You’ve Never Seen the Paris Shown in This Movie
“Let’s walk around the 13th arrondissement,” said my sister Christine. What a good idea! Even though I gravitate toward Paris's funkier neighborhoods for my blog-reporting walks, this one was mostly unknown territory for me. But Christine had recently moved there for...
It’s a Dog’s Paris
Let’s get one thing straight: The sidewalks of Paris are not littered with dog poo. Hefty fines have curtailed most déjections, as they are called. A while back, a Paris woman who not only failed to clean up after her two Jack Russells but also insulted the cops who...
Brrrraving Spain on Horseback
This is a departure from my usual post topics, but I hope the appeal is universal. Ignore it only if you don’t like any of the following: Spain, wine, adventure, mountain views, gourmet meals or horses. This riding vacation was a year and a half in the making. We –...
A Country for all Seasons
I grew up in a country that had four seasons, and later lived in Canada, which locals say has two seasons: winter and construction. Neither of those experiences prepared me for France, which has seasons not just for weather but for produce, school vacations, sales,...
Guest Post: My Hair-Raising Commute Across Paris
My sister, Dr. Christine Swardson Olver, is spending four months in Paris doing canine cancer research, her second spell as a scientist in France. She has already mastered the place, or at least the transportation part. By Christine Swardson Olver I decided to live...
France Finally Gets COVID Right
I recently returned from the U.S., where the talk was of breakthrough infections, vaccine reluctance, rising cases and unmasked citizens coughing on the masked. It was a relief to get back to France, which, after some false starts, seems to have gotten the balance...
Me and My French Butcher
We have a winner in the Locate-the-Paris-Rooftops contest! See below. * * * * * * * * * * “Have your butcher.” Those three words in a recipe used to bug me no end when I lived in the U.S. How could I have my butcher do anything when the meat came in a sterile plastic...
The Rooftops of Paris: A Quiz
When things get you down, look up. Actually, you should always look up in Paris, where the rooftops reflect the beauty of the city. I started taking photos of roofs a few years ago, sharing some of them on Facebook. Ever since then, I've tried to really see what is...
Paris Running on Empty
In my 25 years in Paris, I’ve always resisted the temptation to declare the city “empty.” Not in August, not during the pandemic. No matter how many people have fled or can’t enter, there were always enough residents and visitors to occupy the cafés, shop at the...
The Trashing of Paris
“You’re moving to Paris? It’s a dirty, dirty city.” So said a high-school classmate at a reunion in Ohio 25 years ago, after I excitedly told her of my upcoming relocation. I’m not sure she’d even been to Paris. But it’s true that the level of filth in the City of...