Pre-Bastille Day night out with friends...

I missed the 4th of July celebrations and fireworks. BUT, I got to celebrate twice for France's Bastille Day. Started out meeting up with a couple American friends at an English pub for some Fish 'n Chips. Quite French, right? We ended with 5 Americans, me included, a French woman, a Mexican and an Aussie. Vive la France indeed!

It was so very tasty, though, there was A LOT of food!

Brandon and Tom (from Detroit) in the background.

Brandon and um, Adam. He's always pulling faces!

This is Ned (from San Francisco), Tom (from Detroit) and Brandon with our table piled with huge plates and condiments.

We moved from the English pub to visit an Italian friend of Tom's who works at some hotel around the corner. We got star treatment. Penthouse balcony turned bar/restaurant. It was so beautiful up there! THE best macaroons I have EVER had...

Adam and Fiona (a lovely Parisian), who finally showed up!

Adam loves to antagonize Fiona. She fights back. Hehe.

Check out THIS view!!! WOW! So stunning!

Here's the center of the block where this hotel, and others, are from the view of the penthouse balcony! Just think, when you get apartment buildings, THIS is what it also looks like and there are people LIVING there...these are everywhere! Every block is like this!!! Granted, they are HUGE blocks (probably the size of 2 normal American city blocks) and they're not on grid form.

This sky look is so common in Paris...then it will change to sunny in an instant!

Chatting away about nothing in particular!

Liz the Mexican and Emma the Aussie joined our celebrations for a quick "Yay France!"

Apparently, sunglasses at night are a necessary Paris fashion statement.

Time to go...

Busy Champs-Elysee at midnight! The crowds were unbelievable and shops still open!

Aah, Arch. I love you.

Here are photos of the lovely underground Metro. A lot of times, the platform isn't just down the stairs once you get through the ticket gate. Here are some photos of the long journey (took us about 10 minutes) to get to the platform, then wait (about 3 minutes) and then the journey two stops (if there aren't any delays, 8-10 minutes) then the relatively long walk from the last Metro stop down about 5 Paris blocks home (about 10 min). Or we could have just walked 20-30 minutes from the Arch de Triumph. But it was late at night and we were tired!

We had already gone down two sets of stairs by now...and we're about to go up some more stairs.

This man saw me taking photos and stopped to pose...he then hugged me. He was very smelly.

Fiona got a hug AND a head-pat!

Down a hallway on the way to more stairs.

Down yet more stairs....

...and more stairs.

We're so happy to be at our stop Adam does a dance!

Here's the corner where we start our walk home...

There are loads of bikes here...

I found this apartment building very interesting so late at night. It had a very quiet feel about it. It's not where our apartment is though. We still walk about 3 more blocks.

On the way to the market...a few things caught my eye.

Here are two motorcycles that are locked together through the tree-guard. A very common sight indeed...

Every street here have cars parked on both sides, literally bumper to bumper, and there's only JUST enough space for one car to drive down it, soooo, when a delivery truck needs to deliver groceries to a shop, it means ALL cars must stop and wait, or take alternative routes. The 7 cars that were behind that van in the upper-left-hand corner didn't take that alternative route!

This is most likely a true Parisian walking to the market. Her hair is PERFECTLY coiffed.

Here is a butcher that also sells THE most amazing rotisserie chickens I have ever (and I mean EVER) tasted (and smelled)! The man with the apron is tending to the maybe 25 chickens that are on the 5 spits in the wall (where all the saw dust on the ground is). The bottom of the wall-spit is a vat where the chicken grease drips to and he'll baste them occasionally. There is a tray at the bottom of the chickens and above the grease vat where they roast potatoes. Next to the wall-spit, there is a metal cart with lamps and he'll halve some of the chickens for those who only want a half of one. Now, this man, who tends to the spit, will take orders and write up a slip for the customer to go inside and pay, then providing the chickens are done, he'll put either a whole chicken or half a chicken into a paper bag, throw some of the gravy (from the grease drippings) into the bag with the chicken, and off the customer goes. I will get better photos, before I leave (and, have a few more roast chicken dinners)!

What was seen just walking down the street.

The joys of Photoshop for a photographer!

Ok. It's been far too long between blogs. I'm sorry. But, I've discovered a version of Photoshop that's rocking my world...Here are a few photos that I have doctored & edited from the last couple weeks. I spent a few afternoons at one of the 3 cemeteries here and also spent last Saturday at Versailles with Brandon, Liz (the Mexican from Las Vegas) and Liz's friend from Costa Rica.

Here's a few edited photos of Versailles (which is truly a stunning building!) All the gold (which I've toned down) is gold leaf. It's insane that it's literally all over in this palace.

The two photos above are of Marie-Antoinette's bedroom where there was a railing splitting the bed part of the room and the "viewing" part of the room. There were a few short padded benches (for kneeling, maybe?) and a sofa. This is where she gave birth, with an audience. Very odd.

This is the very very beautiful hall of mirrors. Windows to the courtyard on the left, mirrors on the right. I will post more later.

One of the many very beautifully painted ceilings...

The King's bed. Kinda foofy, I think. But hey, this was the era that liked foof.

A huge and very intense room, not exactly sure what it was for, but the ceiling was absolutely breathtaking. More photos will follow.

Again, not sure what this room was for, but there was green textured fabric on the walls, the curtains were the same material, or slightly different, there was faux marble on the woodwork, gold leaf and murals all over, with portraits of random people. Kinda intense.

Moi. Right after the Hall of Mirrors.

Brandon, right after the Hall of Mirrors, such a happy place apparently.

The following photos are of a cemetery called Passy, and is very close to the Eiffel Tower. Growing up, being used to "American" cemeteries where they're tucked neatly in the ground and a small(ish) headstone, it was really fascinating to wander through a cemetery like this. I began looking at the little things, where people would build shrines to be able to pray to a saint or Mary for their deceased loved one, but these shrines (or narrow buildings with an alter, kneeling chairs and a statue) have become forgotten, neglected and run down. Dead flowers in vases and dusty, dirty and broken crucifixes. Everyone seems to be eventually forgotten and life moves on. In a very weird way, it kinda feels like I've gotten closer to God by walking through this cemetery, seeing how people "do" death. There's just such sadness and though it's sad when someone whom we love dies, in and through Christ we live and there's joy in that: I have a hard time understanding that sadness. Here's some photos, not nearly as many as I have in my stash, and I might post more, but I hope you can kind of see where my mind was when I was photographing this unusual and oddly beautiful place.