Paris with Partner: Perfect

Paris, Wednesday 

 

Thanks to yesterday’s unexpected visit to Beijing, today was our only full day in Paris.  It is so good to be here.

We shopped last night, and luxuriated this morning in having slept well after our 42-hour journey and knowing that today, our time was our own.  I don’t think there’s anything better than just being together for a leisurely wake-up, coffee, and breakfast, especially when le petit-dejeuner includes a baguette with Président buerre doux and confiture des fraises (sweet butter from Normandy and strawberry jam), and especially when Paris is right outside the door.

Walking and Bookshops

After spending much of the past two days on airplanes, we knew we wanted to walk, and there’s no better city for walking than Paris.   In a recent comment, Linda reminded me about the English-language bookstore, Shakespeare and Company.  We took the métro part way, then walked to rue de la Bucherie and had a browse at this longstanding Parisian establishment.

 

(Me) Browsing Outside Shakespeare and Co. 3 Sept 3008

 

We didn’t buy anything today, but got the feel of the place as we squeezed by other visitors and made our way between floor-to-ceiling shelves packed with old and new books.  Linda used the word ‘rickety’ for the building, and it’s a good word for the inside, too.  Clive started to take one book off a shelf and the entire contents of the shelf started falling towards him, so he quickly pushed the book back.  In the British History section, he tried again to look at one book, and four others fell down with it.   The books weren’t so tightly wedged together in the travel literature and Paris sections.  We also went up the narrow, wooden staircase to an equally full (of books and people) reference section upstairs. 

Another bookstore I’ve been interested in visiting is La Hune, on Blvd. St.-Germain, so we walked there next.  In stark contrast to Shakespeare and Co., it’s sleek and contemporary, almost all white inside, with down-lights and two ultra-modern, wide stairways leading to the mezzanine level.  La Hune specialises in French and English art and architecture books, which are laid out on tables in crisp, neat piles.  In both La Hune and Shakespeare and Co., the shop’s interior layout and atmosphere seem to perfectly fit the clientele and their interests.

Parisian Buffet

In mid-afternoon we hit the jet lag wall, and the apartment beckoned with jambon et Camembert et les tomates (ham and cheese and tomatoes), coffee, and the urge to put our feet up for a while.  We bought a fresh baguette on the way back and enjoyed our Parisian lunch buffet.  The only disappointment was finding that the lemon sorbet (yum) we bought last night was pineapple sorbet (yuk).  We read the labels carefully and were sure it said “citron,” so decided to blame jet lag and the fact that we’d been up for the better part of two days for not seeing the clear picture of a pineapple and the word “ananas” in large type on the container we put in our basket.  

Music and Love

I’m writing this while listening to a CD that contains 8 hours of music (Clive put it on a single CD in mp3 format).  It’s a continuous mix of popular songs from the 50’s, 60’s, 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s, which he made in the late 1990’s for his son and daughter-in-law’s engagement party.  The CD is a great indication of the range of Clive’s musical tastes and expertise, and one of my all-time favourites.  We’ll be in bed before it finishes tonight.

What could be better than relaxing in Paris with your partner?  I am thankful for my blessings, and for today.