Letter from Paris 30 April

The last day of the month began with a raw, cold rain abetted by a fierce wind and remained unpleasant all day.

After a short stop to our nearby Monoprix store to stock up on a few more groceries to finish out our week, we headed back out onto the street and to the Campo Formio metro stop. We took the 5 to Austerlitz where we changed to line 10, getting off at Mabillon, near Saint Sulpice and Saint-German-des-Pres.

We made our way to 6 Rue de Furstenberg, 75006, home of the Musée National Eugène Delacroix and our primary objective that day. Located in the house he occupied at the end of his life and while he worked on the murals for nearby Saint Sulpice, the subject of which is the metier of the museum, it was a pleasant exploration into the world of early 19th century French art.

It should be noted, however, that much of the artwork in the museum is in fact NOT by Delacroix but by those whom he has influenced and who attempted variations of his themes or outright copies of his work. Still, it was fascinating and worth a visit for anyone interested in French Romanticism.

Since so much of the focus of the museum was on Delacroix's years spent working on the murals for Saint Sulpice that had to be our next stop. But once back into the wind and rain we walked the few short blocks to Saint-German-des-Prés, which was on the way.

Inside the church, reportedly the oldest in Paris, we found ourselves confronted by a massive series of draperies and scaffoldings in much of the older part. We made our way to the "back" of the church we we found the final resting place of René Descartes (cogito ergo sum), interred between Mabillon and Montfaucon.

Leaving the church and back into the elements we walked, or rather fought, our way down Rue Bonaparte to Saint-Sulpice (Marquis de Sade and Charles Baudelaire were both baptized here).

Once inside on the right of the entrance we found Delacroix's murals (1855-61): Jacob Wrestling with the Angel and Heliodorus Driven from the Temple:

After we left Saint Sulpice we struggled against the weather to find our way back to the Mabillon Metro. Across from a shopping block that included the Apple Store (!) we decided discretion was the better part of valor and popped into a small café, La Grille, for a bowl of gratinée de l'oignon to warm up. Along with two glasses of Brouilly, of course.

Eventually we had to leave the cozy warmth of the café and plunged back into the wind and rain. Before long we were back home and opted to remain in for the rest of the day. That evening I fixed a rough potato mash with broccoli accompanied by a red Sancerre. Not a bad day at all and frankly a grand way to end my birthday month.

Tomorrow: May Day in Paris and I'll be in Père-Lachaise.

Letter from Paris 28-29 April

Another relaxing morning for the two of us and Susie's last day of bread class.

We walked over to the Metro at Campo Formio (line 5) and got off at Gare de Nord. Our objective for lunch was a Clothilde Dusoulier recommendation for (one of) the best places to get a croque Monsieur, the classic Parisian grilled ham and cheese sandwich.

A 10-minute walk down rue Maubeuge from the gare and we found our quarry: the small but warm "Madame Messieurs," where they specialize in just two things: croques and hamburgers (OK they also had a couple of salads on the menu, sue me). But we came for the croque and that's what we had:  two variants on this wonderful sandwich, both with egg which turned them into croque Madames. (The egg, yolk only, was fantastic!)

The food was delicious, the atmosphere inviting and the hostess ("Madame?") friendly and congenial.  Oh and their frites, a combination regular of and sweet potatoes, were made to order, firm and crisp on the outside and creamy smooth inside.

The food was so good and we enjoyed ourselves so much we lost track of time and had to scramble to get to the Metro so Susie wouldn't be late for class. But before leaving we made reservations to return Friday for dinner; think hamburger, which is really another version of steak frites, non? Once I saw one of the hamburgers come out of the kitchen (that small glass area in the first photo) I knew I had to come back for one of those. Note the French eat their hamburgers with a knife and fork - civilized, eh?

Oh, and they are only open for dinner on Fridays and Saturday, otherwise its lunch only. 80 rue Maubeuge 75009.

