au revoir Paris!

My last day in Paris was relaxing. Frankly I didn't feel like being in crowds. July here is nice except when you stumble onto a major tourist attraction. Then, it's a swamp of people, some smell, some don't.  Ok. Most smell. Few are Parisians, for Paris is mostly on vacation now.

In case you ever wondered who made these paver perfect streets. 

I wandered around the neighborhood more and saw little of people-attracting sites but enjoyed the pleasant sunny breezy day. (Yeah, I'm still bragging about the  weather!)  Traveling alone is a freedom to do nothing without guilt of squandering a day in Paris. Of course, I just told on myself. Oops.

I did venture out a bit on the metro on mission to find a recommended exceptional cheese shop. When I exited the metro into a massive beehive of tourists, I looked up and realized I'd stepped onto the popular street at the base of the Sacre Coeur Basilica. 

The Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Paris, commonly known as Sacré-Cœur, is a Roman Catholic church and minor basilica, dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, in Paris, France. A popular landmark, the basilica is located at the summit of the butte Montmartre, the highest point in the city. - Wikipedia. (I'm not that smrt.)

Then I found the cheese!

La Ferme Saint Hubert   is run by a popular fromager, Paulette. I was not fortunate enough to meet her; apparently it was her day off - or perhaps on vacation like the typical Parisian. There was a nice cheese monger behind the counter but his English was limited, yet far greater than my French. 

I chose a couple potential subjects to smuggle home (shhhhh) that are made with raw milk. I'll may paint them, or I may just eat them - it depends how they fare the flight. 

I also picked up a couple things for Federico. Some creamy raw milk cheese with herbs and a naturally cured French sausage. 

The light on my last evening in Paris was exceptional. Walking towards a dinner location, I  captured a few good scenes of a warm night out. 

The Canal Saint-Martin is a 4.5 km long canal in Paris. It connects the Canal de l' Ourcq to the river Seine  ...

 It seemed ten degrees cooler along the canal and for miles it was crowded with happy hour picnics. One group had 6 bottles of wine, several cheeses and crackers laid out on their blanket.  I didn't feel like it was appropriate to stop and photograph them - besides, I was late for dinner and starving! 

Dinner was at a really good vegetarian Indian restaurant  that Federico's friend Sampath, (a U. Penn faculty member and known genius for being able to complete the nyt crossword puzzle in 15 minutes) chose the restaurant. We shared some delicious appetizer courses before each getting our own variety curry dish (above). Sorry my thumb got in the photo- I had begun eating this before remembering I hadn't photographed any food- so I took this in a hurry. (Above)

After dinner Sampath showed me how to properly froth the Indian coffee I ordered. It's served in a metal cup placed in a metal dish. You pour the coffee into the other repeatedly - back and forth - to build a frothy head and to help cool it. It comes out piping hot and difficult to sip at first, so it was a good thing he knew to do it. 

On the walk home, Federico and I stumbled onto an open air opera show at  public square. 

It was pretty great to hear the concert in this very dramatic night setting - so Fench, I thought. 
-—-—-

And that is the final log of my vacation journal that all of you voyoures have been following!

 The trip was long and full of valuable experiences that remind me to travel more. I need to leave the country more than once a decade - that's my lesson learned.   Over 7 days in London was a great indulgence. Revisiting scotland was  absolutely wonderful. The wedding, though, was clearly the most fun part. It was perfect and everyone involved were people I deeply enjoyed meeting and getting to know. If Dana invited me to that wedding every year, I'd come. 

Paris was a surprisingly relaxing way to transition into the 95+ degree humid reality that I fly back to. The fun of all the people I met at each place is what made it a great trip. 

OK, I'll stop rambling now. 

(By the time any of you read this, I'll probably be in the air.)

Fin

bonjour - oui - pardon!

oui pardon bonjour - that's most of my French vocabulary, though I still find myself saying "excuse me" instead of "pardon" when I bump into someone on a busy sidewalk. 

Paris is populated by over ten million people and though some speak English, I still feel like I'm being a lazy, disrespectful American when I need to ask someone  (using the remainder of my French vocabulary) "parlez-vous anglais?"

Wednesday I wandered and walked several miles of territory I hadn't explored in my first trip (8 years ago) enjoying the weather and Paris vibe. 

  In other words, I mostly avoided tourist stops when I could. 

I walked past some cheese shops -noticing some interesting, potential subjects. Especially that donut shaped cheese!

At one point I stumbled onto Notre Dame  ; that cathedral named after the American university.

It's still impressive though the crowds were oppressive ♪♫(poem or really good rap lyrics?) 

 I was drawn to this mural I could see a block away only to realize I'd stumbled onto the georges pompidou center. 

It appeared they were installing some Claes Oldenburg sculptures out front. (He's the guy that did the clothespin in Philly - FYI )

That sculpture made me hungry so,

I had a sandwich in the shade, people watching outside. 

