Fete de Ganesh

I have a mini obsession with all things Indian. I have bribed a few friends for Indian recipes and own ever spice needed to cook a classic Indian meal. Most of all, I secretly want a Hindu wedding. So when I heard about the Fete de Ganesh I knew it was something I could not miss! Three subway lines and 37 minutes later, I entered a section of Paris that was transformed into a mini India, for at least the next couple of hours.

Ganesh, one of the most widely celebrated Hindu deities, is the Remover of Obstacles and the Lord of Beginnings. Every year the Indian and Sri Lanka Tamil community celebrate Ganesh in the streets of Paris. Lucky Me! The event was three hours long and included coconut smashing, mini fires, and plenty of dancing. I took about 300 photos!

Ortel is a mobile company, so this is just advertising but I liked the costume.

Some Yolk & Oil

Generally, I am not a fan of mayonnaise I may even despise it. Sometimes I can't even get past the smell of it, so generally I avoid anything that looks saturated with mayonnaise. I remember a night out when a somewhat tipsy friend of mine decided to make toast and mayonnaise as a snack (or maybe it was miracle whip - even worse) I wanted to puke.

The other night at dinner with some American visitors of mine, I found myself eating mayonnaise with bread ... Sacre Bleu! Actually, the three of us were eating bread with mayonnaise while we were waiting for our meals. As most culinary inventions, it was an accident, we didn't realize it was mayonnaise at first.

Historically, mayonnaise originated in Spain but the French popularized it. There is fresh mayonnaise everywhere and it beats anything in a jar - sorry Hellmann's. Even the food processors come with a special blade for making mayonnaise. Now, I don't foresee that I will be eating bread and mayonnaise going forward but I have a newfound respect for the condiment. So for fun, I decided to make my own homemade mayonnaise.

Homemade Mayonnaise

1 egg yolk (must be extremely fresh)

dijon mustard

a mild vegetable oil

lemon juice

sea salt

Back to the 80s

My dreaded haircut. I must first disclaim that I have had a fear of hairdressers ever since the second grade when I went to get a trim and walked out of the salon looking like a little boy. I think it took me a good decade before ever entering another hair salon again. Through the years I have improved, however, I am still extremely wary. A couple of years ago when I was in Madrid, I was brave enough to get my hair cut and I don't speak a word of Spanish, but I still managed with hand gestures and all to get a great haircut. So how hard can it be in Paris when I can actually speak the language?

When I asked the salon if they had someone who cut curly hair well, I was told anyone who knows how to cut hair could cut curly hair. I tried to explain in my broken French that from my past experience that was not always the case. When I asked about low lights (which I have done numerous times in US) I received a look like I might be crazy and was told that it would be pointless to do such a process. Instead of explaining that low lights add depth and volume I decided to compromise to just a single color treatment a tad darker than my normal color. For my hair, a trim with some long layers and framed around my face, simple.

Pretty much my whole experience was spent at the sink, which lead to days of neck pain. Weird, yes, but when in Rome ... It wasn't until the next day when I was complaining of my neck pain did my mother inform me that, that was not the norm. Luckily, a trim was just a trim but for some reason I didn't get any long layers.

I asked for my hair to be styled frise (curly) not straight. Oh my, I can't even explain what they did but I walked out of the salon looking like I stepped out of a 1980s music video with a huge afro and the frizziest hair ever. Seriously! Oh, and the color was far from a tad darker I could join the Addams Family. Immediately, my hair went into its traditional bun. Next time, I think I might be better off going back to Madrid.

Joining the 21st Century

I know many people who have used the internet to meet people, whether it was meet-up groups or online dating, and yes, I have heard many success stories. However, against the wishes and better judgments of many friends, I have always been anti-internet. Call me old fashion, but I have always believed that I would have been more successful in another decade, maybe even century.

I guess being in a foreign country opens your eyes to opportunities that you wouldn't have considered in the comfort of your own environment. After coming to the realization that I most likely will not meet anyone in my new wonderful City if I don't put myself out there, I began to peruse some expatriate websites and responded to a request for assistance in English in exchange for French.

Only after I actually responded did I think about the consequences of my actions, which was fueled by my parents' lecture on how I better be careful. What if this person was the next American Psycho ... I guess that would be French Psycho ... oh my, what have I done? I calmed my fears by telling myself this was the 21st century and everyone meets on the internet nowadays. Plus with the name JB (same as my junior high crush), how bad could this French guy be? So, I proceeded with my rendezvous.

