Parislog 5
Mar.4 2006


Well, I finally slept almost normally Friday night and woke up feeling really out of sorts and tired.
Doesn't that just figure. I guess my body was so excited that it wanted more. Tant pis (too bad).
Tonight maybe.

After I dragged myself out of bed, and did my correspondence, I finally took off and headed to my nearby flea market. It was just like the famous one but smaller and more manageable. It was still a lot to see. There was some very interesting bric-a-brac.
There were broken things and there were expensive things. Guess which category the things that I liked fell into? There was a turquoise color bowl of thick woven strands of pottery. Somehow it had a fabulous charm. Close your eyes if you are PC. There were tons of furs for sale. There was a beautiful wavy opalescent bowl on a silver metal stand that I really loved. Books. Furniture. Paintings. Buttons. You name it. It was there.

I came home and had a little lunch and then went back out to warm up. I know that sounds crazy considering that the streets are hovering around zero but it helps to get moving. It isn't exactly warm inside either and when sitting that gets to me.

I took another long walk and found a street with yelling vendors hawking there goods and people doing there weekend shopping. I managed to find a MAC store to ask a question about my computer's transition when it finally arrives. It was a little tough to ask but I got through it in one piece. I am not sure if the woman did. ;)

Walking back to the apartment I ran across a disturbance at a little neighborhood bar. As I was walking past a body was slammed into the plate glass door right beside me. Boy did I jump. I could hear the hollering inside but of course didn't understand it.
I then crossed the street and found a shop that just specialized in boxes. It was very cool. And I found another store that was just magazines and cartoon books. They are all hardcover and gloriously designed. It seems to be quite an art form here. The books are average 10-15€ each.

I am now back in for the evening and am listening to
French television and will have a look at the magazines that I bought.

Mar. 5

Okay, back on the roller coaster. Couldn't sleep until after 2 but then I managed to stay asleep.
Maybe tonight will now be a good night?

I am starting to know a little bit of my way around my own little quartier (quarter) without breaking open my Paris map. This is a good thing. It makes me feel just slightly more at home.

This morning I went back to the street market that I first went to on the day that I arrived. It was a little easier this time. I bought a little more stuff and understood just slightly better when the vendors said to me. I got there a little earlier too and it was bustling with people with there, rolling shopping carts. Sometimes I couldn't figure out if there was a line or not but I think I started to be able to see them. They actually do create lines of a sort. Not like the anglos but they are there.

After coming back for a little lunch I then went for a walk to the local cemetery, Montparnasse. It is the only part of the city with roads that are straight and at 90° angles to each other. It is like a little miniature city with its little stone huts for the families. I felt a little concerned when I kept seeing signs on some of the plots saying that the concession was up and that they needed to contact the office. So what happens if no one responds? Do they disinter the remains and then resell the plot? If so, what do they do with the remains?

I then kept strolling and found myself at the Jardin
du Luxembourg. A lovely place. Many, many people and their children were out to play. People sitting on the chairs relaxing or reading all bundled up in their winter gear. A man floated a miniature boat on the pond. Sentries guarded the building, which I gather to be the senate. Joggers. Must not be French. ;)

Oh and you will love this. The food stores like the butcher, green grocer, and bakery were open but nothing else. The world stills rests here for Sunday.


Bonne journée,