A view of the museums exterior. 

I returned to my map-free wandering...

In the evening I met Federico and a friend of his, who was also from Philadelphia, at Chez Paul - a highly regarded traditional French bistro. 

I had no problem navigating the city to get there- unlike the French language. So when Federico helped with menu options I hadn't realized that the healthy sounding salad I ordered was my third pork serving in a row (I had a delicious ham sandwich for lunch and young pig the night before).

The salad was covered with fried ham and an egg what appeared to me, a bed of concentration-camp arugula that was at least a nice color if tasteless "greens".

I chose duck confit as a healthy main course :).  

Federico explained the "French Paradox" to me. Parisians remain thin and beautiful despite all the cheese, butter and noticeably small portions of vegetables in their city diet. The belief is that all the wine consumption balances it out. I personally think its the smoking. I'd not be surprised if French babies were born with a cigarette in their mouth. EVERYBODY here smokes and smokes often. 

Paris!

Today, (Tuesday) I took the Chunnel from St Pancras station in London. I believe it's the train station Harry potter used to go to Hogwarts. I saw some owls flying above. 

The Eurostar high speed train was nice and the ride easy. I lost an hour, as France is an hr ahead of the UK. But the weather looks pretty great so I'm wearing shorts in sunny 84 degree weather with no clue about the language. 

My attic room where I'm staying, has a nice deck. 

I rested On the deck waiting for  Federico, the generous friend that's hosting me, to come home from work and go to dinner with. 

After a walk around the neighborhood, which Federico describes as hipster trendy, the Northern Liberties of Paris, he took me to a traditional bistro that he really likes. Astier. 

I can't remember what this is exactly but it was translated by our server as "young pig, roasted with potatoes, onions and lettuce. It was very savory and good though, I was saving myself for the cheese course!

Federico with fromage. 

The cheese selection was incredible and we were given ample time with it before our waitress returned to bring it to the next table. I grabbed a bunch of each delicious cheese- going back for seconds of the blue before she wrenched  the board from my knife's reach. 

Of course we had to have a traditional dessert too. So we opted to split  something called Le baba.... Something.

I'm not at all a French speaker so I'm lost  with accurate words. I'm really good at pointing at things with a respectful helpless look on my face though. 

The waitress brought this light fluffy cake, cut it in half and proceeded to generously pour rum onto it. 

It had a hint if almond flavor. We ate it with creme fresh and big smiles. 

Not bad for my first night. 

Oh, and the weather is awesome ;)

London, one more time

Barb and I bid our farewell to Alligin and a cool, cloudy highlands threatening rain there for the next week and flew from Inverness to London Sunday evening.

(Inverness)

 I mention this, mostly for Eileen's benefit as she stayed behind for an extended rainy visit with her parents. Barb and I took the good weather karma with us. Cheers, Eileen! 

-----

Monday turned into a relaxing day to wander through a summer-hot London. 

St George's Parish Church is on our block and has a gnarly unicorn and lion on the tower. 

We visited the Borough Market but were unfortunate to find most of the venders are not open Mondays. :(

However, there were hints of glory among what was open. For this familiar with Philly, it seemed similar to Reading Terminal Market, but semi enclosed/open market. 

Oh the meaty pies...

The Covent Gardens near where we stayed, is full of great shops and cafes - though a bit on the high end. Barb finally found a Doc Martins shop and I enjoyed the rare strong free wifi from the Apple store. 

Also on our block is one of the worlds greatest collections of cultural "found" objects- the British Museum. 

Though some of the most important artifacts of history, like the Rosetta Stone, are housed here, I was more excited by the interior design of the museum. 

 

"Um, ...a little help?"

By dinner time, Barb's map of London was tired & in pieces: 

Our flat was super reasonable and like every other flat we rented on this trip, there was an orchid!  What's that about?!?!

Our last night in the UK was very nice. We decided on a really good Thai meal (no photos available) for dinner . Then a last London drink sitting outside in the most pleasant weather, people watching and reviewing all the great times we shared the few weeks. 

Tomorrow barb heads flies to Atlanta and I take the Chunnel to Paris. (I win). 

G'night London. 

 (Our last drink view). 

*posting has been delayed due to complicated wifi supply. 

Around Alligin

Saturday was a low-key relaxing day that we didn't venture far from Alligin. 

We went for a walk for some fresh air and beach combing. 

Stumbled onto an old outdoor church ruin. 

Took a coffee break at the Torridon general shop for some homemade cakes. 

Stopped in at the very posh old Torridon Hotel to look around.  

There were lots of dead animals and whiskeys. 

Then we took sandwiches to the waterfall for a picnic lunch. (Yes, we had dessert first- then lunch)

The later explored the shore along the village in search of sea creatures. We were like little kids at the petting zoo. 

It wasn't adventurous but it was a nice relaxing day before Barb and I had a day of traveling. :)