by Anne Swardson | Mar 16, 2021 | covid, France
Originally published in The American Scholar On the evening of March 6, 2020, French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte, went to the theater. They saw a performance of Par le Bout du Nez, By the Tip of the Nose, about a French president who has an itch... 
by Anne Swardson | Mar 1, 2021 | covid, France
This month marks what would be, in normal times, the start of the Paris tourist season. The British half-term, the American spring vacation, the German winter break, all happen close to now. Chinese and Japanese tour groups arrive too, as the weather warms and the sun... 
by Anne Swardson | Feb 9, 2021 | covid, France
The question of whether Paris is still alive isn’t just a philosophical issue, even in a country that cherishes les philosophes. For almost a year, the most central and touristic parts of the of the city have been largely devoid of people, driven away by lockdowns,... 
by Anne Swardson | Jan 24, 2021 | France
My dad loved everything about Paris, but he especially enjoyed its residents’ daily struggle to get from one place to another. With his little camera – what kind? So many things I wish I’d asked him – and its telephoto function, he’d focus on cyclists, or... 
by Anne Swardson | Jan 5, 2021 | covid, France
For months, I bragged to my friends in the U.S. that France’s COVID vaccination program would be rapid, efficient and well-run, in keeping with its national health system. Silly me. The vaccination rollout here has been nothing short of a disaster. It’s replete with...