When a Kreider brother gets an idea into his head, forget trying to get him to think otherwise (I believe that's from the gospel according to Janice) Well, I foolishly decided that, heat wave or no heat wave, I still need to get out and take more photos. After all, the days are slowly being crossed off the calendar. So I processed another 15 books during the cool of the morning, and once I was certain that the pavements had soaked up a bit of the day's heat, I took off, heavy backpack nicely warming my back. The word 'dumb' doesn't touch it.
I decided to visit a church I had never seen, so I took three nicely-warmed métros, then ascended into the real heat, got my bearings, and took off. Sadly, my bearings were faulty, but my legs were warming up nicely under my new heavy dark blue jeans. This time, I actually walked in the correct direction, finally found the church, and wouldn't you know it, the darn thing was closed. No problem, I knew where another church was and I would be able to look for a stand where I could pick up a sandwich and coke along the route. No sandwich stands in sight. I am surely the only person alive who cannot find a sandwich shop in Paris on cue. So I settled for a quaint little café, thinking that their quiche of the day might just make up for the morning's challenges. Wrong. No quiche on Mondays (of course, whatever was I thinking), but they did have a potato tarte (soggy crust and cold cooked potatoes, yummy). I drank the pitcher of water so fast they came trotting with another. The fresh strawberries with ice cream and whipped cream (straight from a can, of course), helped, as did the espresso. I do notice that whenever I ask for a café (espresso), they want to make sure that I understand that it is a tiny little coffee and not a two-quart container from Starbucks.
So I set off again. Time for some photos. Today's photos disappoint me. The sun was so bright that the photos are not showing what my eye thought it saw. This is usually the case, but the difference seemed even more pronounced today at high noon. Janie had asked if I could take photos which convey the sense of it being really hot. This proved harder than I thought, without finding someone fanning furiously or cooling swollen feet in a fountain. The 6th arrondissement is quite well to do (hence the seeming scarcity of sandwich shops on the main drag) and is not as overrun with tourists, though some were certainly plodding along, consulting maps and phones. I doubt that any street in the area runs directly north-south, which confuses things.
As I said, time for photos. I emerged from the métro at Rennes, checked the map and strode off with unwarranted confidence.
These men are getting ready for market tomorrow morning. The many stalls and tables will be in the middle strip of sidewalk that separates the two halves of the boulevard.
This local green grocer has fairly high prices, but the fruits appear to be good.
I noticed people's clothing today. Lots of skirts, which Janice favours on these hot days (I almost wish I were Scottish and had a kilt). Tourists will be sporting the more casual clothing, which highlights that they are not from Paris.
These gals seemed to be exhausted, possibly even lethargic, the heat getting to them. It's going to take more than a coke and cigarette to get going.
This elderly woman was wearing a rather short skirt for her age, but why not. Her husband was trying to find out where they were by using the phone's GPS, which doesn't always help. I noticed them going another direction on this same road.
I wanted to crawl onto this cool-looking shelf.
Nobody sat outside for lunch unless shade was absolutely guaranteed. I even saw people decline seats because they knew the sun was moving in the 'wrong' direction.
You seek the shade, just like BC salmon who have to work hard to get upstream.
I came upon a wine store that had the largest wine bottles displayed outside that I have ever seen. You can see the normal sized bottles directly behind them. I have no idea why these were out on the sidewalk.
Since the writing is difficult to see, even when blown up, I'll help out. In the lower left corner of the label, you learn that this bottle contains 18 liters (24 normal wine bottles). That makes it a "Melchior", named after one of the legendary wise men who brought gifts to the baby Jesus. No price was displayed, and the bottle is a bit large for our suitcase.
People hug the shade, something I remember doing so faithfully in Rome and Alan and Ellie 12 years ago.
This well-fed beggar, complete with a young (drugged) dog, was not collecting much money. His clothing is quite good, with new pants. Using cardboard as a backrest is a good idea.
Most establishments are not air conditioned, but their front floor-to-ceiling windows open nicely for the occasional breeze. Holding a hot phone didn't seem to bother this gentleman, as he waited for his food to arrive.
I hope to do better on getting photos showing heat--while being in the heat. Yves is here to work with Janice, so we are going out for pizza at a place that has air conditioning (Neal had to phone around to find one). And we're driving, all five of us.
That's all for now, with love from us both,
Evan
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