really stands out there. Abercrombie & Fitch just opened their new flagship store, also on the "wrong" side, but they also got one of the few good spots: just at the rond point at Franklin Roosevelt metro, a building with a huge iron and gilt gate and a courtyard, from which you enter the store. Very chic. We never actually got inside, though, because you had to queue up to get in (I guess lots of people want to gawk at the half-naked male model posing in the doorway?) and we had no intention of lining up for that.

We also passed one of my personal favorites: Ladurée. (On the wrong side as well, but no one seems to care because with macarons like that, you can do what you like and people will still come.) What I didn't know was that they'd had a terrible fire in October. They have reopened the ground-floor boutique, so you can still get your macarons, but the upstairs restaurant area was pretty much gutted, we think. Which makes me sad as it was really a beautiful dining space with an old world feel. I've taken several out-of-town friends there we've always had a nice meal and good service. Hope they can reopen soon. No one was hurt... except for the lovely macarons which probably don't hold up well under extreme temperatures and smoke.

On a Sunday, the Champs Elysées is one of the few areas of Paris with nearly every shop open: Virgin records and books has a very nice store there; the "car" showrooms for Peugot, Renault, Mercedes and Citroen (I like looking at their concept cars because there's always something unusual); the biggest Sephora in Paris (we picked up a gift card for someone there, since we were passing); and (sigh) a Disney Store. There is still one famous cafe there, Fouquet's (the rest are over in Saint Germain des Pres and Montparnasse) and two very large movie theatres (Gaumont) that generally have the first-run films. The infamous Lido cabaret show is still in operation, although I don't know anyone who's ever gone there (the Moulin Rouge still seems more popular with tourists).

If you're going to the Champs Elysées looking for the couture houses like Dior, Dolce and Gabbana and Chanel, you'll be disappointed because they all moved years ago to Avenue Montaigne... but never fear, because that's just off the Champs down near Franklin Roosevelt, so at least you're in the right neighborhood.

So... a good place to walk around for exercise, or if you feel like seeing a movie or doing a little Sunday shopping. Mostly filled with tourists, I'm afraid -- and beggars and pickpockets, so watch yourself. But you can't beat the view down that long, tree-lined street. And it will always be the Champs Elysées.

Even if there is a McDonald's on it.

I liked the flying cashmere goats at Eric Bompard, all wearing cashmere scarves, naturellement.

The elegant exterior of Ladurée...

... with this sign explaining their restaurant "renovations" -- no mention of the fire, but just look up above the ground floor and you'll see cracked windows and even one completely missing window with traces of black smoke residue on the facade.

We liked this little Renault Twingo, fit for Marie Antoinette... or the President of France.

The impressive new entrance to Abercrombie and Fitch. That's Georges there on the right in the black hat, just before bodyguards stopped us from just walking in without first waiting in the line. Pfft.

Just at the rond point Franklin Roosevelt, we saw this antique truck which has been outfitted as a food truck selling only organic foods.

My guy... taller, nicer and much more handsome than Napoleon, who commissioned that big fancy arch in the background.

I ♡ handbags!

OK, I don't often do a double-take while passing shop windows, but this gorgeous red purse (although it's also very nice in the charcoal) stopped me in my tracks and had me nearly drooling on the window at Lancel today. Just the other day I was saying to Georges that while I don't really care  about designer labels and clothing, I DO like pretty and unusual bags (remember my Jane Austen book purse?).

Isn't it scrumptious?

I wasn't always such a handbag afficionado, but in recent years they have captured more of my attention. I think the lure of handbags (or shoulder bags, totes, clutches, you get the idea) is that they ALWAYS fit even when your jeans don't, they can almost be an art form, and if you take care of them they will last a lifetime. Sure, I still buy cheap, crappy purses in a pinch, but more and more, I'm finding that I prefer to save up and get something really special. I doubt I'll ever be someone who can wear the latest fashion trends in clothing, but a purse is one size fits all. And every woman deserves to have something that makes her feel special and fabulous, so why not a purse?

Of course when I mentioned my fascination with purses to Georges, he asked if I wanted to buy the 10,000 euro Gucci bag we spotted in Venice last May, and I had to laugh because if I had 10 grand to spare, I sure wouldn't blow it on a purse!

