Paris-de-resistance

So on the day of leaving the chateau (14th Oct) we still weren't 100 percent sure whether we would be able to catch our train out... only 1 in 3 trains were running from our region and all talk was of escalation - yeeks.... lucky for us it WAS the ONLY one running to Paris that day. Of course when we got on the train with all our luggage it was standing room only... for a 3 hour trip! Lucky (again) we had reserved 1st class seats and were given priority (let's face it I ain't even qualify as a chardonnay socialist - sweetie, move the fuck out of my way I am sitting this ass down!)

Paris one night then I was to train it to visit a friend I have not seen in almost 15 years, Maggie - who now lives near Nice/Antibes with her girlfriend (Valerie) who I have never met. But on the train I started to worry... IF I made it to Antibes, would I make it back to Paris and then onto my train to Madrid where I would then catch a plane to meet up with Stevey in Athens?

So torn - I support the strikers but could they have waited a week or two?! (yet another example of my failed socialism)

Anyhoo we arrived in Paris - Nikkii had a coupla hours to kill before her train to London (only line out of France that was not at all effected) - but that whole under The Channel thing gave me the heebies...

Anyways, we went to my teeny weeny hotel room (this is the lift that wouldn't fit my luggage - with or without a person in it!) The only thing smaller was the shower that was MAYBE 45cmx45cm

and then we went for a walk... and discovered this cute-as-pie tea shop - I had violet tea!

I'm not sure if you can tell from these pics but the owners had antique jewellery and bits for sale and had decorated the cafe with a cherry theme.

As well as dogs being allowed and violet tea there were many other bits of charm - hand painted frescoes, wonky seats and mismatching but cute teapots and china, the owners were doting grandparents and their newborn grandson was there being cooed at - even his crying added to the charm and character. I came back several times.

Soon it was time to say good-bye to Nikkii :( - as she headed down into the metro with all her luggage I wondered when I'd ever see her again - soooo in-each-others-14-yr-old-head-space for an intense and significant 6 weeks of this year?!

I started asking people what their predictions about the strike were - from storeshop owners to the hotel concierge... and then of course I got in touch with Maggie. Would I make it to Antibes... and then what? Maggie in turn asked her partner... I rang my insurance company... what was their advice. After much too-ing and fro-ing and internal conflict. I cancelled my trip to visit Maggie :( , booked an extra night in Paris and then my ticket on the Eurostar to London. Everyone was saying to git while the gittin' was good - the last time there were strikes about the same issue, they went for several WEEKS - no trains, no planes! The French have quite a militant reputation - yay (pathetic attempt to claw back some socialist respectability).

Basically I spent the first 24hrs in Paris dealing with bullshit bureaucracy... booking my under-channel escape route (gulp), a hotel in London (with fuck all notice so fuck all options) cancelling my flight from Madrid to Athens and booking one from London to Athens and Athens to Madrid... blah, blah, blah - ca-ching that'll be nearly $2000 please. fUUUUUUUCCCCKKKK! Thank fuck for credit cards eh?

I made all arrangements gambling on the strike continuing... if it didn't I definitely wouldn't get a cent back on insurance as it is... well, we'll wait and see. Lucky for me the strike did escalate - I would never have made it to Maggie's anyway - all trains there were cancelled, as were all the trains to Spain for at least the the week leading up to and including my originally booked trip!

Anyhow once all the bureaucratic bullshit was sorted I had an extra 24 hours to frolic in Paris! Lucky for me Maggie knew this area well and gave me a coupla tips - Paris hadn't won me the time before.

So in the morning I wandered around and in this section (5E - I think) I saw cute courtyards and found a nice outdoor market - with many of the French specialties - pate, cabbage and sausage stuff, cheeses - but more importantly given my isolation in La Roche Posay also some Turkish cuisine ... oh yeah, hit the babaganoush with a frightening fervour!

They also sold cape gooseberries (which I grow at a an average of 10 berries a year!) by the kilo... yeah!

Now Andrew (and any of my vegetarian friends), look away.

I've decided I prefer the honesty of the way they sell meat in many parts of Europe... you cannot pretend it is divorced from the life of a real animal. Course I'm still happy to eat that life (soz all)

I wondered along - sent packages home and a few chateau-cooked treats for Maggie and Valerie...

I discovered what an inner-suburban highschool looks like ...

Very jail-like, no? Only when the kids came and went could you see em - high fences, grey brick - shudder!

Of course in other instances the attention to detail on buildings was stunning - every wall painted with exquisite detail and then some feature panels of different scenes.

Even a man leaning out the window for a smoke can't undo the charm.

That's right, this trip Paris was charming me!

I wandered around and marveled at how much more honest the French were about more than their meat-eating. They acknowledge that people watching is one of the best parts about street cafe-life. They set the seats up almost like a friggin cinema, and the life around them is the movie of choice. Awesome, I watched many movies in my brief time!

I wandered down Rue Mouffatard and was captured by it's charm, both during the day and by night... Here I found much of the awesome graffiti art featured below... and now that I was heading for FUCKING COLD territory (ie London) that I hadn't packed for, I had an excuse to buy gloves and a hat (yay!)

Anyway here are some shots of Rue Mouffatard...

Paris is very charming, Non?

GRAFFITI ART GALLERY

Finding all this graffiti art made my heart sing - the spontaneous, risk-taking conversation between artist and pedestrian is always a joy (ps I make a distinction between street art and tagging ... tagging to me is just a bunch of boys (usually) pissing to mark territory)

In one spot I discovered many great pieces... but some were from further afield

For me graffiti art signals a city has heart - and an intelligent defiance. Approve!

This is just some of the art I saw, I did not always have a camera!

What this piece lacks in finesse and detail, it makes up in the feeling of joyous freedom it evokes!

A little tacky for my taste... but, whatever!

This piece I nearly stepped on! It incorporated a watermain man-hole, awesome!

Anyhows, brief as it was, this trip to Paris provided dimensions beyond tourism and sleaze I needed that if I was ever to have a reason to return. Paris, pleased to meet you at last, charmed I'm sure!