The weekend -- our first of 12 weekends here. A combination of settling in, and starting to
do the sort of things we had in mind while we were here.
Saturday we'd made plans for our first meetup. Eight years ago, Meetup was just starting out
as a website where people could create events, mostly casual and
improvisational. We were lucky back then
to connect with Andy Coyne, an American here with his family on a long
stay. He was effectively "Mr.
Meetup", the ultimate networker and purely for the sake of connecting
people. We went to a bunch of his
events, and then shortly after we left, he and his family moved on. His efforts have spawned dozens of groups in
this city now. Everything from
conversational groups, to group dinners, to pub crawls, to almost anything else
you can imagine.
We signed up for one that
involved pedaling around Paris on a 16 person party bike, while drinking
wine. Sounded like just the sort of
thing to do on a day with glorious weather.
The group was meeting in an area of the city we hadn't been to before,
so we planned to arrive a couple hours early, look around, and have a nice
lunch. We found a bargain restaurant, Au
Roi du Cafe, with huge portions and good prices. Afterwards, the bike ride...
I should mention that earlier in the day, Emmy demonstrated
what I've believed would be one of her most important roles on this trip. We’d taken her to the (very) nearby park and
shortly after we arrived, another couple showed up with their 2 Jack Russell
terriers. The man took his dogs off
their leash, which we took as a cue to do the same, and the dogs frolicked for
20 minutes. We talked a little with the
couple in French, and as we were saying our goodbyes, the wife told Maxine that
there were a number of dog owners who meet every evening so the dogs could have
some fun together. So, that, along with
Friday night when Emmy's friendliness led to a conversation with a student at
the takeout place, proves my point.
Every conversation with a Parisian, in a non commercial setting, has
been a result of our dog. She's doing
her part to help us feel welcome here!
Sunday was something of a day for old memories. After a late start, we took the train over to
the Blvd. Raspail farmer's market.
Sunday it's a "bio" market, but from my perspective,
eh... It was one of the nearest markets to
the apartment we rented on our last trip to Paris, and I wanted to go
back. It led us on a walk towards our
old apartment. Maxine stopped at Pierre
Herme for macarons (she thought they were the best last time), which we ate in
the square at St. Sulpice church. St.
Sulpice is memorable for 2 reasons.
First, it's around the corner from the apartment we rented last trip and
thus very familiar. Second, there's a
big scene from the start of Da Vinci Code set there.
We wandered our way towards the Seine, reveling in the glorious
weather (possibly a little too warm!) and ended up in front of the Louvre
Museum. From there a short walk through
the Tuileries Gardens and the metro home.
At the Metro station we actually completed the last of our
settling in errands. Unlimited use
passes for the bus/train system are a real bargain. A month of use costs about the same as 2
tanks of gas for the car at home. And it
gives you the flexibility to just hop a bus or train to get anywhere. So, Maxine had theorized that the attendant
at this stop, so near the Louvre, probably got lots of English speakers and
would be sympathetic to our language struggles as we bought the cards. He was!
He let us stumble along in French for a few minutes, but when we ran out
of vocabulary, he switched to English.
We thanked him, and he in turn complimented our French.
Tonight Maxine and I went separate ways. Me to my second meetup, a Philosophy
discussion and dinner. Her, to a quieter
evening with Emmy and dinner in a cafe.
Both worked well. I participated
in a discussion on the topic, "Does technology deepen our experience of
life" and she got to meet more French people via Emmy. That couple's advice from yesterday held --
there were several people exercising their dogs at the avenue Foch park and
Emmy got to join in.
Bedtime at midnight as we're trying to keep a schedule more
suited to this city!
Does it? technology. I wouldn't be reading your blog without technology and
ReplyDeleteI'm deepened by the experience. xxxx