So sweetie, if you're reading this, this is absolutely NOT a hint to go and buy me this red bag. Because although it doesn't cost 10,000€, at 869€ euros it's still ridiculously expensive.

However if you ever happen to see a nice fake Lancel bag just like this being sold on a street corner somewhere for about 25 euros, I wouldn't say no. ☺

 

Lamarck

Our street, all dolled up for the holidays. (Taken with Hipstamatic iPhone app, Dali kit.)

Sealed with a kiss

This past week found me playing nurse, when both Georges and the Little Guy came down with a case of food poisoning after we ate at one of our favorite local restaurants on Monday night. They had shared their meal, which consisted of a starter of escargots, and a main course of one plate of charcuterie and fromage (cold cuts and cheese) and another plate of a huge vegetarian salad. Our friend who was dining with us had a simple plate of the same charcuterie but no cheese, and I had something entirely different, and neither of us was sick at all, so my guess is that it was either the snails or the cheese that was just "off" enough to make them both feel lousy the next day. Georges was much sicker than his son; he spent all of Tuesday sleeping and he NEVER misses work when he's sick, whereas his son spent the early part of the day reading in bed and taking a short nap, but then ate and played normally the rest of the day. But I'm grateful that it wasn't really the worst case of food poisoning I'd ever seen, because that can be pretty nasty stuff (been there, done that, don't ever wanna do it again).

So Tuesday was spent quietly at home, and Wednesday the same (I was pretty tired after Tuesday). By Thursday I was happy to get out and meet Linda for lunch near Père Lachaise, and afterward -- between rain showers -- we managed to take a short walk into the cemetery. There, I took a small bouquet to honor Georges' parents, and then we searched for the tomb of Oscar Wilde.

The reason for this is that his tomb had recently been restored, and a high glass barrier erected around it. Why? Because for SOME reason, there has been a tradition of fans putting on their reddest lipstick and KISSING the giant grave marker/statue. The statue was covered in old red/faded greasy lip prints as well as a fair amount of graffiti (how rude!) and the stone was actually deteriorating from all this attention from fans. (Linda has some great "before" photos here.) So, now the stone has been cleaned and restored (you can once again read Wilde's name and the inscription on the back). And the glass barrier isn't really as obtrusive as we thought it might be.

Having said that, while we were there, two girls appeared, lathered on a thick layer of red lipstick... and proceeded to kiss the GLASS. And they weren't the first, judging by the lip-prints that were already there. So now someone from the cemetery will come periodically and clean the glass -- which is certainly easier than cleaning the stone.

A few photos from the day:

One of the many cemetery cats, and his shadow.

Oscar Wilde's resting place, now nice and clean, with the glass barrier protecting it.

Lipstick prints on the glass leave shadows (but no damage) on the stone.

Fan #1 kissing the glass (photo taken with her permission).

And Fan #2 leaving her mark (also taken with her permission).

There is no end of interesting tomb designs. Some are quite simple and traditional, while others have very elaborate statues on top.

Scary, this one, n'est-ce pas?

Marché de Noël 2011

I finally had the time to head over to the big Marché de Noël on the Champs Elysées today. It was cold out but reasonably clear, and the weather was so lousy on the weekend I figured I'd better take advantage while I could. Crowd-wise it proved to be a good decision; not as many people milling around on a Monday just after lunchtime.

Against my natural instincts, I decided to forego the vin chaud, which I ADORE, because we're having a friend come at 5pm and I have to pick up the little guy from school at 6, and I didn't want to be passed out on the sofa by 4pm! I could easily have gotten a good buzz on the fumes alone, each time I passed a stall with the hot mulled wine. Yum!

I walked the entire market from one end to the other. Kudos to the city for putting down a temporary sidewalk over top of the dirt/gravel portion of the walkway there; last year it was a complete muddy mess and the temporary walkway is a big improvement.

I did find a few nice gift items which I'm happy about, including something for each of the older kids that I think they'll like (they are hard to buy for at this age) but frankly I was less impressed with the selection of goods this year. A lot of food and wine stalls but not as many high quality crafts as last year or the year before. More tacky Parisian souvenir booths. There is one section on the side of the street with the Grand and Petit Palais that had a rather nice little alcove featuring some unique handcrafted items and jewelry that is worth checking out, and a few stalls with some nice scarves, sweaters and gloves for pretty reasonable prices. But otherwise... it wasn't all that much to look at.

