Cross-cultural gaydar

This post is certainly somewhat not-PC, but I don't mean offense to anyone.  I was at the Paris Museum of Modern Art today (at a Keith Haring show, who was loudly and proudly gay), and saw a 30-ish guy wearing a small fedora, a scarf, and some canvas sneakers with a woven diamond pattern all over them.  I'm not really sure I would have thought he was gay in the US, but I would doubt whatever conclusion I came to much more than I would in the US.  I do think that it's much more difficult for an American in France to form an opinion about whether someone is gay.  There are certain cases that are pretty easy to deduce, such as the really skinny tall young guy that passed us on the street the other day wearing a plain white t-shirt three sizes too small and a pair of very light silk pants that were also three sizes too small, and had a flamboyant walk.

Moez the Tunisian at Starbucks

In crowded European cafes, normal people try to pretend they can't see or hear the person sitting right next to them, but I'm not normal.  I still say "Bonjour" every once in a while.  When I got to Starbucks Friday morning, I muttered a "Bonjour" to a youngish guy sitting at the next little table as I pulled out my laptop.  This time was different, as he smiled broadly and said "Bonjour" and we shook hands.

He asked where I was from.  He told me he'd been to New York and liked it a lot.  He was from Tunisia.  As we talked, his iPhone rang and he took it out.  When he hung up, he said it was bad news.  His mother in Tunisia had called his wife to tell her that a relative had died.  Not a close one I think. He seemed only mildly upset.

After that, he showed me the photo on his phone home screen, which was his 13 month-old girl.  She was really cute.  He opened the album and there were about 30 photos or more in a row of her.  He asked how his English was, and I said it was very good.  He had an accent, but he was easy to understand.  He said he was looking for a job in a hotel.  I mentioned the "International School of Hostesses" right around the corner from the Starbucks, and he said he'd just applied for a job there, but wasn't accepted.  He'd worked at hotels in Tunisia, which is where he'd learned his English; talking to guests.  He said he was really shy at first, but learned eventually.  Very impressive to me, since I'm making little progress on French.  He was resentful that there were people working in the hotels here who didn't speak English, when he speaks French, English, and some German.  

Then he asked me how much I made, guessing $10,000.  At first I thought he must have no clue about how much people make, but then he said "per month."  He asked what my wife was doing, and I said she had a job here in Paris, and she was the reason I moved here.  He looked pretty shocked.  And I told him she's making more than me at the OECD.  As usual, I had to explain what the OECD is, but when I said it's like the World Bank, he immediately got it. Then he asked if she made $30,000, per month.  He was a bit off on that one.  At one point he asked if there were still prejudiced people in the United States.  "Of course, but it's certainly better than it was a few decades ago."

He asked if I could help him find a job.  I wished I could help him.  He said "I don't sleep at night, in my house.  I apply for jobs every day.  I'm 29, almost 30.  I have a daughter and a wife.  You're settled. You have a job."  Again, he asked if I could help him find a job.  I told him I just moved here, I don't work for a French company, I don't know anyone here, I don't speak French.  "You can help me.", he pleaded.

We talked a bit more, then he stood up to go and said he might see me there again.  I'm there every weekday, so it would be nice to see him again.  I wonder if I will.

In every kiosk in Paris this week, there's a magazine cover that says "Are we in 1789?" in huge letters.  Ever since the riots in the Paris suburbs ("banlieus") a few years ago, I've wondered about the masses of low income, high unemployment immigrants surrounding Paris.  Unemployment in France has been rising for the last year, reaching about 10.5%.  That's higher than the peak of the crisis in the US, when we reached about 9.9% in Oct 2009. It's been generally trending down since, to 7.9% now.

I hope Moez finds a job soon.  I was too uncomfortable to ask him if he qualifies for French unemployment, so I'm not sure how he's surviving right now.

Stylin' in Paris

I would think a guy on a bike like this would like having his picture taken, but his expression says he wasn't too excited about it.  Still, this is a full-grown man, physically anyway.  There's no trend like this.  This is the only bike like this we've seen.

