Strasbourg

We went to Strasbourg in order to view a hearing in the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights and talk to someone at the Council of Europe. We arrived late on Tuesday with only enough time to walk to the old town and have dinner. On our walk, though, I was reminded how quaint and beautiful Strasbourg is. It's so lovely, and so very quiet at night. We walked past the Cathedral, which I had somehow managed to miss the last time I was in Strasbourg, and found it astounding. It's really a remarkable gothic building that towers over a square like the giant over Jack. I was very impressed and so wished I would have had the time to visit it and go inside. Sigh.

We had dinner at a place called Le Hanneton (Chez Denis), a small place recommended by the trusty guidebook. We ate traditional Alsatian food, which was so flavorful and delicious compared to some of the food I'd been eating for so long in Paris. Oh goodness do I love flavor. I had a Baeckoffen (sp?), potatoes, carrots, onions, and beef baked in some sort of alcohol in a crock. Delicious. Some meal tasting revealed the flammenkuchen (tartes flambees) and the baked munster were also yummy (though I personally thought mine was best). Service was brusque and sometimes rude, but I thought the food made up for it.

We had meetings all the next day, with a yummy but forgettable lunch at Jardin de l'Orangerie, and so no time to explore the city. I was sad for this, but it's all the more reason to return, non?

Dancing Fleas

We visited Les Puces on a Sunday morning (L&D plus me) for a bit of antique shopping. Les Puces, or the fleas, is a gigantic market composed of (I think) 15 sub-markets that branch off the rue des Rosiers on the very northern perimeter of Paris. Each sub-market has about 150 vendors in booths in winding alleyways. The place is just fascinating. Every booth has something different and new. There are art nouveau furniture dealers, crafters, postcard sellers, beads, trinkets, vintage clothing, kitchenware, artwork, and junk. So much junk. We walked into one booth market "Curiosities" to find scientific instruments and snakes in formaldehyde. Amazing. I'm so glad we went.

We then spent the rest of the day in Montmartre. We had lunch at La Sancerre, which was crowded and more expensive than I expected, but boy was that cheeseburger delicious. It was a bustling bar with lots of people there to congregate and be seen, especially on the terrace. Unfortunately not many vegetarian options for my friends, who were beginning to get tired of cheese and bread...even though we still had fondue that night for dinner.

We did a tour of the great things of Montmartre: the Moulin Rouge, Amelie's haunts (her apt, her cafe, her greengrocer, her Sacre Coeur moment), a million stairs, and the APC surplus store for fashion at half price. I stress, a million stairs. Montmartre can be a killer if you don't plan to make it easy on yourself.

That evening we went to a traditional French cabaret Au Lapin Agile. No naked ladies. A bunch of people sat at a table and sang rousing traditional French country songs and shanties and things, engaging with the audience and having a great time. There was a bit of poetry and comedy, but mostly group singing. We had a good time, and I felt very cultural, but something was a bit farcical about it all, and not intentionally. I don't know. It was all in French and enjoyable, but difficult to follow and a bit expensive for the reward. For the same price I could have seen an opera and bit much more satisfied.

The next day I worked in the morning and then met another friend at L'Orangerie for conversation and art. I had never been before (I could take or leave Monet) but everyone always reports that it's something remarkable. And it definitely is. It has two giant oval-shaped rooms with Monet's waterlilies. The natural lighting is breathtaking, so I only recommend you go when it is sunny in Paris (which is 50-50) and not when it is closed on Tuesdays. It was really quite remarkable to see the kind of depth an artist can put in such a gigantic work. Amazing. The museum also had exhibitions downstairs, in which I discovered two new artists I had not known but now enjoy: Chaim Soutine and Didier Paquignon. Beautiful.

After a coffee next to La Madeliene, I met L&D at the Palais Garnier for a ballet, La Fille Mal Gardee. It was lovely, and pretty traditional, though not quite worth the standing ovation it received. Afterward we trekked to Le Bistrot Victoire, on the recommendation of The Frugal Traveler. The service was pleasant and the creme brulee delicious, but our meals were nothing to get excited about. And I'll be honest, I hated my meat. But everyone's experience is different....

I'm so glad L&D came and had me as a part of their honeymoon...I had such a great time with them, and Paris is so much better shared!

A Circus Indeed

With L&D in town, I had an excuse to put work aside for a few days to explore the city with them. L has exceptional fashion taste and interests, so we spent a day shopping in La Marais. La Marais has both the best food and affordable fashion shopping in all of Paris, in my and others' opinions. We also happened to be wandering during the semi-annual sales in Paris, so it was a good time to be out. We were able to visit both chains (APC and Kookai, for instance) and vintage stores, which were a lot of fun.