With Susie off to her last day of class I headed for a full afternoon at Passy Cemetery to research my fourth and final Guide to the Art in Paris Cemeteries: Passy. With about 90% of my shot list complete, I left the cemetery just before closing. Although there was plenty of activity across the street from the cemetery at the Trocadero -- a protest of some sort it sounded like -- I walked (underground) to the Metro (line 6) to head home. That evening just before Susie got home I fixed yet another vegetable medley for dinner. Not bad.

The following morning, 29 April promised lousy weather and did disappoint. We stayed close to home for much of the day although midmorning Susie walked over to Maison Landemaine pastry shop in the 5th to pick up an apricot-pistachio tart to take to Val & Hubert's later in the day.

About midday we made our way to the line 6 at Nationale. The rain persisted so taking the Metro was a big plus -- dry and warm underground.

We exited the Metro at Pasteur and five minutes later were inside their apartment shed of our wet coats and welcome by Val and they kids -- Hubert was visiting his father to help out at his parents home but he soon arrived in time for le gôuter, what the British refer to as teatime.

We all set around the table and enjoyed good food and even better camaraderie. At one point we recalled my 60th birthday at Gracie's in Providence, RI, when Val had come to visit and how much our lives have change din the intervening ten years. But, aside from the occasional flashes to the past most of the afternoon conversation revolved around food, especially potatoes and pastries.

Time slipped away faster than we anticipated and it was soon time to go -- and we made our way through the rain and wind back to Pasteur an line 6. Since the day had gotten away from us and we were fast slipping into evening we decided to go in search of dinner. So, once we arrived at Place d'Italie we switched to the line 7 and went one stop to Tolbiac. From there we walked down to a Vietnamese restaurant we had eaten at in 2010, Lao Lane Xang, 102 Avenue d'Ivry.

We had another wonderful meal there: Susie had brochettes of pork and I had beef sautéed in onions all washed down with a half bottle of Brouilly. Delicious!

After dinner it was back into the rain and wind thanking the gods for providing the nearby Metro stop. We were soon back home where we had a little Avèze (gentian) for digestif. Then bed.

Another day in Paris. Life is short.

Letter from Paris 27 April

Late morning we took the Metro "downtown" heading for rue Sainte-Anne and a dish of noodles for lunch.

After exiting the Metro we walked through the Palais Royale heading in a rather roundabout way for "Japantown" and the score of noodle bars in the area.

The two of us ate lunch at Noodle (54 rue Sainte-Anne 75002) after which we walked to Opéra Garnier where Susie got on the Metro line 8 to go to school and I got on the 3 to head east for an afternoon of "working" at Père-Lachaise.

Later that afternoon while in the cemetery I received a message from Verizon saying I was being charged $25 for overages on my data usage. Our plans, we each had one for our phones, allowed us 100 minutes of talk, 100 outgoing texts and 100mb of data. Apparently I had eaten through the 100mb of my data plan for the month already (and Susie would too soon after).  I failed to notice that we had always used iMessage for texting (thus using data).

Anyway,  I assumed that Susie was receiving my texts (I had turned off my cellular data at this point). I sent her a note saying I was exploring the environs of Place de la Concorde and would come to LCB and pick her up after school. But no response. Hmmmm.

When I exited the Metro at the Tuileries on rue de Rivoli walked up the street to W. H. Smith bookstore to browse a bit.

Afterwards, I walked across the street and near the western end of the Tuileries came across a curious group of plaques along the wall beneath the Jeu de Paume and close to Place de la Concorde: They were memorials to nine men and one woman who died near the corner of rue de Rivoli and the Place during the liberation of Paris on 25 August 1944.

I then made my way into the Place de la Concorde to look for another piece of French history: the location of the guillotine used to execute Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette, Princess Élisabeth of France, Charlotte Corday, Madame du Barry, Georges Danton, Camille Desmoulins, Antoine Lavoisier, Maximilien Robespierre, Louis de Saint-Just, and Olympe de Gouges.

