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FRENCH PRESS IN THE MORNING AND RICK STEVES HISTORY

September 19, 2019 by

I noticed the French press in the sidewalk restaurants one Paris local said cost $100K in fees for table rights. Tight stadium seating from one place to the next looked formidable, but not to Rick Steves fans. Stadium seating? All eyes forward in most cases, but what’s to see? Traffic, on foot and in cars, […]

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PARIS PURCHASE: WHAT YOU CAN’T BUY

September 16, 2019 by

The most important Paris purchase on a mission to harvest cultural material? It’s a bad question because the big things aren’t for sale. The key is remembering the important parts.

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NOTRE DAME UPDATE FROM OREGONIAN IN PARIS

September 12, 2019 by

How do they fix broken stone and burned timbers? It looks like this:

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FRENCH TRAVEL WITH OREGON AND IOWA

September 10, 2019 by

French travel started out bumpy. I found my seat on the second plane, the long haul plane out or Minnesota. But it was occupied. That’s no way to start. Simple adjustment, right? But the lady had the same ticket for the same seat. At least that’s what she said. Then we all looked at our […]

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PARIS RIVER: HOW WATER MAKES THE CITY

September 9, 2019 by

The Paris river divides the city like the Willamette divides Portland. But instead of an Eastside / Westside divide, Paris goes with Right Bank and Left Bank. One method means knowing the compass, the other is much more simple. Think of finding a place with directions that include east, west, north, and south. I’m already […]

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PARIS NOTES AND LESSONS LEARNED, SO FAR

September 9, 2019 by

The top pic is the view from the hotel window. One block of Paris notes to work from is not enough, but it shows a consistent theme. I’m picking my new apartment out in these buildings, except mine is on the back side, the Eiffel Tower side. From my window there’s a tower view of […]

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WHAT TOWER TOWERS OVER EVERYTHING? ONE GUESS

September 8, 2019 by

Some Guy said he ate lunch underneath everyday because it was the only place he didn’t have to look at it.

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TIME MOVES ON WITH A DEGREE OF SADNESS

August 30, 2019 by

Time moves on when you see is a collection of kid bikes, the same collection Toys R Us sold. The same bikes the rich kids rode, the hand-me-down bikes, and the bikes kids rode into teen hood. Lots of bikes going one place: The scrap yard.

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UGLY BUILDING IN PRETTY CITIES, PT 1

August 23, 2019 by

An ugly building grows on the people who see it every day. Living near ugly architecture doesn’t make anyone ugly, but it’s not wonderful reflection, either. Imagine seeing the same eye sore every time you went to town. You’ve got one where you live? There’s at least one for every city. Portland has one, Paris […]

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MONA LISA ON THE RUN

August 22, 2019 by

Via Rick Steves: “Due to renovation works in the Louvre, the Mona Lisa has been temporarily moved to a different wing of the museum.” Mona Lisa travels, gets a new wall, hides out. Such a mystery.

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