Always a nice place to take a stroll, though.

Cinq

Five years ago this month - November 10th to be precise - I arrived in Paris, ready for a new adventure in my life.

In that first five weeks, I felt like a tourist but also like someone who was putting down her roots in fresh soil. I stayed in a furnished apartment in the suburb of Vincennes, near a chateau with a moat and an actual drawbridge - a real mind-blower for a girl from New Jersey. I spent my days wandering around the city, exploring and taking pictures, getting oriented. I spent some time with a friend from back home who happily had a business conference to attend here. I made my first weekend trip to London as guests of a client and her husband. I ate baguettes and pastries and cheese. I watched the boats float by on the Seine. I looked at beautiful paintings and sculptures. And every day, a little more, I began to make Paris my own.

Five years later, I still remember what that felt like. It was magical. It was difficult. It was exhilerating. It was exhausting. Mostly, though, it was empowering, finally doing the one thing I'd talked about and dreamed about for well over 30 years. I didn't know how long I would stay, or what would happen to me next, or where I might end up... but I knew my life would never, ever be the same again.

Oh, how right I was. Life begins when you take the risk to step outside the door of your comfort zone.

Here are a few photos I took in those early days. My apologies if some of them have appeared here before, but after five years they'll probably look as new to you as they do to me, even now.

The Donjon at the Chateau de Vincennes.

 

Chapel at the Chateau de Vincennes.

 

Notre Dame... though she needs no introduction.

 

Place de la Concorde

 

The Assemblée Nationale dressed in blue, with the Eiffel sparkling in the background.

 

At the Louvre.

 

Still my favorite view, after all these years.

 

Poupées, Lights and Legos

On Friday I had to run to the big Joué Club, a huge toy emporium, because I have now become one of those parents who will go to great lengths to find that special toy her kid really wants. The Little Guy has started making out his Christmas list, but one item was sort of a pre-Christmas request: a Lego Advent Calendar, the Star Wars version. I didn't know that Lego made an Advent Calendar but I thought it was a pretty cool idea. Last Saturday, I took the 85 bus, which is near our place and which conveniently passes right by this store -- a gorgeous collection of small boutiques housed in one of the city's old shopping arcades. It's magical, and if I were a kid I'd totally love it. Among other things, they have one entire room devoted to Legos, and since there isn't an official Lego store in Paris, this is the next best thing.

Of course, when I got there, I was informed that they were out of all the advent calendars (there are two versions, in the Star Wars and City collections) but that they were expecting more in a shipment on Monday, early afternoon. OK, no problem. While on the way home, I swung by another toy store on Boulevard Barbes but as I suspected, they had no Advent Calendars nor even any Harry Potter Legos whatsoever. Pfft! On Monday afternoon, I wasn't feeling all that well, but I went down to the Joué Club again... and found out the shipment did NOT contain the item I wanted, but they thought it might come in on Tuesday. I asked if there was a phone number where I call to inquire before I came down again, and they said yes, it was in the free store catalogue (which I had already picked up on Saturday). And by the way, the sales staff was actually nice and quite friendly, so points for Joué Club Paris!

A little doll house in the doll boutique and lots of pink bling, Joué Club Paris.

Well, Tuesday I was feeling worse. Wednesday, even worse. But by Thursday I figured I had to suck it up and get over to the store. Even after five years in France, I still dread having to talk on the phone, but decided I really ought to call and make sure they'd gotten the shipment in before I dragged my sick ass all the way down there for nothing. And Lo! The Lego Angels smiled upon me, and I got through the phone call with a "Oui, we do have the Star Wars Advent Calendar" and a "see you soon" when I said I was on my way to pick one up. More points for the store staff for good phone service!

I got to the store and decided to check out some of the board games because the Little Guy wants an upgraded Monopoly game, one of the new electronic ones. Naturally -- the ones he wanted weren't in stock and of course they were expecting a shipment in a couple of days, so we'll have to go through this all over again. But when I went to the Lego room, in under 5 minutes a staff member found me what I wanted and it was all paid for. Voila! It only took me three trips to the same store plus the trip to the other store, but we will have a happy kid next week, although of course he has to wait until December 1st to open the box!

