Friday, April 15th

A "public telephone" of sorts in the Café Charlot

I arrived safely in Paris with an hour's delay in my flight.  But I found my apartment and Thierry was here waiting for me.  After setting up my internet connection, I took an hour-long power nap and then went out to find some food and some impressions of my neighborhood.

I had a delicious omelette and a glass of wine at the Café Charlot.  The heavens opened and there was a 10-15 minute downpour, so I also had an espresso and talked to a young woman and her father who were sitting next to me.  She is about to walk the Camino de Santiago for 30+ days--by herself.  Her father was dubious, but I cheered her on.  She will never really be totally by herself and she'll meet tons of interesting people along the way.

Café Charlot post-rain; everyone is outside again.

 The café is across from the Marché Enfants Rouges and a delightful cheese shop, not your typical father and sons operation.

Can you read the sign?  It says Father and Daughter Master Cheese Experts!

Within a short block of my apartment are all the essentials:

A supermarket

A bakery

A fruit and vegetable stand

And something less quantifiable.  But definitely worth exploration.

Just around the corner is a marvelous choux pastry shop--very handy.

Oh My!

And immediately next door to me (and I mean Right Next Door) is Candelaria.  Opened in 2011, it was Paris'  first authentic Mexican taqueria with a world-class cocktail bar specializing in agave spirits.  Viva la margarita!

That's my door on the right.

 

And that's my beer behind the menu.

Well I'm tired and am going to try to get a solid night's sleep.  Might watch some CNN to see if anything is happening in the U.S.

Until tomorrow, adieu!