On a street corner, I met my mysterious soon to be language partner, who just happened to be a handsome and charming Frenchman. Score! Never thought practicing French would be so easy. JB took me to the top of a department store named Printemps, where there is a hidden cafe only known to the locals. I got to see a beautiful 360-degree view of the City with my own private tour guide and without the lines of the Eiffel Tower. Plus, I now have plans for the weekend to meet up with JB and his friends. Umm, why was I so anti-internet ... should have done this years ago. Now, for all my friends out there who have pressured me to do online dating ... don't get too excited I haven't come that far, I mean really, it's still me.

Paris-Plages

I'm still figuring out the subway system but I have to say so far, I am pretty impressed! Now, I know that Boston's subway system is one of the first in the US, but Paris is a much older city and they have it figured out.

My favorite thing, you know how much time till the next two trains! Genius!

Approximately 50% of Parisians leave Paris during the months of July and August. Another 30% arrive as tourist. So they say the City is about 20% empty compared to the rest of the year. For the poor souls who do not get to travel to the south of France or other exotic or non-exotic destinations, the City creates artificial beaches along the Seine called Paris-Plages (Paris-Beaches). Every day from 8AM till midnight, the roadways are blocked for activities and some areas are even created to look like actual beaches with sand and palm trees and all ... it's not fooling anyone but I guess it's kind of neat to be sitting on sand under palm trees staring at Notre Dame - a great view if I do say so myself. People sunbathe, relax on the edge of the river, play an abundant amount of different games, and of course lots of eating and drinking.

And some people sleep. :)

And for my friends at City Hall, these are just a few pictures of L'Hotel de Ville (City Hall).

Activites on City Hall Plaza! :)

My First Experience with French Bureaucracy

Trying to open a bank account should be an easy simple thing, right? Walk into a bank, wait 20 minutes before someone is willing to see you and then after another 30-45 minutes you walk out with a temporary atm/debit card and some checks. Well, not in France.

On Monday morning I headed to the bank to open my new French bank account only to find out that the bank is closed on Mondays and Sundays. So Tuesday afternoon I headed back to the bank... after going thru the whole ritual of speaking with someone and finding out all the information to open a bank account, I was told that I must now make an appointment to actually open the bank account. Thursday afternoon, back to the bank.

In France (and all of Europe) they do not have credit cards only debit cards ... and the bank kind of puts you on a budget. When opening an account you need to determine how much money you plan to take out of the atm each week and how much money you plan to spend using your debit card each month. Obviously, this is not a country that is aware of the concept of living off your credit cards ... probably a good thing for me these days with my tight budget.

So after 60 minutes of filling out papers and answering questions on my lack of income and how much I plan to spend each week and month I was ready to walk out with my temporary atm/debit card and checks and my new bank account. :) Only if it was that easy ... In about 10 days I should receive a letter in the mail notifying me that my atm/debit card is ready and then I can go back to the bank to pick everything up. Oh, and hopefully my US check should be cleared by then. Approximately 10 days was the answer for everything. Luckily, I have my parents in town otherwise I would be starving!

Kilos vs Pounds

Instead of going to Laduree to buy my favorite macaroons, I chose to have my big purchase of the day be a scale ... yes, a lot less tasty. But I figure the French are known for eating, drinking and smoking, and I should probably make sure that I have something to keep me on track and make sure that my cheese addiction does not get out of hand. :) In France there are more cheeses than days of the year!

So the scales have one benefit, they are in kilos instead of pounds - so instantly you are half the weight (1kilo is 2.2 pds), not bad! When was the last time your weight was in double digits? I guess the only downfall is losing a kilo is not as easy as losing a pound, which when you are dieting makes motivation a little more difficult, and if you gain a kilo - that's definitely not a good thing!

I have finally arrived!

I have spent the past couple of days adjusting to my new time zone, and I have to say, not doing to well... at 3:00AM I am always wide awake, which makes for less productive days. But I have plenty of time to discover my new city. Tonight, after dinner, I decided to take a walk with my camera and take pictures of my new neighborhood. Check out how light it is outside - my walk was from 9:00-10:00PM.

Cathy -This photo is for you, the Paris Bike Share!