After that, I had some energy left and decided to walk the few short blocks to the Grand Magasins, Galeries Lafayette and Printemps. I rarely go to these stores as (1) they are so huge they are overwhelming to me, and (2) they're normally out of my price range. But each year they do special Christmas windows and I also decided to check out some of their special gift boutiques, looking for ideas for some family members back home. I found one kitschy gift item for my niece that I hope she'll like, and got some other ideas as well. Then I decided to wander out in front to see what the windows looked like.

Oddly enough, both stores seemed to be sort of copy-catting each other, with marionettes dancing in the windows. Galerie's Lafayette's store-wide theme seems to be "Rock-n-Mode" (see their big interior tree here and images of the glass dome here) so the windows had music playing and dolls dancing:

Every one of these marionettes was moving or dancing or playing a guitar.

I liked this window... a girl band with screaming audience members above.

Then I moved down the street to Printemps, where it seems Chanel sponsored all their windows this year. They alternated some marionette scenes with other wild-animal-themed windows, so I really don't know what their overall decorative theme was supposed to be. But here are a few of the windows I really liked:

No dancing poupées but very dramatic with the big lion head, a crystal chandelier and lots of bling and frost.

I liked this Russian ballet scene, complete with Russian music for the dancers.

All the dolls in this window were identical: black suits and dark glasses, white hair with pony tails, and cameras. Not sure what was up with that, but it was set in a snowy Paris, complete with Eiffel Tower, Sacre Coeur, the column from the Place Vendome (with the Chanel logo on top) and a miniature Printemps store!

And I'm not sure what these vintage "travelers" had in common with Beverly Hills, Hollywood, Printemps and Chanel (see sign on back wall) but I liked this because it reminded me of the new series Pan Am and the "golden days" of air travel.

So, there you are... a peek into a few Parisian store windows and a hint of what my life is going to be like for the next three weeks as I tackle my gift shopping for the season. And I need to get a package heading stateside ASAP if it's going to arrive in time for December 24th!

 

Interdit

One of the things that fascinates me about Montmartre is all the little hidden corners, courtyards and gardens. Every so often, you might manage to stumble upon one of these secret treasures. I was walking through the gardens behind the Musée de Montmartre the other day, and spotted this gate in a stone wall. Mysterious...

This week has been very busy, but not because I've been writing. Georges and I are working on a little project that I can't talk about yet, but we're super-excited about it. It's been taking up a fair amount of my time (and we've got some of our French family and friends coming for a big lunch tomorrow so I have been preparing for THAT, too. Which reminds me, I need to get to the supermarket STAT). Once we know what's happening with our project, I'll be able to share more with you.

And hell no, I'm not pregnant. ;)

Still a looker

It's been a long time since I took a close-up of Paris' most beloved landmark. She still looks pretty damn fine, if you ask me.

At long last... the Sainte Chapelle

I think I'm a little in danger about becoming blasé about living in Paris. I get lazy about taking advantage of all the beautiful, interesting and fascinating things going on here. So I decided to make more of an effort to get out and see things I haven't yet seen.

High on the list has been the Sainte Chapelle. This Holy Chapel was built by King Louis IX, who later became Saint Louis, to house the Crown of Thorns (yes, THAT Crown of Thorns). It is well-known for the spectacular stained glass windows in the upper chapel.

You will stand in line quite a while to get into Sainte Chapelle because it is housed within what is now the Palais de Justice and everyone who enters must go through a security screening. But once you pass security, you'll find yourself in the open courtyard of the palais, and you'll see the chapel.

A rather feminine-looking gargoyle? Gothic architecture fascinates me with all the stone work and detail.

Around the foundation (and behind the high fence to prevent souvenir hunters from sneaking off with them), we saw numerous piles of the bits and pieces of masonry that have apparently fallen off over the years.

Because the chapel is surrounded by the palais, the only part you can see from the street is the steeple and some of the back of the building, so this was the first time I had a look at the front. while not as large or impressive as the great gothic cathedrals (it is, after all, a chapel), I still like the look of it.

When you enter, this is what you first see... and it's only the lower chapel, where the less important people were allowed in (probably palace servants and such). The rich colors of the painted arches were stunning, not at all what I'd expected.

In order to get to the main chapel, you must be able to walk up a narrow spiral stone staircase -- no elevators or ramps here, unfortunately. But it's not a very high climb, at least. Once you get upstairs, it's worth it:

Go ahead and say it: WOW! By the way, they hold classical concerts in this room every week. I'm definitely going to have to come back some evening for that... can you imagine? Magical!

