Lenotre

Very famous food/pastry shop. It's like boutique food. A small dish of chicken costs 30 euros. No thanks.

Fashion Notes-Paris

So far, I've seen at least four guys wearing pink scarves. One was neon pink.

One punk rocker boy had pink gloves with the fingers cut off.

The clothes here make me want to be fashionable. It's so easy to be fashionable in Paris. If I had loads of money, I could be the most fashionable girl in the city. I actually like shopping here because the things are so beautiful and well made. I got two new outfits, a coat and a pair of boots. I didn't pay more than I'd pay at the Galleria. But I feel renewed somehow. It feels good on my body, more elegant and rich. I really feel like I'm floating on a cloud made of silk.

I bought a pashmina made of silk and cashmere. Sara bargained them down to 4 euros. The man said he would do it because we were "tres jolie," very beautiful. Even if they're full of bullshit, the men here sure know how to compliment a woman and make it sound sincere.

Fine Falafel

We had the best falafel in Paris today. At first I didn't believe it, but after tasting it I know, hands down, it is. So far, the best I've had anywhere. The hoummous was the most fantastic hoummous ever. Silken and creamy, it was buttery and nutty without that sharp acidic bite of tahini. Even better, the olive oil on top was gentle and smooth, really light. It complemented, rather than destroyed, the flavors. The sandwich had tiny baubles of falafel, interspersed with tender aubergine, cabbage, tomatoes and a luscious tahini yogurt sauce. There was a line from one end of the street to the next. You have to really know what you're doing to eat there. Basically, you pay the guy at the front before you actually order, get a ticket and stand in line. Or, if you want to eat inside, you go up to the man standing in front, screaming, like he's introducing a circus act, and you tell him how many and he gives you a ticket with a number on it. We only had to wait five minutes and once inside, the food came almost immediately. When we got the bill, the guy gave us the hoummous for free. Sara said they never do that, ever. I think it was because when he asked where I was from I told him St. Louis. I asked if he knew the Cardinals. He said no, but he knew Murphy Lee was from St. Louis. I thought that was great. A Middle Eastern man in the middle of Paris knew about my little city in the middle of the U.S. because of a rapper.

An American in Paris

I arrived in paris, via Eurostar, on Saturday. I sat next to a Parisian man who asked if I wanted anything from the dining car when he got up to get food. How nice! We talked the whole train ride and turns out he loves Americans because they are "so easy to talk to." The Brits and the Parisians aren't this way, he said. We talked about brownies and Europeans and health food and how being rich is overrated. He works in wealth management and says many of his clients are miserable. It was very interesting. When we said goodbye, we "French" kissed.

I hit it off with my host, Sara, instantly. I'd only met her through email prior to my trip. Imagine my luck, finding someone kind and caring who is also a total germ freak like me. It was almost freaky. We've been gossiping like school girls since the minute I arrived. The other night, when my feet were hurting from walking in heels (my attempt to be stylish), she traded me shoes and let me wear her flats. We walked past the restaurant where the last episode of Sex in the City was filmed, as well as Pont Neuf, the oldest standing bridge across the river Seine in Paris, where Big stood in the snow, wondering whether or not he'd find Carrie. It's a very romantic spot. Paris is a glorious city. It's full of sparkle. I must admit, I'm totally in love. I like it much better than London. It just feels more like me. I could live here in a heartbeat.

Sensory Observations

I hear:
the click of heels on concrete.

I feel:
the ground vibrate beneath me as a torrent of people rush up a flight of stairs.

I see:
a little girl in a pink dress rush up to her mother, wide eyed and in love, grabbing her hand, trying to make her hold it. next to her are two men who have just been holding her hand and they're begging the mother to pay attention, to get off her cell phone and hold the child. she doesn't.

I see:
a man with skin the color of mocha and hair as black as night.

I see:
a homeless woman crouched in a darkened corner, eating a candy bar. she's in the same spot every day, saying, "spare change, please," in an accent i can't decipher.

I think:
london needs to pass a law banning couples from making out on the tube platforms. I can hear the suction cup sounds of slobber and lips as they glue and unglue themselves like fish gasping for air. get a room, people.

i wonder:
does everyone feel as tired as me right now?

Stuff I've Learned in London (so far)

I don’t like pastry school, but I’m pretty good at piping.

I like chestnuts.

Tea is way more fabulous than I realized. Well not really. I full realized this. It’s just way more appreciated and I think that's fabulous.

If you’re bored, there’s always a cure.

If you’re hungry, there’s always a cure.

If you’re not hungry, there’s always an excuse to pretend you are.

People think I have an accent.

People treat their friends like gold.

If you fall on the street, you might not get helped, but if you ask anyone for directions, you’ll always be given assistance.

Sometimes, accidents aren’t accidents.

I like Kate Nash loads.

People here say “loads” instead of “a lot.”

Buttermilk is as rare as blue whales.

I love spelt pasta.

People sit outside even when it’s freezing. They look happy sipping their foam-topped cappucinos.

What I Saw on the Tube Today

A baby was holding Nemo from "Finding Nemo" and picking his nose (his own, not the fish’s)

A guy was wearing gloves with the fingers cut off.

Everyone was reading the "London Paper," whose cover story was about Britney Spears’ horrific “Halloween costume” (or was it just a regular outfit?).

No one made eye contact.