Random shots walking around on a sunny Sunday

Photos taken walking from one place to another over a few hours on Sunday, which was sunny and about 55-60 degrees.

In Luxembourg Gardens, statue of lovers Acis and Galatea...

But, they were not alone...

About the grotto and sculptures:  Jealous Cyclops Polyphemus surprising Lovers Acis and Galatea

Tulips at the Luxembourg Gardens

A different type of tulips, and lots of other flowers, at the Luxembourg Gardens.

Typical Parisian garage door.  OK, maybe a little above average.

Sculpture over a door in Paris, not far from Saint Germain Church.

Paris Saint Germain Church Iinterior

Below is the Church of Saint Sulpice.  This church is really, really big.  According to Wikipedia, "At 113 metres long, 58 metres in width and 34 metres tall, it is only slightly smaller than Notre-Dame and thus the second largest church in the city."  

Church of Saint Sulpice, Paris

Speaking French!

Jennifer was so proud of herself at the bar yesterday afternoon.  We were sitting outside, having our Belgian Leffe beers, in the bright sunlight and a cool 55 degree breeze, when she decided to seek out the ladies' room.  When she went inside, she looked around, but didn't see the bathroom, so she says to the bartender - "Ou est le toilette?" (Where's the toilet?), and he grins and says to her "Parfait!" (Perfect!), totally mocking her in a good-humored way, then pointed her to the bathroom.

Yeah, there's no chance we'll blend in.  Though I do have to say a lot of people keep speaking to me in French, until I get that blank, panicked look on my face!  At the Biocoop Organic grocery store, I understood what the checker asked me, but then answered "Si!, uh, Oui!". Too late, my cover was blown with a single word!

French MadMen handle a delicate subject in public

This is a commercial I just saw on the French equivalent of The Morning Show.  The French MadMen solved the problem they were given brilliantly...

French Commercial

Americans might be a little less likely to play this on a morning show, don't you think?  Imagine the questions the children will ask.

Church of Saint Severin

We wandered through the tourist area across from Notre Dame, along all the blocks around Boulevard Saint Michel.  Tons of tourists, and cafes full of people sitting outside because this is the nicest day of the year so far.  In our wanderings, we passed the side of some huge church that we couldn't really see because we were in this narrow pedestrian street right up to the side of it.  Later, we came around a bend on the other side and saw how big and old it was.

Gargoyle near front entrance of Church of Saint Severin

It turned out to be the Church of Saint Severin, built in the 1300's and updated a few times in the 1400's.  A church like this, six or seven hundred years old, with an incredible organ, great gothic stone arches everywhere, and some excellent stained glass windows, barely rates a mention in Paris.  This is the kind of thing I'd hoped to find here.  Something really special that's rarely remarked on because it's overshadowed by the big Paris icons.

Church of Saint Severin Wiki 

April 10 - Jennifer - Fit for Duty?

Joining the OECD is a bit like joining the military - all sorts of health tests are required and evaluated by the staff doctors.  Yesterday, Jennifer reported to the in-house OECD doctor with all the documentation of health evaluations she had done before leaving the U.S.  After the doctor looked over the documentation, there was a short interview.  One of the  questions the doctor asked was "How much do you drink?"  Jennifer replied "I usually have one glass of red wine every night."  The doctor responded "That's not much!"  Jennifer loves the French!  :)

Saturday April 6th

We panicked and took the second apartment we saw when we couldn't get any more appointments on Saturday.  We knew the place is very nice in a great location, and we knew the owner was busily showing it to other people.  Also, we'd have to wait several days to see the next place, which would give others time to scoop it out from under us.  So, we decided to take the bird in hand.  This place is on the Rue de Federation, in the 15th.  After we took it, we realized, that besides being a few minutes walk from several metro stops and lots of shops and restaurants, it's about two blocks away from the park that contains the Eiffel Tower.  We could see it out our windows if it weren't for that pesky building across the street.  Of course, half of Paris can see it.

