Bonjour, Paris!

How do you write a smile?

Well, one seemed to have permanently fixed itself upon my face ever since I arrived on Sunday.

Please join me with three cheers for my son, who behaved brilliantly on the 24-hour trip from Port of Spain to Paris - hip, hip, hooray...! And another chant for my husband, without whom there would not be a smile this large on my face - "for he's a jolly good fellow...." ok, you get the idea. Besides the jet-lag and inevitable exhaustion, the trip was good.

I've been to Paris a few times, so my observations are not really about the city itself. Rather, the observations I'd like to share today are about how I feel as a new resident of Paris. I am deliriously happy to be able to finally take time to see the city, without feeling rushed or thinking that I have to move on to the next monument because my days here are numbered. Today, for example, the three of us took the metro to Pompidou only to find that it's closed on Tuesdays. Instead of being annoyed, we walked and walked and walked without looking at a map or making any plans for the rest of the evening. We stumbled upon three playgrounds, so my son was thrilled. We saw street performers and beautiful window displays of pastry shops, clothes boutiques, and art galleries. 

always tip a street musician

As an anthropologist, I am fascinated by the people. Paris, like most of Europe these days, is a melting pot of people from around the world. I hope that my experience with the culinary culture of this city exposes me to what this collage of traditions has to offer. 

You may be wondering what our first meal was? If you guessed moules frites, you're right. Actually, I ordered steak frites and my husband had the moules. The baby had a moule and I think he liked it, but his favorite was the broth that the moules came in. And oh yes, the bread. None of us can get enough of that crunchy, heavenly baguette brought down to earth by the bread gods.

moules frites

steak frites with belgian mayo

I'll leave you with my last thought of the day...I better keep taking these long walks, or else I'll be rolling out of France in eight months because of the extra thirty pounds I'll be carrying (AH!)