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Tuesday, July 31 Well, I said
that the Vélib’ people were going to
have to have little trucks moving about Paris to put the almost-free bicycles
where they are needed, and indeed they have decided to do just that. The company managing the operation, Decaux,
now has 20 little trucks to go about putting the bikes into stations where
they are lacking and freeing up spaces in stations that are full. One of the
drivers, Baptiste, was interviewed in this morning’s newspaper, Le
Parisien. He says that in his
area (the 17th arrondissement), the problem is that people take a
Vélib’ when they leave their apartments in the morning to go to work, then
they return in the evening, after work and shopping, via the Métro. So it is Baptiste’s job to be sure the
stations in the 17th have bicycles again each morning. We walked up
to the 17th and down through the 8th yesterday, for a
total of 4 hours. We went up the
swanky avenue George V and stopped in at Hediard, a place that Ms. Clemente
writes about in The Riches of Paris. I was shocked that the female salesperson
did not greet us when we entered. I
think she sensed my disbelief and after we exchanged bonjours, she seemed
quite friendly. Perhaps she needed to
be reassured that we spoke French, and we certainly reassured her. After looking about at all the yummy and
beautifully packaged comestibles (they even have vacuum packed gourmet
dinners, all ready to go!), I asked for a “carte de maison” and was given an
entire catalog. It didn’t have the
store’s hours on it, so I asked her what the opening hours are. She wrote the entire schedule of hours very
neatly on the back of the catalog, and included the Hediard web site, www.hediard.fr . When we
finally returned to the apartment, I went up to water all the many plants on
the balcony, and Tom went to Ed to see if he could find himself some more
Charolais beef. He returned with no
Charolais, but instead had some lovely looking veal. Together, we chopped and chopped and cooked
until at last we had a delicious veal scallopini with a sauce made with white
wine, cream, veal broth, shallots, mushrooms, garlic, and herbs. The side dish was Lady Cristl potatoes
sautéed with green beans and chives fresh from the balcony. Cooking together for a change was fun. Tonight, six
of us are going to Le Blavet for dinner again. More about that tomorrow . . . . Back to Ms.
Clemente’s book, The Riches of She briefly
covers Mariage Frères, the tea shop that I like. She reports on the charming décor of the
one located at 13 rue des Grands-Augustins.
I am sorry to have to report that that shop has been renovated, and
much of the most charming details and old finishes are gone forever. I loved her
discussion of the very best hotels in ·
The
Four Seasons George V (which
we passed on our walk yesterday) ·
Hotel de Crillon (where Lance
Armstrong stays when he’s in town) ·
Hotel Meurice (where my friends John
and Martha stayed last summer) ·
Hotel Ritz
(where we once considered joining the health club for the summer). She writes in
this box that the French have two words for palace: palais
and chateau. Here I must differ with her again. A chateau
is really a castle, and it usually was a center of local control or even a
fortification. The idea of a chateau
dates back to feudal days. That’s
where the local lord lived. You see
many chateaux in or near little towns and villages along the route of the
Tour de France. In a big city
like The French
dictionary, Le Robert Micro, backs
me up on this point. Its first
definition of chateau is a
fortified feudal home which is defended by ramparts, towers, and moats. Le Robert’s
first definition of palais is a
vast and sumptuous residence, or a grand public edifice. It can also be the headquarters for courts
or tribunals (palais de justice), and historically, it can be the residence
of royalty. A palace, in French, by the way, is a
deluxe hotel. So let’s just stick with
that word, Ms. Clemente, as we discuss these great hotels. She does a
great job, describing these fine hotels.
That section is very worthwhile reading, even if you would never stay
in such a place. These luxurious
haunts are very much a part of the culture and personality of Tom just asked
me if I would enjoy having correspondents who would send me questions about
particular aspects or happenings in I call it a
journal, not a blog, by the way, because I’ve been doing this since before
the words blog or weblog were invented. This is the tenth summer for this journal. |
