Paris

Like these few before me, I should probably start with an apology. Sorry for the negligence. My limited blogging is no indication of missing or thinking of you less. The opposite is the case. And I do appreciate Selena for getting on our cases! But I have become less dedicated to internet cafe-going as the Euro has eaten away my monies and I have taken to guarding each cent with extreme care.

Anyway, so goes the unemployed wanderlusting life. But all is still quite lovely and moderately boring -- in the good way, of course -- in Paris. These are some things that my summer days have been filled with:

- pastries, first and foremost (first and foremost every morning too): Monty and I thought we had tried every bakery in the neighborhood and settled on a favorite, only to discover another host of them around a different corner. So the quest for the best baguette continues.
- concerts: lots of music. Jazz in the park. Some random indie band that was much talked up and good in the end. I skipped the Paris Animal Collective show -- once again, lack of Euros -- but all the boys said it was good. More about the boys below.
- museums: oh my god, so many museums. They seem to be a good way to learn stuff outside of college. The Louvre, Musee d'Orsay, Versailles, Musee de Picasso, Musee de Rodin (my favorite, I looooove Rodin), etc. Still on the list is the poorly-named Musee de l'Homme, Paris's site of ethnography, which some of you I know would appreciate; another trip to Orsay because I only made it through the first floor; the Monet museum, which I'm only moderately excited about; and maybe others.
- books: lots of books too. Right now I'm reading a history of Paris, which tracks the city from c. 1000 to the present day. It's so good and so nerdy! It means that I am constantly spewing out relevant recently-learned trivia while walking down the street. (Eg. Did you know the Tuileries Gardens were named after the tile workshops that surrounded the palace that was there placed in the 16th century? Did you know that King Henry IV was hated by counter-Reformist Parisian Catholics because he lived a flamboyantly bisexual lifestyle? Did you know that there was a massacre of Algerian activists in Paris in 1961 that was formally covered up and went unrecognized as part of France's official history until the 1990s?) I'm not sure my travel companions are as appreciative of my facts, but I am pleased. While here I've also read China Men by Something Kingston; Before Night Falls, the memoir of Cuban poet-activist Reinaldo Arenes, which Hannah, you should read; Kafka on the Shore, which, Selena, I found very frustrating and want to talk to you about because I know you like his work; Howard's End -- random British classic; Me Talk Pretty One Day, which had me laughing hysterically out loud; and Rue des Mamours -- French novel, literally called 'Street of Caresses', all about the sexual exploits of adults in a Parisian neighborhood from the perspective of a nine-year-old boy. I learned a lot of new vocab with the last.
- boys: Monty and I have made (non-French) friends in Paris, or met up with old friends, exclusively male. Just worked out this way. I have often found myself hanging out with a group of three or four guys. This is fine, but definitely has me missing some women time. I am sure I will get it when I get back. For now, lots of boy humor (no offense, Julian).
- cooking: Yum, and cost effective.
- gardens: We are going to Jardin des Plantes after this internet bout.
- frisbee: I am getting pretty good -- Monty's obvious influence.
- French: The point of being here, I suppose.
- lots of wondering/mental wandering about what's next, but without worry. Ooh alliteration.

All luxurious, but I am nicely guilt-free. Community engagement, activism and the like will return as big parts of my life when I get back.

There are other things but I am antsy to get out of here. Talk soooooooooooon.