Start of a French Adventure - Caryl and Jose Bucksbaum

Arriving in France is pleasant but not necessarily easy; Charles de Gaulle is huge and the abundant signage, mostly in numbers and letters- 1a, 2B, etc - didn't keep us from getting lost. Thanks to the help of bilingual guards we were both welcomed into the country and able to be extricated from the airport.

We chose to take a shuttle-bus rather than hiring a taxi. This saved us money and probably time as well, since there are specilal lanes facilitating bus traffic throughout the city Best of all the route gave us the chance to see streets and sections of Paris that we've never seen before. Near the airport are high-rises that seem equivalent to Chicago's old Cabrini Green. Some residents have put flowers on their balconies. The bright reds stand out against the prevalent signs of depression and neglect. Graffitti covers the walls on each side of the highway here. Some of it is beautiful, but most seems to be gang symbols and messages.

Entering the Fourth Arrondissement we found the wide, tree-lined sidewalks that are typical of the central city. Maroon and blue awnings shademany of the stores, a number of which sell or restore art or provide material for artists. There are bookstores; flower shops, banks, dress boutiques, lots of cafes, and here and there a McDonalds. The sidewalks bustle with people. Some carry long loaves of bread like guns over their shoulders.

A crowd left the bus at the Gare de Lyon, which looks more like a fanciful chateau than a railroad station. We continued to the Gare Montparnasse, where we left the bus, crossed the street, and took a taxi to our hotel.

The Thirteenth Arrondissement is ethnicqlly mixed. Many Chinese, Africans, and Middle Easterners, as well as native French, fill the streets. We seem to be the only Americans around, and it soon became apparent that this is not regarded as a bad thing. At a restaurant a waiter asked if we were from the States. When we said we were, his face lit up. He said, "Barack Obama. Yes. Yes." We replied, "Barack Obama. Oui. Oui."

On Sunday we hope to go to an Episcopal church. If this doesn't work out, we'll try to attend mass at Notre Dame;

Best wishes, Caryl