Best time of day to come is in the afternoon on a sunny day so you can get the full effect of the light coming through all the intricate stained glass. They have information boards in multiple languages that explain the theme of each window and provide a bit of history (such as that Louis IX sat in the alcove under the 3rd window, shown below).

The apse, with something that I assume once housed the Crown of Thorns, which now resides at Notre Dame. The unfortunate thing about this little structure is that it partially covers what is probably the most important window that tells about the Passion of the Christ.

The rose window's theme is... the Apocalypse. Yikes. Those huge double doors lead to the upper-level balcony, but it's not open to the public.

A few more details I captured:

Stained glass leaving colorful splashes on the colorful tile floor. Considering this chapel was partially destroyed during the Revolution, it was really amazing how much has survived.

Above the King's alcove.

A symbolic Crown of Thorns.

Simply beautiful.

 

Vitrine

One of my favorite things is to be simply walking somewhere in Paris, doing normal everyday things, and spotting something interesting a shop window. In the past two days alone, I saw:

All these vintage girly things in a little brocante shop near Jules Joffrin (I was on my way to pick up my kid at school), and then:

This Slinky Dog in a toy shop over in the 12th (where I was having lunch with Linda)!

You just never know what you might spot when you step outside your Paris apartment.

Who says Montmartre can't be flooded?

You may or may not know that Paris has had its share of flooding over the centuries. When you build a city along a river, well, nature will eventually have the last word. A little over 101 years ago, for example, there was the great flood of 1910 where there was extensive damage throughout parts of 13 of Paris' 20 arrondissements, not to mention several of the suburbs that lie along the Seine.

One of the ways Parisians measure the potential for flooding is to check the water level on the statue of the Zoave on the Pont de l'Alma. This was taken just this past Christmas when the Seine was rising:

Normal water level is about 2 meters down at the base of the statue, well below the feet of the Zoave. When his feet are in the water, at 5m21, the Seine is en crue, at flood-level. In 2001, there was a minor flood where the water came up to his feet just like what you see above. In 1955, a flood brought water up to his hips at 7m10. And for the big one in 1910, the water reached the Zoave's shoulders at 8m62.

There is a common misconception, however, that some parts of Paris are immune to flooding. Where we live, for example: the Butte Montmartre, which is the highest point in the city. It's hard to imagine a flood so catastrophic that the waters from the Seine would get here (if they do, I'll be the first one to start building the Ark). And it's true, flooding from the river would not reach this far, but that doesn't mean we wouldn't be impacted by a big crue; think of how the infrastructure could be damaged by a major flood -- transportation, electricity, sewers, clean drinking water. I saw a French docu-drama recently that talks about how Paris might fare if another hundred-year flood occurred here, equal to or greater than the 1910 flood, and it showed that while we wouldn't have to worry about floodwaters invading our immediate neighborhood, we'd be just as impacted as everyone else if the city lost power and essential services. It makes me realize how dependent we are on technology in our daily lives, and the impact of living in a major city during a big disaster. Not that I'd want to move, and natural disasters happen everywhere so no place is "safe" in that respect. I'm just saying.

Why this sudden interest in local flooding, you ask?

While we were away enjoying some sunshine down south last week, there was apparently a lot of rain in Paris. And I mean, a LOT of rain. In a very short period of time. At least in our part of Paris. Because the following videos popped up on YouTube within 24 hours of the inondation.

Yes, Montmartre CAN be flooded. Like this:

This is the entrance to metro Lamarck-Caulaincourt, the nearest one to our house, just a 5-min walk down the hill. "Down the Hill" appears to be the operative point, because there are several streets that run down hill toward this location, and when I was trying to figure out how this could have even happened, I realized that all those streets were probably acting as funnels when the rains came too much, too quickly, channeling all that water toward the intersection of Lamarck and Caulaincourt, and the sewer drains simply couldn't keep up. Our gardienne told Georges that several of the local shops around this area are still without electricity four days later, and she said even up here at the top of Lamarck, the raging waters were very impressive. She had some cleanup to do in the gardens from the storm. The skies must have opened up just over Sacre Coeur or something. (It was around this time of day on Friday, roughly 6:30pm, that Georges got a call from the guy who rents our studio for his printing business... there was a bit of a leak in the roof that only happens in extremely heavy rains. Now we know why he was so concerned!)

