Living in Paris... (Ups and Downs #1)

Has its perks. And its downsides. For example:

Perk #1: Today, July 14, is a national holiday - Bastille Day. And, rather than hanging out in some boring backyard (downside: we don't have backyards), we can picnic in the gardens of one of the most famous palaces in the world - Versailles.

Downside #1a: We didn't have July 4 (or 5th in the case of this year) off. For those of you who are feeling a bit slow today, we don't have Thanksgiving here either.

Downside #1b: It's raining, so instead of picnicking by the canal in the gorgeous palatial gardens, we are sitting in our living room watching the downpour.

Perk #2: It's July 14, and it's only 70 degrees outside.

Downside #2: Last week it was 90+ and Paris doesn't really believe in AC.

Perk #3: The metro system is fabulous.

Downside #3: I was sitting in one of the fold-down seats by the door on the metro the other day (it faces forward in the car, so the door was immediately to my right), and as we pulled into a station, I noticed a middle-aged guy in a blue polo stretching and scratching his hairy stomach (which happened to pudge past the top of his jeans a bit). I thought to myself, "Not so attractive, buddy; why don't you keep that to yourself?" He then got on the train one door behind me. As the train was moving, though, he made his way to the open area in front of me, faced the front of the train, and put his hand on the door handle, poised for a quick exit at the next stop. Then, for some reason that escaped me, he proceeded to bed forward... at the waist... far... with his back to me.... approximately 12" from my face... Wow. We're talking a good SIX INCHES of hairy crack. Seriously. All I could do was stand up so at least I was no longer eye-level with the thing. Thankfully, Oliver was sleeping; he doesn't need to see things like that. Neither do I, for that matter.

Perk #4: Boulangeries (bakeries) and tartes frambroises (raspberry tarts).

Downside #4: No Sonic ice. No slushes. Almost no ice period, for that matter. (And consider this in light of Downside #2 above.)

Perk #5: I get to shop in the shadow of the Eiffel tower twice a week, browsing BEAUTIFULLY fresh produce and meats. The guys at my charcuterie call out, "Oliver!" as I walk up, and one of them asks after my parents and brother whom he met when they visited. My fruit-stand man asks after "le bebe," and the Greeks running my veggie stand smile and look at him adoringly. I hear "Bonne journee" at least 5 times, and I walk home with deliciously flavorful food.

Downside #5: I'm not always sure what I'm buying when I shop. Thankfully, I have managed to avoid the pigs' feet and cow tongues so far, at least.

I'll try to keep you posted as I discover more... Maybe this will be a regular post: Ups and Downs. I've got good intentions, at least. :)