Home again

Here I am at home! I got my hair cut! There was a lot to cut off. For now, I'm readjusting to technology (what is this YouTube?) & I bought a new cell phone, had my computer fixed, etc. I'm visiting family & friends. In the near future I'll begin the "job hunt."

Luz Saint Sauveur & Auch

This sign roughly translates to "Vandalism is an expression of stupidity. It has cost us 85,658 Euros in 5 years"

This is the cathedral in Auch. The wood carvings number about 180 & were completed over ~50 years.

D'Artagnan of Gascon.

More riders

Tour de France

Waiting for the riders.

Isn't Mom's free hat from Champion cool?

Bastille Day

Here is the 12th century Templar Church in Luz Saint Sauveur. It was also the site of the town's Bastille Day festivities.

I think this photo speaks for itself. Or rather, the mustache does.

Monsieur le Maire reading his speech.

A Basque choir singing the national anthem.

The chorus:


Aux armes, citoyens !

To arms, citizens!

Formez vos bataillons !

Form your battalions!

Marchons, marchons !

Let's march, let's march!

Qu'un sang impur

May a tainted blood

Abreuve nos sillons !

Soak our furrows!

Aux armes, citoyens !

To arms, citizens!

Formons nos bataillons !

Let us form our battalions!

Marchons, marchons !

Let us march, let us march!

Caravan Publicitaire, Part Deux

I don't think any PCV can have enough of this stuff!

It's a giraffe on a time trial bike!

Here's my view of the riders whizzing past on their race to the finish.

Caravan Publicitaire

The TdF's heliocopters. They have 6 or 8 in all.

In case the riders get lost, there are plenty of signs to point the way.

The last stretch in Bagneres de Bagorre.

I got a free Bouygues Telephone tshirt on our third try. This is one of the floats in the Publicity Caravan. We all lost our dignity in the fight for free stuff.

Cotes de Mane

Here are some shots from our first attempt to watch the Tour de France. We parked on a slight incline at km-marker 25 on the D21.

I tried to pee in the bushes because we had to wait a really long time for the riders. And I fell, and was attacked by a poisonous bush, lost feeling in my hands & had these crazy bumps for the next 12 hours. Luckily I found a leftover PC-issue itch reliever in my purse.

So the TdF is a lot like Cameroon. Here's my dad waiting by the side of the road.

Aha! The first riders pass us by in a blur, and it was over.

Luxembourg Gardens

This is how I spent my first day in Paris. I'm at the Luxembourg Gardens enjoying the lovely flowers & fantastic weather in my Cameroonian sandals & pagne skirt.
The giant head is artwork.

Candy Pig

Doesn't that look tasty? We bought this at a candy shop in Lourdes. Then we ate it.

Home in the USA

I'm home! I'm sorry I haven't updated my blog in a very long time but we didn't have internet access the last two weeks in France. We had a very nice visit & saw quite a bit of countryside. Some was unintentional, but for the most part, with the map and our GPS system (her name is Emily & she cannot speak French), we got where we intended to be.

From Paris we drove to Toulouse & spent the night. Then we went to Lourdes, staying three nights in nearby Aspin en Lavedan. Then we went to watch the Tour de France in Mane & Bagneres de Bagorre. That night we sleptin Luz St Sauveur, spending Bastille Day there & watching the Tour go by again. From there we spent a night in Agen (it's a trashy town, never go there!) and Orleans before coming back to Paris.

Here are some photos:

This is Emily, installed in our Renault Modus.

And this is the price of diesel fuel, in Euros, per liter. You can do the conversion & discover it's about 9$/gal. So stop complaining about how much you paid to fill up.

Avec mes parents

The last few days, I've visited several museums, including

Institut du Monde Arabe, afterwards a walk to Berthillon for ice cream & Place de la Bastille for sightseeing
Cite nationale de l'histoire de l'immigration
Bois de Vincennes

On Saturday I visited

Invalides and the Musee de l'Armee, with a completely renovated WWI & WWII section
Musee des Egouts, a fascinating look at sanitation & water treatment in Paris' sewers
Musee du Quai Branly, a museum of contemporary Oceanic, American, African & Asian art (complete with a necklace from Bafia! ha!)

My parents finally arrived in Paris yesterday morning. We walked to the Grand & Petit Palais, which have been closed for renovations for years. We tried to continue at the Orangerie (site of Monet's waterlillies) but it was first Sunday of the month free day & the line was long. So we wandered through the Tuilleries gardens & took a bus home for a rest. Today we're attempting the Orangerie again, and perhaps the Marais.

Sightseeing

For those of you who thought my only sightseeing was the inside of a cabine d'essayage (fitting room), worry not! I have become a tourist. During the last few days I have visited:

Eglise St Germain des Pres
Eglise St Germain l'Auxerrois
Eglise St Eustache
Musee Carnavalet
Place des Vosges
Hotel Suboise (Archives Nationales)
Eglise St Paul St Louis
Les Catacombes

I have twice attempted to visit the Institut du Monde Arabe and twice been refused. Perhaps tomorrow I'll manage to get there during visiting hours.

I also ate a Nutella crepe.

Bad days happen everywhere

After I got my SIM card I headed towards the Rue de Rennes for some shopping.

First, I was immediately tagged for a gullible American by a crazy British woman running one of those "I just need 6 euros to pay for my hotel, my French boyfriend left me, please help" scams. So much for attempting to look French.

Second, at Les Deux Magots, my salmon quiche went flying off the plate and into my lap. Graceful.

Third, moments later when heading for the toilettes to clean up, I fell down the stairs! Now I'm bleeding on one elbow & am bruised all over!

Fourth, Samaritaine and Berthillon are closed on Mondays.

At least I found a cute skirt, shoes, umbrella and sweater. And I had an egg, cheese, ham and mushroom gallette (that's a buckwheat crepe). After wandering for awhile I headed to my old stomping grounds around Boulevard St Michel & Boulevard St Germain.

Have also abandoned plan to go to London. Without paying 50Euros for a discount card the Eurostar is 187,50E at the cheapest times of day. Yikes! I'm saving my museum visits for tomorrow & Thursday. It's supposed to rain.