Eternal Tourist of the American Mind: A Year in Paris

    

      

Ponies, Puppies, Paris. What more could an American gal ask for? How about a year of ponies, puppies and Paris, or maybe just Paris and the chance to travel around Europe for months at a time? Well, unfortunately for this Heather I'm limited to weeks, but such is not the case for Heather Dornblum. In fact this has been her reality for the last ten months. The ponies and puppies, however, were reserved special for me.

Heather, a friend and fellow classmate of mine from Hunter College, will have spent an entire year in Europe by the time she heads home this coming January. I caught up with her on Sunday and gathered some precious details about her experience living abroad. Our conversation covered everything from her initial shock of moving all the way to the challenge of enduring heartbreak alone. Sound amazing? 

N'oubliez Pas. . .

To feed your mind and soul.

                                 

                                  Yes that is me in the reflection of the massive cutlery.

       

It would seem that with all the delectable and tempting culinary delights to be had in Paris, one would become lost in a sort of sensory induced state of taste-consciousness, forgoing pleasures of a higher sort in favor of mindlessly pursuing lower indulgences. That's obviously not the case. But it's easy enough to imagine how someone like you or me could be crushed by her overwhelming passion for baguettes or seduced by the sumptuous array du fromage and as a result, well, lose an appetite for tastes of the intellectual or spiritual assortment. Perhaps it's actually the contrary though.

In Search of Lost Time, In Search of Tomorrow: Paris and Myself in theHere and Now

Cette matin I went to my first open- air market in Paris, Marche Biologic des Batignolles (see photos below). A mere fifteen minute walk from my apartment and I found myself immersed by the scents, sounds, and sights of a glorious culmination of all things culinary, as well as hand made soaps, perfumes, oils, shoes, and much more. Making my way through the hustle and bustle of the folks trying to find the freshest biologic nourriture*, I couldn't help but wonder if this is how it always was.

                         

 

Beneath white tents and swaying trees, leaves already painted by l'automne swirled to the ground where I stood waiting and watching the man shucking sea shells at le poissonnerie. The unmistakable odor of fresh scallops and sea salt wafted through the air as I awaited my turn to order. How lovely, how joyfully simple I thought, we are all here, strangers, but fellow humans sifting through the earth's bounty beneath the shelter of her very own trees. Magnifique!

Time for Some Really Stinky Cheese...

Vivre la vie de fromage !

Labyrinthe Alimentaire à Paris

It all started when I stepped inside Marché-couvert-Batignolles located a few blocks from my apartment in the 17th arrondissement of Paris. Being my first time in a French Marche couvert, I wasn't sure what to expect. I realized that everything I knew about grocery shopping had to be abandoned, and quickly.