La vie parisien

First things first, I decided that the blog needed an updated look to go with it's new locale.  I think I'm liking it.

Today, I'm taking it easy.  The creeping crud that I was battling on Sunday was greatly improved by the following morning, but it's clear that all the new bugs are having a field day with my immune system.  I also spent almost the entirety of yesterday out walking about and exploring, so between the two, today seems like a good day to spend getting caught up on some blog posts, writing some lesson plans and resting.

Being a die-hard traveler rather than tourist, I can be terrible about taking pictures.  I loathe being one of 25 people in the same place, taking the same, blatantly inartistic shot just to end up with a low quality photo of something I could have a better representation of on a 25 cent postcard (though granted, in Europe it would probably be at least 75 cents).  However, in the interests of those at home, I will be trying to take a few shots of the more interesting and less commonly photographed things.

Like our apartment for instance.   There is a narrow, dark, winding staircase which smells of mildew and old wood, leading up to our surprisingly spacious, two bedroom flat, on the 2nd floor (European style: ground floor, 1st floor, 2nd floor).

This is the entry way; it hasn't yet become become 

a foreboding passage to the other world.

The flat itself is, as I mentioned before, is quite comfortable, if a bit confused about its decorative purpose.  The dining room is dominated by this erm...interesting piece of art:

  

While generally maintaining a much more classic feel throughout the rest of the space.

 While poking around the other day, I made a $5.00 discovery.  In the bottom of this antique heating device (I feel woefully ignorant about what I should call it.  Fire place? Wall heater? Miscellaneous producer of radiant energy?) is hidden a secret stash of boozy items: what looks like sake, a raspberry liqueur and a bottle of plums, very drunk on brandy.  None of the items was in and of itself that exciting, but unless this is a common European storage place for the household liquor (and if so, why keep the other five bottles of alcohol in the kitchen?) it looked very much like someone was trying hard to hide it.

The rest of the flat is not particularly interesting, though I can say that a furnished apartment in Paris far outstrips renting a furnished apartment in Nicaragua.  The cookware is a dream!  All good, heavy bottomed pots and pans, nice sharp knives, tart tins, mixing bowls, ovenware and no scorpions randomly walking in to dine.  But at a price difference of $4,500 a month, some dinner guests with extra legs were probably par for the course in Nica.

More pictures:

The second bedroom

Living room, with fresh flowers and a Norwegian copy of Cosmo, courtesy of the previous tenants.

Our view looking toward Boulevard Bonne Nouvelle to the north.

You'll have to pardon some of the crummy photography.  My point-and-shoot has seen all the humidity, sand and salt that it can bear and I'm still learning Nick's camera.  Anyway, I'm going to divide up some of today's thoughts into a few different posts, so that will be all for this one.