Thursday, September 10, 2009

Tuesday, September 8th


After a very long night of sleep we still awoke tired so our first day we were lazy. In the afternoon we took a walk along te nearby canal and watched the tourist boats navigate the locks. They are similar to those in New Orleans on the Mississippi River and it was interesting watching it from the sidelins. Afran showed us the neighborhood shops that sell viande, fromage, frwee, legumes and charcuterie with at least three patisseries in each block. We bought eclairs at a pastry shop and then walked to a en plein air cafe for a boisson. The marches (markets) are very small and the food is displayed beautifully. They are all busy, even though there are many in each block.
Paris is divided into twenty districts. Afran and Philippe live in the 10th District. To get a better idea of how the districts are numbered - District 1 starts at Notre Dame, then 2, 3, and 4 are next and so forth. District 10 puts them right into the heart of the City but traffic noises are at a minimum probably because all the business and apartment buildings are quite tall. The weather is perfect so the windows can remain open, day and night. Each window has an attached rack to hold pots of fresh flowers so even though we're up high, it feels like we are in a garden. The photo is from the living room.
Our only regret is that we brought clothes more suited for cool weather but we aren't complaining because it is so pleasant having sunshine and warm air.
Afran and I are having fun teaching each other our languages. She already speaks some English but she wants to learn more words so we practice listening to each other and learning the correct enunciations. I am surprised at how quickly I have been able to get an ear for the French language.

No comments:

Post a Comment