Place de la Concorde

execution of Louix XVI

same view today

Internet rumor had it there was a marker somewhere near the statue dedicated to the city of Brest and close to the Hotel Grillon. I found the statue of Brest -- it's one of 8 placed at the corners of the Place. But no marker.

Oh, and in front of the Hotel Crillon I saw this bit of French automotive history (thinking of Richard Horsman now):

Leaving the Place I walked up the Champs d'Élysées to the metro at Champs-Élysées–Clemenceau and headed off to Le Cordon Bleu.  I arrived at the school right about 8pm and sent her another text saying I was in the lobby. Twenty minutes later no Susie and no other students either and ominously no response to my texts.  Hmmmm. So I called her.

Turns out they had been let out early and she was already home! She had tried to text me but I wasn't receiving her iMessages (of course). So it was back to Metro (10) to Austerlitz and then we met on the street soon after and went in search of a late dinner. (OK pizza but great atmosphere at Café d'Italie, 76 Avenue des Gobelins, 75013, off Place d'Italie).

The upshot is now we use "text message" only and leave iMessage off. Cellular data is still turned off until we need it for the highway. That's right kids, we're renting a car to drive to the Netherlands. But more about that next week.

Letter from Paris 26 April

Thursday 26 April was a low-key day for us.

Mid-morning -- our favorite time of day to leave home -- we walked down Boulevard d'Hôpital to the Monoprix grocery store near the Saint-Marcel Metro stop; back in 2006-2007 we frequented the store often and we found it was pretty much the same layout with an upstairs area for dry groceries and household goods. After leaving the store we walked across the street to La Chocolatine for a jambon sandwich for a quick lunch before heading out for the day.

In early afternoon the two of us went our separate ways on line 6 at Nationale: Susie headed west to school and I headed east to Père-Lachaise.

That evening I fixed a medley of sautéed vegetables which turned out rather good. With Susan in school until 8pm (2000) and then another 30- or 40-minute commute home, we've come to enjoy eating fashionably late.

Letter from Paris 25 April

Wednesday 25 April was the 70th anniversary of my birth, a day that began like any other except, of course, I was in Paris.

view from our terrace

One of our two nearby Metro stops: line 6 at Nationale (the other is the 5 at Campo Formio):

Around mid-morning we left home and we made our way to the 8th arrondissement and the Musée Jacquemart-André  (158 Boulevard Haussmann).

One of the few things on our short to-do list was see the Mary Cassatt exhibition at the J-A, a museum we had never visited. The exhibition consisted of paintings from collections around the world and was indeed impressive in both number, scope and intensity of color. Our singular complaint was the absence of bi-lingual signage; all the interpretative narrative was in French only.

Leaving the museum we walked out into a light drizzle which soon developed into warm sunshine. We made our way to the Metro and got off at Bir Hakeim (near the Eiffel Tower).

From there we walked down the Quai de Grenelle to Le Cordon Bleu where Susie was to begin her first day of a four-day bread course at 2pm (1400).

After I dropped Susie off I walked to the Charles Michel Metro (line 10) to the Le Motte-Picquet (6) and then to Nation (2) which took me to Père-Lachaise. Not only was I in Paris for my birthday but I was back in one of most favorite spots: the city of the not-quite-so-dead. I say that because there are so many living creatures walking around in search of ghosts, understanding, solitude, anything that brings them peace of mind.

After spending nearly three hours it came time to leave — I draw the line at being locked inside the cemetery since it is virtually impossible to get out once the gates are shut — so I made my way home. A little before 8pm I left the apartment and headed for the Metro and a return to Iovine for my birthday dinner; Susie would meet me there after her class finished at 8pm. After getting off the Metro at Republique I stopped at a bar for to treat myself to a glass of Suze.

Susie arrived at the restaurant shortly after me and we spent the next couple of hours enjoying good food and great company. We struck up conversations with our neighbors on both sides of the table putting to rest the notion that Parisians are snooty, finicky and reluctant to speak to Americans, a fact we’ve known for some years now through our friends Val & Hubert and Marie.

A perfect ending to a wonderful birthday.