Paris Journal 2010 – Barbara Joy Cooley Home: barbarajoycooley.com

Photos and thoughts about Paris

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We spent a few hours doing what we love to do the most yesterday: Walking through the streets of Paris. In particular, I love walking through the 7^th arrondissement. It is so classy, and has so many stately and important government buildings. The security is good, with plantons and cameras everywhere. As we started out yesterday, we were happy to see that the ugly, hand-made porcelain goods have been removed from the Place Saint Sulpice, and the dozens of little tent-booths were being dismantled. Today, I’m hoping, the gracious space will be open again for all to see. Especially, I want people to see the magnificent fountain in the middle of the square, with its awesome lions. Mostly it is the little things that entertain me on our walks – a cleverly designed and brightly polished door knocker, a colorful and creative platter. But it is also the overall effect – knowing what I’m passing through, thinking about all the history the walls of the buildings have witnessed – that satisfies me. And then we had some unexpected excitement yesterday evening. We were wandering back to the 6^th from the 15^th and it was dinnertime. One of the buildings on rue Saint Dominique disgorged a bunch of well-dressed, well-nourished, and important-looking government workers as we were walking by it. We went with the flow, which happened to be where we were going. We followed along as some of the important people walked up to the Place du Palais Bourbon in front of us. Tom had been wanting to go back to the restaurant there, called the Bourbon. We checked out the menu on the board outside and decided to enter. The neat, friendly woman who runs the place immediately spotted us and offered us a table for two. I made my way to my chair with no problem. But as Tom passed by a table where a woman sat with her little dog beneath, the dog barked and lunged at Tom’s ankle. The little dog BIT TOM!!! Fortunately, Tom was wearing heavy khaki pants and thick socks, so the bite did not break his skin. I didn’t know what happened at first. I thought that Tom, with his big feet, must have stepped on the dog’s paw and so the dog barked at him. When Tom sat down and said “He bit me,” I was stunned and I repeated “He bit you???” Tom said “Yes, and she [the woman] didn’t even apologize.” About three seconds later, the woman turned and apologized to Tom. She explained that the dog thought Tom was going to take its water bowl from under the table. Tom asked her to please assure the dog that he would do no such thing. I think this dog especially attacks men’s ankles, and I’m glad for that because I do not wear protective khaki pants and thick socks. The woman bought us a couple of glasses of champagne, and after dinner we had a nice, long chat. She’s an American economist from Annapolis who owns an apartment there in the 7^th, where she lives for three months in the Spring and three months in the Fall. She returns to Maryland soon. She knew about Sanibel Island, of course. Meanwhile, the large man seated near us had to listen to all this. But he seemed content. He was, according to his nametag, Hervé Lemaire, a civil administrator with the Ministry of Defense. (Hervé, if you want privacy, don’t wear your nametag in the restaurant.) We exchanged email addresses with the economist and had a lovely stroll home. The weather has been absolutely perfectly gorgeous for the past two days. Back to the restaurant – our last experience at the Bourbon a couple years ago was unpleasant because we had an obnoxious clown for a waiter. Also, the people running the restaurant seemed to be burning out a bit. Now it seems that the neat, friendly and energetic woman who seated us may be running it. The menu has changed completely, and while it has traditional fare, it also has some interesting and modern twists – like serving blinis or a tomato tart as an accompaniment instead of potatoes. The Italian dishes are gone from the carte. Tom had lamb chops and green beans, both of which were excellent. I had a veal t-bone with béarnaise sauce, a green salad, and fries. I was going to order the puréed potatoes but when I saw the plates of fries passing by, I knew that was the thing to order. I shared the fries with Tom. The restaurant has been thoroughly cleaned and polished up – as it should be, because it has a grand location, right across from the Palais Bourbon where the national assembly meets. Sign my guestbook. View my guestbook.

Tuesday, July 6, 2010 Snake door knocker on rue Bonaparte, and snake platter on rue Saint-Peres. During one part of the concert by the Wisconsin Ambassadors of Music the percussionists made a drumline in which they played 50 cent plastic buckets atop $25 stands. The 70-some members of the Wisconsin Ambassadors chorus sang the Star Spangled Banner in beautiful harmony in the Luxembourg Gardens. There was no room for them on the stage since the band has 220 members. For many of these kids, it’s their first trip overseas. How exciting for them! Chopin concert posters on display in the Luxembourg Gardens. ← Previous Next → Note: For addresses & phone numbers of restaurants in this journal, click here.