Anyway, this place conforms to the true meaning of "unfurnished" in Paris - no oven, no refrigerator no washer dryer, no dishwasher.  Not even light fixtures!  Just wires dangling from the ceiling.

So, after meeting our likely new landlord at the apartment to submit our "dossier",we went directly to the "Darty" store, which was recommended to us. I spent two or three hours picking out our new, small, expensive appliances on a web site called Darty.com.  It's just as well organized, if not better, than a Best Buy or Amazon.  I learned the word for oven, it's "four encastrable", which sounds like eunuch rock band.  Thank goodness for translate.google.com.  Most things are easy to guess, like " Refrigerateur congelateur en bas". which means refrigerator with a freezer on the bottom.

Friday April 5th - Nutella Crepes and the Subway Music

I finally put work away after 8PM, which will be normal for me.  Ugh.  After dinner at home, despite the chill factor, we jumped on the metro and went to get a Nutella crepe at San Andres des Artes.  On the trip over, we say a guy playing saxophone, a guy playing pretty good blues guitar, and a really loud and bad sort of punk jazz band of four guys, including a couple of horns and a drummer. The first two guys were on their own, busy commuters walking by with barely a glance.  The bad jazz band had about three people standing there - no doubt their girlfriends.

We had our hot, fresh crepe on the run and went into Shakespeare and Co Bookstore for warmth.  One of the few places in town to get books in English.  I ended up buying Best European Fiction 2013.  They started copying the Best American Fiction series I've been a fan of since the 80's.  It's a great way to get exposed to a lot of excellent writers. 

On the way home, down in the metro tunnels, we came upon a crowd of about 75 people in a big circle around a great guitar/singer and bongoiste (the French word for bongo player - at least I'd bet it is),  It was a cozy scene out of the cold wind, with a lot of happy young people all grooving to this really excellent pop cover singer.  I'd never heard the songs before, but they were very catchy and the crowd knew them by heart.  He would stop singing and let them sing the chorus when it came around.  They were in a great mood.  We stayed for two whole songs and the crowd hadn't changed that much in that time.  

Sunday April 7th - Paris Marathon and Paris Cemetery

We saw the start of the Paris Marathon this morning.  We walked four blocks from our front door to the Champs Elysees, where there were crowds of spectators lining the street looking through fences at the far larger crowd of runners waiting to start.  The runners were all wearing white trash bags provided by the organizers so they could keep warm while waiting an hour in the cold wearing running clothes. Music like "We Are the Champions" and "It's Raining Men (Hallelujah)" blared from speakers while an announcer called out "Enjoy your time!" and other encouragements in English, then French.  Jennifer remarked that our French language skills are about the level of a dog - we can understand "blah, blah, blah, four hours 15 minutes, blah blah blah"!

As the runners were finally allowed to start running (there are so many that they have to be staged according to their running pace), you started to see people strip off the white trash bags, or light jackets or pullovers and throw them to the ground on the side of the road.  Later, when all the runners were gone, scavengers showed up and started picking over the shirts and jackets and stuffing them in sacks.

Little neighborhood market named Casino (a chain of small stores in France) had an LCD display for the price tag of every item in the store!  How did they beat us to it!  That's a great idea!

We wanted to buy a single red pepper from a local vegetable market for 3.95 Euros.  When we finally got the proprietor, he asked how many we wanted.  When we said one, he gave us a dirty look, said "Non, non", and wagged his finger at us.  OK - so you'll get 0 Euros from us.  I'm not sure why, but I got really angry at him when this happened, but no confrontation, we just walked away quickly.

Pere Lachaise cemetery was beautiful on such a nice day.  Lots of crumbling old crypts, cobblestone paths, and big old trees, bare, except for a few buds.  It's true what they say about the place being chock full of really famous corpses, but we didn't concentrate on that.  We did happen to run across Balzac, Chopin, and Moliere.

The photos are just of things I liked, no celebrities, except for one.

The one above was at Chopin's grave.