We Return to Paris

Greetings from Paris where previously the skies were blue and the weather was nice.  It could not last, however.  Anyway, look at that sky.  We saw that on the way in from Orly in the taxi.  I can not tell you how glad I am that we elected not to pick up a car in Paris.  That would have meant driving in Paris, and that is not something I want to do.  They have their own rhythm and no one is killed, but it looks daunting to the uninitiated.  Getting to Orly was somewhat challenging as the wretched GPS did not know where the airport is.  After we started seeing the airplane symbol on the highway signs, our stress dropped precipitously.

Unfortunately, I was on the wrong side of the cab to completely capture this event.  First we had motorcycle cops come through, standing up on their bikes, blowing whistles and motioning drivers out of the way.  They were closely followed by several cars full of police with machine guns. Then there were three or four of these trucks, followed by more cars with guns.  My theory, unencumbered by facts or data, is that this is a gold shipment.  Apparently Germany is moving all of its gold back from France to Frankfurt.  You can read about that here.

I don't know if US television has been covering the student demonstrations in Paris. We drove by one, which is close to our hotel.  France wants to re-do its labor laws so that employers can lay people off, and pay less for overtime.  The students are not happy about this.  There have been mass demonstrations with items thrown at police, and police tear gassing the demonstrators.

These police were across the street watching it.  There was no tear gas at that time. 

After wearing my jeans for eight straight days, laundry had to be done.  After arriving at the hotel we took a load of laundry in to wash.  We don't put jeans in the dryer, so it will probably take three days for them to dry.  Anyway, the market was once again in place.  It was nice to have something to look at while waiting.  There was one vendor there selling jackets made out of real fur.  The French still wear fur.

Are they not lovely?

Although it has been cold, windy and wet, people in France like to sit outside.  This cafe put the blankies out today for their customers.

So, we're now back in Paris with all of our luggage.  The internet is still glacial, so there may be fewer pictures.  Rain returns tomorrow, which is somewhat disappointing.