Day Three!

Just a chronicling post today. As planned, but sadly nonetheless, three days in, my hostess Kate is making preparations to depart this town she's called home for the last 10 months. We spent the day fitting in those last minute beaurocratic to-do's (and believe us, in Paris, as an immigrant, no less, there are plenty of those) as well as the touristy ones. After making three (count them, 3) trips to the bank, a trip to the post office, and a trip to a fax machine, Kate succeeded in closing her flipping bank account, canceling her renters' insurance, terminating her lease, and ending her poor-persons' living stipend (HELLO Socialism.). We consumed crepes and espresso along the way, and considered it a pretty okay day.

Yesterday was the touristy day--I took Kate to the Pantheon, the national mausoleum of the Great Men of France. Kate being a semi-legit Parisian resident was all "I've been past it dozens of times, but never inside," so I rectified that. We paid homage to the tombs of Voltaire, Hugo, and the Curies (Fun Fact: Pierre, her husband, was honorably interred in the Pantheon upon his death, but she was not until 1995), among many other acclaimed French figures. Our 10-minute torrential-downpour rowboat ride (see previous post) was certainly another highlight. Out in the sketch woods/park on the outskirts of Paris (a call-girl hot spot at night, I am told), our fears of getting lost/kidnapped/disemboweled/etc were pretty immediately nullified. Oh! And. I bought the necessary cable for my camera at FNAC (after bringing it home and threw a tantrum about how the bastard French sold it to me without the necessary cord, before Kate patiently held the cord up in front of my face), so these posts will soon become more visual. Promise.

Out to Bastille for the evening--Kate and her friend Julia's last in Paris, so it should be a ... time.

A bientot!

P.S. A quote from Kate as I hit "Publish Post," as she lackadaisically examined various body parts out of boredom: "My foot... it just looks like a telephone." Wise words, wise lady. Paris will miss her.