Holy @(#*&%!

I'm taking suggestions for other captions.

Vehicles of Paris: Part 13

My series about the vehicles of Paris really can't be complete without a picture of a Velib, one of the some 20,000 bicycles for hire that are stationed all over the city of Paris. It's been two years since the program launched and it's been a big success by all accounts with over 50 million uses recorded and the expansion of the network both in town and into close-in suburban communities, although regrettably, there's also been quite a bit of vandalism and too many thefts. Use of these bikes is free for the first 30 minutes and there are hundreds of stations all over town so going point-to-point is the way to go. They even have trucks that go around each night to redistribute the bikes so that are plenty of bikes on top of Montmartre (since no one really wants to ride a bike up that hill) and in other popular venues where the station often looks like this:



But can I tell you a secret? I've never, not once, used one of these bikes. American tourists are sometimes disappointed that they can't make the system work with their chip-free American credit cards. But, no, that's not my problem. I'll be blunt: riding a bike in Paris traffic scares the crap out of me. So pedal away brave souls. I'll wave to you from the sidewalk or the bus.

Qualities of Leadership

What's the most pressured moment for an American president? Sure, there's avoiding World War III, keeping us safe from terrorists, and wrangling with Congress over big issues like taxes and health care. But the real moment of truth is when he has to throw out the first pitch at a major league baseball game. I guess Barack Obama did okay when he took on the task at the All Star game a couple of weeks ago because all the press was about the cut of his jeans and nobody said anything about his throwing style. (But then again I don't watch Fox News so maybe someone did.)

While Americans really want their president to be a regular guy, the French, by contrast, want someone cultured, intellectual, and able to make astute references to history, philosophy, and art, and throw in the occasional quote from Moliere, Sartre, and other giants of France's glorious past. Although they elected Nicholas Sarkozy in 2007, a man with none of these qualities, Sarkozy's recent miserable poll numbers suggest that they're regretting that decision. With three long years until the next election, there may be time for Sarkozy to refashion himself as an intellectual. His Henry Higgins? None other than his wife, former fashion model and pop star, Carla Bruni. You can read all about it in an interesting article that appeared over the weekend in the International Herald Tribune .

Vehicles of Paris: Part 12

I've seen these British moving trucks around town on more than one occasion and I always do a double take on what seems rather innocent to the English but not so to Americans. I will spare you a picture of one of the German tourist buses with big letters plastered on the sign, presumably the name of the company's owner whose name begins with F. I kid you not.

Champagne without the Bubbly

Call me crazy but I went to Champagne on Saturday and didn't drink any. In our last ditch effort to have grownup fun while the kids were at camp, my husband and I took a day trip to Reims, the heart of Champagne, but we had other things in mind. And to tell you the truth, while I like wine just fine, having visited vineyards in France and California, the whole tasting thing kinda leaves me cold. But even minus champagne, our day in Reims was really special. We enjoyed strolling around town, stopping for coffee and later lunch, and touring the cathedral, the basilica of St. Remi, and the Palais de Tau, home for many years to the region's archbishops. Reims is full on Gothic but gets a special place in history as being the site where Clovis, the first king of the Franks was baptized, and it subsequently became the official site for French coronations. Heavily damaged by fire and war throughout the centuries, the cathedral remains a work in progress. New windows were created after the Second World War, including a lovely set by Marc Chagall, and new technology is now permitting 21st century artisans to create perfect replicas of existing statuary so the authentic pieces can be brought inside, away from the degrading effects of weather and pollution.



How is it that a Russian Jew ended up making windows for a French Catholic church? Who cares? These windows are spectacular.



The contrast between the restored sections and those still in need of work was stark. Blame the missing body parts on the Germans, the French Revolution, and the passage of around 800 years

Reims is an easy 40 minutes from Gare de l'Est by TGV. If you want to visit the vineyards, a car makes more sense. There are half a dozen other sights to see in the area including a museum at the site where General Eisenhower accepted the surrender of the German forces in 1945 and another one devoted to vintage cars. You could easily make a weekend of it.

Home Sweet Home

The kids are back, a bit dirty, sunburnt, and bug bitten. The washing machine is going and a big American breakfast will soon be underway. Everyone seemed to have had fun, made friends, and managed with their only passable French. I'm really proud of them, glad that they're so willing to go off on their own and glad to have them home, at least until the inevitable bickering starts again.

Gotcha!

Even though I can look out my window and see Paris everyday for myself, I still enjoy the photos posted by Eric at Paris Daily Photo. Yesterday, he posted a picture of some trompe l'oeil windows near the Pompidou Centre and it reminded me of this shot, which I took a while back in Neuilly. You may have to zoom in on this photo to appreciate the contrast between the real windows on the facade and the faux ones on the side. The billboard is real; I suppose someone has to pay for that art work.