If I were in Paris... Friday, October 15, 2010

Autumn is actually my favorite time of year in Paris. The heat is gone, and there is a real season to be experienced. The temperatures are dropping, the air is crisp, and sundown comes early: nights are dark and cooooool. I'd already be wearing a jacket, sweaters, scarves, maybe even gloves.

Tomorrow's temps are going to be between 60 and 44 degrees. Crisp, cool, and stimulating.

On a normal day, I'd be tripping over to Tolbiac (here's my first ever link to the library, on the old blog). Most days, I'd take the Metro #14: a quicker ride than the bus.

I know that sometime during this fall I'd be visiting the new Greek rooms at the Louvre. Two whole new galleries, according to the website. There is also an exhibition on 17th century books: Musees des papiers--L'Antiquite en livres, 1600-1800.

The Cape Town Opera is presenting Show Boat at the Theatre du Chatelet. I saw signs for this in June, and just wondered about seeing this intrinsically American musical presented by a South African company to a Parisian audience. Would be worth getting a ticket just to see. And I've never seen a reallly good version of Show Boat.

One perfect autumnal day would include a morning spent with a book, coffee, and a croissant at a cafe overlooking the backside of Notre Dame as the sun crawls up the sky, followed by a slow, soft walk along the Seine westward (an old blog entry from 10.08). I'd head over to Eglise Saint-Sulpice to see the Delacroix mural. Then to the Musee National Eugene Delacroix, which I found this summer. It is a small museum based in the artist's home, with a back garden ripe for sitting and reading. The museum is located in a small, quiet square. Delightful. As I do this, it would be great to have Delacroix's journal to read.

And around the corner is St. Germain-des-Pres, Monoprix, Repetto (ballerines), Grom (gelato), the Village Voice (English-language bookstore), and Coffee Parisien, one of my favorite "American" joints. All within walking distance, all offering wonderful diversions. Tired? An espress' at Cafe de Flore provides a second wind.

I'd really like to finish the day by finding one of those cafes overlooking a busy square (where four or five streets come together) and, grabbing a table overlooking the square, sip a glass of robust red wine and watch les Francais exit from cars, busses, and Metro. We would all enjoy the end of the day with a little wine, a kir, a coffee while the darkness of the fall night settles in. Maybe a little bit of The Sun Also Rises--or is that too cliched? I haven't read it for a long time, but like Remembrance of Things Past, I bet it is easier to read in Paris.

This is also the season to take a final day-trip to Vernon and Giverny before Monet's home is closed forthe winter. Few tourists, small crowds, and the garden in its autumn glory--a very dfferent picture than we usually see.