Paris 2012

It is gray, cold, rainy. I sit under a heater in a cafe outside Denfert station. The warmth is inviting. I want to linger but have had a double espresso and can’t sit still any more. Today’s agenda is to see Sainte-Chapelle, Roman artifacts, and gift shopping. There are two lines at Sainte-Chapelle, one for individuals and the other for groups. I watch a young American woman lead her group through and wonder what her job is like. A huge line forms. We snake slowly through the security screen and eventually are allowed in. ...

I wake to another cold and rainy day. Perfect weather to experience the Roman baths and treasures from the Middle Ages at Musee National du Moyen Age. I also want to see the Arenes de Lutece - a Roman amphitheatre from the 1st century AD. Lastly, as it is Anna’s birthday, I need a present. I start at the cafe down the road and eat the hardest croissant in the world. Truly lousy. I ride the metro along with all the commuters going to work. At Odeon, I walk to the museum, which is housed in an old abbey. I am not really in the mood to for more religious art. The ivory and wood carvings are magnificent but it is the the frigidarium, the cold baths of Thermes de Cluny, that capture my attention. The room is immense, stone and brick-vaulted, from the 3rd century AD. Next to it, in the old Roman gymnasium, stand the marble heads of French Kings, statues decapitated by the zealots of the French Revolution. They are creepy. ...

I wake up grumpy. It is raining steadily. I don’t want to go anywhere and read for a time. After coffee, I make a plan. I have 3 things I want to do: visit the English bookstores on the Rue de Rivoli, visit the junk shop in the Buttes aux Cailles, and return the broken fishing rod. At 7, I’ll meet Anna for a farewell drink. Since the junk-shop is close, I go there first. When I arrive, it is closed until 3. Now what? I wander around in the rain for 20 minutes. The neighborhood is hip, filled with vivid, playful street art. ...

I wake feeling a bit drunk. I make coffee, go to the store and buy a few replacement groceries, come home and slowly start to clean and pack. It is 9:30. For some reason I look at my flight info and realize I’ve made a mistake. My plane doesn’t leave at 4:30 pm, but in 1 hour! I am already too late. I can’t believe it and panic, hurrying with the packing and cleaning. I rush out the door for the subway. All the while my mind is seesawing between panicked planning and gentle reminders to remain calm - it will all work out. ...