Mimi and her puppy at Fouquets and other Paris, France General Tips

Favorite Thing:
♫♫ Rich relations give
Crust of bread and such ...
You can help yourself
But don't take too much

Mama may have
and Papa may have...
but God bless the child that's got his own
That's got his own ♫♫

Songwriter: A. Herzog Jr / Billie Holiday


Fondest Memory: Champs Elysees 09/'03
for romantics only

One night in '03 I was nursing a typically overpriced 7-Euro espresso on a sidewalk terrace outside Fouquet's when along came a lady:
barefoot / back bent; shuffling slowly through the passersby with a hand outstretched, silently begging for change.

What struck me was that the little dog following her on the leash moved with identical hangdog, slow body language. (see photo)

Fouquet's has tight security, but as long as she didn't bother
their customers, they allowed her to beg people walking by for money.
I took a few photos of her, which she allowed me to do, but her expression and posture changed, saying essentially,

"Nothing is free, tourist."

At first I only gave her a small amount.
She inspected the coin, stared at me, and again without a word, only with gesture, let me know it was not enough.
I went over to her and after giving her a larger amount, she agreed to talk with me.

Her name is Mimi, and her dog's name is Schuider (sounds like shwee-dare).

I asked if I could pet her sad little dog: Mimi gave me reserved permission.
As I knelt down to pet him, Schuider came alive:
his posture changed to friendly enthusiasm: tail wagging, jumping up on me with kisses galore.

Then with a look, Mimi quickly let me know recess was over: Schuider instantly sagged back into his previous sad & fearful posture.

Later after she had moved on, I asked one of the Fouquet's security men about her.
He said she is there every evening, rain or shine.
I asked if she was authentique, or just a hustler.

He told me she makes just enough money from begging to provide food and a small flat for her and her dog.

I shook my head, saying that is not what I meant.

Bluntly I asked him: " is Mimi for real, or is she just a pain in the ass?"
He thought for a moment, then smiled and said it all in one brief sentence:

"This is her job ."

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Favorite Thing: People watching at a cafe.

I like to find a good location somewhere in the city:

(Opera, Montparnasse, Latin Quarter or the Champs Ellysees but almost any cafe in Paris will do);

order my favorite beverage
(carafe vin de la maison rouge, juice, an espresso, whatever);

light up, ... and just sit there & watch Paris go by.

What else is Paris for?

"Happiness is the best facelift...." Joni Mitchell Copyright Joni Mitchell

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Fondest Memory: I tried my best to learn enough polite French to avoid as much as possible being perceived as "le touriste americain laid grossier."

Conversational French ( especially hearing & understanding it at normal speed ) was and is still difficult for me but I worked at it for weeks before I flew to Paris for the first time.

One day I needed to use a telecarte phone card I had purchased at a tabac, but could not get it to work. The call was important and I was very tired and frustrated.

I stopped a typically fashionable and lovely Parisian woman on the street and struggled in my primitive French to apologize and explain my small problem.

She immediately took me by the hand into a phone booth, got my card to work, and made the call for me.

When I thanked her simply in French ("Merci beaucoup, Madame") she smiled, hugged me, and in perfect English (she spoke it all along...) said "and thank you sir for the 'Merci Beaucoup!' You are very polite and it was my pleasure."

I will never forget her or her wonderful example of "parisian gentilles."
Madame, wherever you are, Merci... Vous etes tres gentile, et tres aimable. x

At upper-left is my homage to a classic cafe shot from Anthonys "Street Scenes" collection you can find here:
An Anthony Atkielski Facelift

Thank you Anthony.

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Favorite Thing: One of the reasons I recommend traveling solo to Paris or Europe in general is if you are a lucky victim of fate, you might cross paths with some truly fantastic people.

On a train from Genova to Nice, I met an absolutely wonderful person.

Liliana was a travel agent from Brazil who was professionally (as a personal private tour guide) accompanying another lady from Brazil (Susan) on her first trip to Europe.

As I was headed for Provence and they elsewhere, we agreed to meet in Paris later on in the month.

We ended up getting together on a side trip from Paris to Versailles and had a great time.

Liliana is a good friend and excellent travel companion, and her friend Susan was an absolute character.

Both were a joy to share time with and a welcome source of friendship, information, and conversation.
It was a riot trying to communicate to each other in little snips of Spanish, English, French, and Portugese, but thanks to Liliana and with a lot of laughter, we managed.
I will always remember them with fondness.
Liliana works for Fjord Turismo, a company of tourism in Rio de Janeiro. Susan is a retired music educator.

Fondest Memory: Liliana and Susan made my trip to Versailles worthwhile. I will always remember Liliana's sweet kindness, and Susan's strong and interesting character.

Included is a candid snapshot I took in the Paris RER station returning from Versailles. Liliana is laughing as Susan (ever the recluse) tries to dart out of the picture.

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Favorite Thing: I love this picture, the moment and feeling that was captured.

(click below) for the real thing.

Anthonys Home Page

Anthony Atkielski told me that she is a singer and is actually accompanying the cellist. Copyright 2004 by Anthony G. Atkielski

Fondest Memory: So many fond memories...
Street music;
grand food;
carafes of vin de le maison;
striking workers on the boulevards pushing flyers into your hand;
stylish parisian men and women in high fashion as they walk by cafes on rue Rivoli and Boulevard FDR;

the french sense of politeness that masks a true warmth of character few people possess...

I'm only scratching the surface here.

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Favorite Thing: Cafe Le Ponthieu on Boulevard FDR is a quiet, and "unadvertised" cafe just a street or two east of the Champs Elysees that is really fun for Parisian people-watching.
(It's also a wi-fi hotspot if you like to lug your laptop around Paris)

I spent a few hours on my last trip to Paris sitting here taking in the street vibe of Paris, complete with stylish monsieurs and madames.

At first it sounds boring, but as time passes you start to notice and appreciate the discrete difference between two great cities like NYC and Paris.

Try it: you'll like it.

Cafe Ponthieu 51 Ave FDR


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Favorite Thing: I have enjoyed every trip and every minute in Paris, but I will never forget the feeling of the first one.

to the right is a still from one of my favorites of all time:
Maria Schneider in "Le Dernier Tango a' Paris"


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