Unfortunately, I did not think ahead and a great deal of establishments were closed for the Sabbath on Saturday, so we were not able to experience falafel or any other great food. Instead we ended up at Bar de Cirque on rue Amelot in the 11th for pizza. We had the strangest service experience I've ever had. No fewer than three people asked us what we wanted, put in our order separately, and confirmed our order. Nevertheless, both our drink order and our pizza order came back wrong. And we weren't complicated: we ordered three vegetarian pizzas. That's it. No special order, not even three different pizzas! Yet we received three (yummy) margherita pizzas. Unexplainable. Then all three different people charged us different amounts. Amazing. Disastrous. Don't do it.

After shopping, we stopped for a sit and mint tea at Riad Nejma, and enjoyed each other's company over some really delicious ice cream. We walked to Notre Dame with the hope of entering and managed to get there at the exact time they were closing the doors. Grr. We had another drink at another cafe, and then delicious dinner at Le Grenier de Notre Dame. Boy, I love that restaurant. I had the lasagna, and it was really something. We ended the night with jazz at Le Caveau des Oubliettes, one of my favorite places to be in Paris. I know it's touristed, but I don't care. I love interesting jazz. Let someone else listen to the standards.

The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg

We took one of our three classes of students to a meeting at the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg City two weeks ago. Wow. Does that even seem possible? Anyway, it was. After our briefings, we had lunch in the lovely, very European cafeteria, and had a tour of the building, which was amazing.

The theme of the building is transparency, so the spaces are very open and filled with glass. There are gorgeous works of art donated by various states, like a Rodin from France and a Miro from Spain. We saw three courtrooms, each bigger than the last. It was really something.

Afterward, we had a bit of free time in the city. Lux used to be a fortified city, so there is a ville haute, or high city, and the valleys below, on the other side of the walls. In the walls, there are tunnels one can go through, if one were to arrive before they close (grr). We looked over the valley, and then walked through the Judicial Center of the city to an elevator that took us down to the Grund. We crossed a lovely river and had a drink at Scott's Pub outside on the beautiful day. I spent most of the afternoon just walking. Enjoying. Breathing. I think Luxembourg is wonderful. Photos in the slideshow.



It is worth making special note that this was the day we all learned that Michael Jackson had died the afternoon before. If you know me at all, you'll know he was my fave. Oh, Michael Jacks, I'll miss you so much. Many very important moments of my life centered around MJ, and it's very difficult to grasp that we now live in a world without Michael Jackson. This is worse than when Gene Kelly died. Or Princess Di. Sorry Farah Fawcett. I'm sure you were cool too.

Because of this momentous event, all of Europe seemed to be celebrating his life. Cars would drive by with their windows down playing Billie Jean. Buskers played his music in metro stations. European versions of MTV played his videos all day. You would walk by bars with their doors open to hear Thriller. The weekend after a giant crowd gathered under the Eiffel Tower to moonwalk in his honor. I'll miss you, Michael Jacks.

Midsummer's Night

On the 21st, midsummer's night, Paris celebrates the Fete de la Musique by suspending its noise laws, running the metro lines all through the night, and throwing a gigantic party with music in every place a person can imagine music being played. It's on every street corner, in every cafe, in museums, churches, parks, universities, government buildings...everywhere. There's a vibrancy in the air one doesn't normally associate with Paris, a city that doesn't experience a majority of sunshine.

This year it fell on a very beautiful summer Sunday. I, to be honest, worked through most of it, hoping to have a good opportunity to stop and soak in the music with someone. I did go to the Luxembourg Gardens with a few of the profs, eating baguette and moutarde while people watching and listening to various troupes play music through the park. My self-guilt meant I finished the day with more work, but it was a lovely day to be in Paris as opposed to anywhere else.

Two great friends from high school, L&D, came to Paris for their honeymoon while I was here! It was lovely to see them, and they were a good excuse to put work aside for a bit to see things I hadn't yet seen in Paris.

On the night they arrived, I took them for a "stroll" along the Champs Elysees, starting from L'Arc de Triomphe. I place stroll in quotation marks as the minute we stepped foot on the Champs, it began to rain. Not drizzle. Hailstone-sized water drops fell from the sky out of nowhere. After a bit under a gallery and a stop to buy umbrellas, we found a bistrot at which to eat a pleasant meal. Wish I could remember its name, though it was very standard and not really worth recommending.