And then, from here, the waters probably continued right down rue Lamarck, which is a long street with a down-hill trajectory. Along with the other streets heading downhill on the north side of the Butte, they all go toward the Guy Moquet area, where that metro station had a little trouble with water, too:

It's not clear which metro station this is, might be Guy Moquet but could be another:

On the other side of the Butte, moving more towards the center of Paris, rue Drouot, not far from the Bourse in the 2nd, had some little tsunamis of its own, right in front of the big Joué Club toy store which is located in one of those gorgeous old shopping arcades (I haven't heard whether or not the stores had water damage from the waves). We know this street well as the 85 bus to Luxembourg passes daily.

So now we know: even Montmartre can be inundated. Good thing to keep in mind, as I watch more dark clouds rolling across the sky, obliterating the sun once again.

Friend-lag

It's been two days since my best friend and her daughter left to go back to the States. We had 9 days (and a morning) to hang out together, and we haven't had that kind of quality time in about 4 1/2 years. Every time I go back home for visits, my time is, by necessity, divided up between family, sight-seeing (since we've brought the kids along a few times) and shopping, and whatever's left is what I get to spend with my friends. And there never seems to be enough time to spend with everyone. Never.

It makes me feel like a bad friend, that I am not able to give my friends more time, and I mean ALL my friends back in New Jersey. Because I really do miss them.

I also have really good friends here in Paris now, and I'm very lucky to be able to say that. But the fact that my life is here now does not make my "back home" friendships any less important to me. In fact, in some ways I think it makes me value those friends even more. (You all know who you are.)

So on these rare but wonderful occasions where one or more of my friends happens to make it across the pond to Paris, even if it's only for a day or so, I relish the time I get to spend with those people. And this past couple of weeks, getting extended 24-hour contact with my soul sister and my god-daughter? It doesn't get any better than that.

Just three petites Américaines out on the town, checking out the Champs Elysees.

A mother and daughter, and one damn fine gothic masterpiece.

At the Louv-er, going in to see that tiny woman with the mysterious smile. My friends look pretty mysterious themselves, hiding behind those shades.

That group on the right is Georges, my two friends from home, plus the adorable Miss Kyliemac who joined us at Polidor for dinner one night. I like when my two worlds can merge a bit. BTW this restaurant was in Woody Allen's Midnight in Paris and Georges has been going there since he was a kid.

Here we are, floating high above London on the Eye. And no one freaked out or had any panic attacks, so that was good.

Me and my bestie with the Tower Bridge in the background. We were a bit in the shade but we're getting older, so it's probably better that we can't see our own faces in this shot. The bridge is looking pretty fine, though, all spruced up for the Olympics next year.

That blue sky in the photo above of my friend and her daughter? A 5 minute passing fancy of nature. The weather has been total crap here in Paris for days and days. At least we were practically the first in line to get in. (I know, I keep bragging about that. Sorry.) I decided to leave out the photo of me and my friend in front of the Grand Trianon palace at Versailles because it was cold and raining and we both looked like hell all huddled up in our sweatshirts and raincoats. And because I want her to come back next year, when we are thinking about touring Provence and maybe Italy.

So there you have it: probably the most photos I will ever post of myself doing tourist things. But we sure had a marvelous time and I wish they were still here.

Best

My best friend arrived in Paris on Saturday, along with her oldest daughter who is also my goddaughter. It means so much to me that they were able to come; they have a very busy family (husband and three other kids back at home) and it wasn't easy for my friend to get away.

I've been in Paris going on five years this fall, and my family has not been able to come over to visit me, for one reason or another. While I totally understand the various reasons, it sometimes makes me a bit sad that they haven't been able to fully participate in my new life here in Paris. Luckily they adore Georges and they've met the two older kids (and will meet the youngest next month), so when we go back to visit we always have a good time. But they still see me there in that "old" life, the New Jersey Me... they don't have a clue about the Paris Me.

So whenever friends are passing through Paris, I'm always thrilled to see them. And having my best friend here for 10 days (and being able to introduce her daughter to her first trip abroad) is the very best of all.

Never underestimate how important your friends are. Never.

Canal Saint Martin