Protesting Trump in the Land of Marine Le Pen
In the decades I’ve lived in Paris I’ve seen, and covered, many street protests. But last weekend was the first time I got to be in one. Paris was one of numerous cities in France, and Europe, in which Americans joined millions in the U.S. to protest the ways in which...
All of Paris Is on Display — Underground
You can see so many wonderful things in Paris, from theater to film to dance to foreign countries. Without even going aboveground. I was struck recently how the posters in the Métro are so much more varied and inviting than they used to be. In just one trip I was...
The Dead No One Wanted to Remember
Most of my walking in cemeteries has been at Père Lachaise and Montparnasse, where the headstones and mausoleums honor people such as Jean-Paul Sartre and Edith Piaf. But I’ve found a very unusual cemetery in my other home town. In this one, the graves are unmarked....
The Mystery of Learning Italian
My current Italian teacher is a 38-year-old police inspector in Naples. He’s got deep green eyes, dresses beautifully and always nabs the perpetrator. Wealthy, aristocratic women throw themselves at him, and not just because he’s also a baron. Under his guidance, my...
Be Careful What You Wish For, Mr. Trump
Dear Mr. President-Elect: Once you invade Panama and buy Greenland, it seems clear from your statements that you will turn to annexing Canada. You might want to think twice. Canada has everything you hate: Universal health care. The public-private system is going...
Where Real French Insiders Buy Their Food
I’ve written a lot about the joys of shopping in France’s open-air markets, where you can get the freshest meat and produce. The Internet is filled with recommendations for the best markets in Paris. We just enjoyed one in a small town during a recent visit to our...
Guest Post: Climate Change Is Not a Hoax in France
The day after the U.S. election last month I headed to the Place du Marché in my tiny town of Baugé to pick up a few things for dinner. The fishmonger wanted to talk about the results. Him: “He won again?” Me: Yes Him: “Sorry.” Me: Thanks Him: “So much for the Paris...
Le Foot: Some Kicking, But No Screaming
Reprinted with permission from The Washington Post. See below for a response from the grown-up Henry. August 28, 1999 PARIS -- From what I understand, American parents yell and cheer so loudly at their children's soccer games that many leagues now have to police their...
Democracy in a Country Where It Actually Works
Imagine: The head of a governmental jurisdiction orders his underlings to scan the electoral database and remove anyone who might not be a citizen, without clear standards of proof. More than 1,000 people are turfed off the rolls. The national government files suit to...
Escalator to the Sky
Around level 4 of the 6-story escalator of the Centre Pompidou, I realized it had been a long time since I’d visited a high place in Paris. It was a mantra when my sister Christine and I traveled in Europe. See a church, eat a good meal, visit somewhere old and climb...