Afterward, we walked to the Seine and had a drink at Chez Francis next to the Alma Marceau metro stop. Sitting on the patio of this lovely (and reputedly delicious) bistro afforded us a glorious view of the Eiffel Tower frames by a few lush trees. We sat, we talked, we drank, and we watched the light show. It was a lovely way to begin their trip here. I highly recommend this relatively untouristed spot.

Human Rights Organizations

We took students to Geneva for our first set of site visits, which was a great success. Apologies in advance, I took no photos. I just enjoyed.

When we arrived we took students to La Terrasse, the bar along Lac Leman, which was absolutely packed with people, even on a Wendesday evening at 11pm. I was a bit taken aback. However, the students either weren't impressed, were hungry, or were tired, and it didn't last long.

I woke early the next morning to go on a long, six-mile run along the Lac. It was a gorgeous morning in Geneva, and the lake water was so still and calm, with remnants of the sunrise still lingering over the mountains. The run took me through the lakeside park, past the World Trade Organization, and into the Jardin Botanique, where I was surprised to find animals! Deer, goats (well, one goat), flamingos... It was really a gorgeous run. Oh to always run in Geneva.

We had excellent meetings at the International Committee for the Red Cross and World Vision International. The students were very engaged in the conversations and asked great, probing questions. That evening, we had a group meal at La Gruyerien, which is known for using local, fresh products. Despite knowing in advance that our group was coming, the service was among the worst I've ever experienced, though not for a lack of trying. The fondue I had was probably the best I've ever had...so creamy and smooth and light (for cheese). It was absolutely delicious. However, when I left to meet friends two hours and fifteen minutes after seating, three of our group still did not have food in front of them. Ridiculous. I highly recommend the food, but take a group elsewhere.

For drinks (and for lunch the next day), I went to an old haunt, Les Brasseurs. The brewed beers are light enough for me to drink, and I love flammenkeuches all the time. :) Unfortunately, one of our students had her bag stolen while sitting by a door there. Fortunately, we were in Geneva, where the theives were kind enough to only take her money and leave the bag where it would be found by the police. Amazing.

Group Outings and Adventures

I've been mostly working on my dissertation, getting out only for runs and grocery trips. However, I have eaten out and led group trips, so here we go.

A week ago Friday, we took students for a group dinner to Brasserie Julien, which is an establishment now over 100 years old. It is more exciting for its atmosphere than for its food. The food was quite pleasant, though not as pleasant as the price might have suggested. The room, though, was beautiful. It has all this art nouveau detailing all around the room, and you just feel like you're in Paris. But Paris where there's an old school cabaret and chanteure. Lovely.

After dinner we took the metro a few more stops to Sacre Coeur to watch the sunset. This is the second highest point in Paris (the first being the Eiffel Tower, of course), though the angle of the view leaves much to be desired. It's actually better to go to the dome of the church to see a lovely view of Paris. Nonetheless, sunset on Montmartre is an event. It's packed with people, and relatively few tourists. People blast music, sell beer by the six-pack, dance, sing, and yell. It's quite something.

On Saturday we took the group to Versailles. It was quite an adventure. We hadn't ordered our tickets 24 hours in advance, which meant David had to go out to Versailles an hour ahead of us to begin waiting in line. The rest of us headed out there later, were missing a few tickets, jumped on the wrong train, didn't realize it until we were down the wrong fork, had to change trains twice more, and finally arrived in Versailles an hour later than we had planned. Which I would have felt bad about if David hadn't JUST arrived at the front of the ticket line by the time we arrived. He waited in line over 2 hours. It's so not worth that. Buy your tickets in advance, people.

I didn't go into the grounds, and instead worked a bit at a cafe and found a place for our group to eat. We went, once again, to Pizza Capri, which is yummy and cheap. Pretty standard.

On Tuesday I decided I wanted Moroccan food and took anyone who wanted to go with me to Riad Nejma. It is on the plaza of the Centre Pompidou, but it's surprisingly not very toursity. It has an open, indoor courtyard built to replicate riads in Morocco, and it felt very familiar. They served their couscous dishes family style, which meant we were all able to try everyone else's dishes. One group ordered something with root vegetables, tons of meat, and spiced with ras-al-hanout or something. Another group ordered the couscous Fassi, which I highly recommend. It was cinnamon, raisins, chickpeas, chicken, onions....oh it was so delicious. Outstanding. Nothing was quite as spicy and delicious as we ate in Morocco, but everything was very flavorful and..morocaine. Yummy.