I'm Here!

I'm here! And it is really true what they say about Paris in August -- the place is deserted. Here's my subway train at rush hour:


I've gotten a seat on the subway each trip so far, to or from work. When I was here in June and July it was packed to the ceiling. And it was hotter then, too.

I arrived just in time to face a big deadline at work and haven't actually seen much of the city except for the subway so far. Although if you go out of the office, down to the nearest main avenue and use a long telephoto lens, you can see one landmark:




Again, that's with a LONG lens. In reality the Arc de Triomphe, from this vantage point, looks about as big as your thumbnail, held at arm's length.

I have, of course, seen my own immediate neighborhood, and here are some views. This is the street leading up from the subway station, which is one of the main streets of the gay part of the Marais:


Turn right at the next corner, then two blocks and left, and you see my apartment building:




In between, there is a terrific bakery, a not-very-impressive grocery and half a dozen restaurants, which I haven't tried yet. And a bunch of stores, all of which are closed for the month of August.

Ah, the European life.