A Cold Wake-Up Call for Bernie!!
Bonjour,
Yesterday began badly for Bernie as he found himself taking a cold shower! It’s quite chilly in the mornings as we have only three electric wall units for heat which are limited in feeding heat into all areas of the apartment. Our friend Jerome, the maintenance manager at the Monoprix, is coming at noon to assess the situation and hopefully get it fixed. The good news is that we have hot water elsewhere in the apartment.
Many of you have asked about Thanksgiving, turkeys, etc. Remember that France had no Indians or Pilgrims or Plymouth Rock. Thanksgiving is purely American though the really surprising thing for us is that Black Friday is huge in Paris. Preparations are underway for the biggest retail day of the year, just like in America, the day after Thanksgiving. Yes, there are turkeys in Paris but a traditional meal like we have in America is rare. I know our friend, Richard Nahem, adheres to the American tradition. We will spend the day thinking about family as they travel to Atlanta and Florida to be with other family on all sides. It’s strange but we will adjust. Certainly, Bernie and I have grateful hearts for good health, the happiness we share, and our families as they grow and prosper. I will miss my little peeps…Andrew, Avery, Carson and James, the most.
I slept until almost 9am yesterday (!) so we were off to a slow, easy start. Both of our outings in search of lights were disappointing. First we went to Bercy Village, an interesting outdoor shopping experience in the 12th arrondissement. This area dates back to the late 1700’s and Henry XIV who allowed the area to produce wine without taxing it. It became the largest wine storage area IN THE WORLD. The shops and restaurants are housed in the original stone warehouses. We have been here several times before, but found yesterday that cafés, bars, and restaurants have almost taken over, many fewer shops than before. The lights were “contemporary.”
There really wasn’t a lot to see, but we checked it off our list. Then since we were close, we went to Le Viaduct des Arts which was supposed to have a light display on the train viaducts but, alas, did not! We walked all the way home from Gare de Lyon to rue St. Paul in the crisp air. Every day is not a home-run!
Wish us good luck in getting Bernie’s shower back on track.
À bientôt
L & B
November 23, 2019 @ 12:20 pm
That cold shower would have felt great on one of those hot days you had on other Paris visits. Timing!
November 23, 2019 @ 12:24 pm
It seems unchristian to participate in our biggest sale day, get all the bargains and enjoy the fun of beating others out of a neat prize let alone the poor store owners without first giving thanks for the wonderful freedom to compete in a capitalistic economy.
November 23, 2019 @ 2:34 pm
Interesting about Bercy — changes and ‘contemporary’ (good word!) lights. Hope the shower is fixed or will be soon. Brr.
Good luck and have a lovely Paris evening 🙂
November 23, 2019 @ 3:56 pm
Oh no cold showers in cold weather sounds awful! Hoping your person can fix that. Contemporary Christmas lights are not my thing either, but I’m sure there are others who appreciate them. Vivienne et laisser vivre!
November 23, 2019 @ 3:57 pm
Damn auto correct! vivre et laisser vivre
November 23, 2019 @ 7:35 pm
I am a little confused. Curious whether it was Henry IV (died 1610) or Louis XIV (died1715) who granted Berry its wine privilege. As always love your blog.
November 23, 2019 @ 8:40 pm
From entourage.com, I found this: It was then in the year 1704 that King Louis XIV was attending a service at the Notre Dame de Bercy and subjects were meant to kneel before the king, but according to reports, there was one man that remained standing.
Classed as a crime against the king, a guard was sent to put a stop to this, but the king was actually amused by the large gentleman, who was a wine grower, and he took advantage of the situation and complained to King Louis XIV about the hassle he had with his business.
The king then decided to grant him a bit of leeway and ensured that the gentleman could sell his wine completely free of taxes, but only in the area of Bercy, and hence the first wine cellar of Bercy was born.
Thanks for pointing out the discrepancy!!
November 24, 2019 @ 4:28 pm
Late reading this blog…
On CBS Sunday Morning there was a story about malls in the U.S. So many retail storefronts have closed & they’ve been replaced by food halls!