Le Bordel de la rentrée

What a week!

It’s been a little while since my last post, but I will make up for it in sheer volume of activities.  I now understand why Paris is the city that never sleeps - there is ALWAYS something going on here!  

My week actually (yes dad, actually) started last week, when my friend Michael McTaggart came to visit.  McTaggs was a camper when I was a lifeguard at Camp Artaban, and when I found out he was backpacking through Europe I insisted that he come stay with me in Paris.  Little did he know I would be two hours late for our agreed upon arrival time due to a very late doctor’s appointment…but he took it in stride, and continued to take the rest of my scheduling mishaps and business very well for the remainder of his stay.  For a full account of his view on what it’s like to visit Ella in Paris, please see the survey below:

ELLA’S HOSTESS SURVEY

We hope you enjoyed your stay Chez Ella.  Please let us know how we can make the experience even better for the next guest by filling out the following survey (answers can just be bolded):

1. When Ella misses the agreed upon rendez-vous place and time, and then is almost two hours late for the back up rendez-vous, how does that make you feel?              

 a)Excellent b)Good c)Meh, whatever d)Sad e)Mutinous

2.  When the bed that was supposed to be there for you has not been delivered and it is already 10 pm, how does that make you feel? 

      a) excellent b) good c) meh, whatever d) sad e) Like dexter on a rampage

3.  When Ella then tells you that she is going to be very busy for the next few days, but you are welcome to accompany her to various sporting and social events, do you: 

 a) Smile and give her a hug b) Smile and nod c) shrug and purse your lips d) look at the floor e) rip out your hair and scream at her complete lack of planning 

4.  Do you find Ella’s romantic advice to be:

   a) helpful b) fine c) interesting d) iffy e) why is this even a question?

5.  Ella’s friends make you dinner.  Do you: 

     a) Gratefully thank them and chow down b) eat with your hands c) help with the dishes after d)sprint out of the room the second the fruit dessert is offered or e) all of the above

6.  How do you feel after Ella gives you traveling advice? 

    a)excited b) scared to travel c) nothing, the advice wasn't helpful  d) argumentative 

Thank you for your comments.  

My week was surprisingly full, but we went to a soccer tournament on Saturday where I played on an OECD team (we had a very respectable 1-2-2 ) and then on Sunday we went to the Montmartre, where the combination of the Sacre Coeur and Moulin Rouge is enough to make anyone more than a bit confused.  There was also quite a bit of cool graffiti all along our walk:

One of the many portrait artists in the market near the Sacre Coeur.  This guy was a real professional.

But I met a really nice guy!

 

As I mentioned, Montmarte was a bit confusing.

 

 Then we headed down to the Seine and enjoyed one of the pedestrianized quays for a bit by partaking in a couple of games of chinese checkers at an outdoor table.  My record there was 0-0-2. 

On Wednesday I bid Michael a hearty good bye, as he continues his journey on to the east and then down to Toulouse and eventually Lyon for an ultimate frisbee tournament - bon courage!

Take that Pacman!

Also on Wednesday, my former boss and all-round lovely lady Karen Aitken and her husband Jonathan met me for dinner at a great restaurant in the 7th arrondissement called Pottoka. Our reservation was for 9:45, and we weren’t seated until 10:20, but the food more than made up for it.  We had a fois gras starter with some kind of coulis that had been, as Jonathan so eloquently described for us, “blown through a straw” by the chef because it was very foamy and light.  I won’t go into detail about the rest of the meal because I don’t think my blog offers that much space, but suffice to say it was heavenly (AND they had a dessert that was basically chocolate mousse with chocolate cookies mixed in and some kind of chocolate brittle on top.  I think I’ve found my place in the world.) 

How did they already know me so well?!

And of course, while the food was good, the company was also fantastic and it was great to catch up with someone else from home, whilst in Paris.  We talked about all the important things that foreigners think about when they’re in France:  how do the locals consume so much fois gras and croissants and remain so thin?  How do they live in such small spaces all the time?  And how does anyone afford to buy property in Paris anymore?

 This week also marked the first time that I couldn’t get on the metro in the morning because the car was too full.  The platform was also full, and I had to watch 2 cars go by before I was finally able to squeeze onto the third.  Paris is filling up!  La rentrée est fait, et maintenant la vrai travaille commence encore.

Yeah, I think the residents are back from the summer.

Finally, with the fall and getting back to work comes something very important:  the People's Climate March.  This is a huge event happening in NYC, where the UN will be convening to discuss climate change, but there will also be marches in Dehli, Montreal, and tons of other cities, including Paris, all this Sunday. Venez nombreux!