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| The Pompidou - where I ran when it first opened in 1976 - and now my children run and love seeing them love the Pompidou the way I did, and still do, homeless, pigeons, street performers, and all |
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| Click HERE for video of the kids running in front of the Pompidou |
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| Alice, practicing her Asian tai chi outside the Pompidou in the wee hours |
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| Just remarkable system allowing you to rent bikes, and I see the effect - Paris is a much more bike friendly city |
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| And, it's a bike friendly city for postal workers too! |
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| Love this postal bike |
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| My old stomping ground when we lived here in 1976, except it was me and Patrick in front of this sign. What memories returned for me! It was upset, though, to see that the Mairie of Paris had sold off the heart of the Jardin to developers to build high rise condos. My favorite part had been sold -- with slides, tunnels, and climbing structures I was dying to share again with my kids. Word is that the financially desperate Mairie of Paris is selling out and literally selling the Jardin d'Acc to the Louis Vuitton company so they can repackage the park, wrapped in luxury packaging, probably not at pret a porter prices. |
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| One of my favorite Eiffel Tower climbs. Click HERE to see the kids climbing the tower! |
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| My parents have a classic photo of Patrick, my parents and I in front of this Jardin d'Acc clock |
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| We were there on that day, the inaugural day of the Pompidou! |
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| Pompidou |
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| Pompidou, which is a building turned inside out, with the escalators clear and on the outside |
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| Enjoying the Stravinsky moving sculpture fountain next to the Pompidou. We are sculptures too. |
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| My favorite hotel in Paris - excellent location in Marais and easy walk across bridge to the 5th arrondisement |
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| Nothing like Parisian sidewalk cafe culture for gay men in the Marais, and their dogs! |
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| Crepes and cider next to Stravinsky fountain |
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| Champs de Mars |
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| 2nd floor of Eiffel Tower |
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| Click HERE for us going up the sideways elevator |
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| From second floor of Eiffel Tower |
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| Gotta say, Cluny Medieval Museum is the way to go for kids and grownups, especially with a sword exhibit this go-round. |
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| Notre Dame |
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| Damsel in distress, flanked by her knights |
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| Notre Dame park fountain |
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| Famous old French bistrot, in the Marais, tout pret de notre hotel -- La Tartine, and the french onion soup and tartines were well-worth it. The breakfast/brunch wasn't up to par, but French aren't known for their brunch. I drooled over the cheeses above after a year deprived of French cheese, in Asia. |
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| French bartender |
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| This 93-year-old woman is a relic of Marais' Jewish past, now pushed out by gentrification. She sat next to us with her daughter. This woman fascinated me, partly I think since she was the first Jew we sat next to in a long time, after Asia. She kept on speaking to Griffin in French, in typical French parenting fashion - chastising him for reading too much and not eating, or putting his knees up on the table. It was such a wonderful culture shock for me to see the French child socialization of cultured eating at restaurants in action. I supported her every complaint to Griffin, with a smile on my face. |
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| Griffin, so happy with his French Onion soup, which he also had for breakfast the next day. Maybe we're just used to eating soup for breakfast after a year in Asia. |
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| I couldn't take my lens off of her |
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| An Irish artist, in the back, painting a mural 5% of the time and smoking/drinking with the patrons 95% of the time. |
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| Goodbye Paris, Hello Provence and long-awaited cousins!!!!!!!!!! |
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| We took the TGV which was great fun! August 21, 2011 |
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