When it’s hot, it’s smelly

Wednesday was an extremely hot day in Paris, now I know why everyone leaves the city in August for holiday. The office (as all other parts of the city except museums from what I can tell) doesn’t have AC so we open up the windows into an inner courtyard - which is a perfect solution, unless no air is moving. It is thick, and the air is filled with smoke and body odor…seriously!

I decide to stay in the city after work and explore a bit then kick it back to the suburbs for bedtime. The selected destination today is the area Saint Germaine de Près, or to those who know Paris, number 6. I hopped on the metro and had the totally unwelcomed discovery that the metro during the after work rush in the August heat is a very bad idea. Everyone was cramming into the cars and sweat was literally dripping off people’s bodies onto other people…not a pleasant scent in the air. Just when I thought I was going to have to hop off and take a breather this guy with a guitar hopped into my car and began to play loudly and sing at the top of his lungs John Lennon’s Working Class Hero. I wanted to grab him and say, “hey dude, I may be wearing a pencil skirt and collared shirt, but trust me, I wish I wasn’t, I’m not trying to be anybody’s working class hero…lay off!” Instead I just looked around to see if anyone else could understand the English lyrics and took personal offense. Doesn’t look like it.

When I arrived at my destination I was excited to be breathing some fresh air and decided to grab some food. Not in the mood to dine at a table for one, I was very happy to see a man on the street with a big cart making crepes. Healthy dinner, right mom? Man, those crepes were GOOD and the fanta was cold, so once again I am a happy girl!

Saint Germaine de Près is absolutely gorgeous! There are tons of street cafes and beautiful shops. I was kind of on the border of this district and the Luxembourg Quarter, so some of the areas overlapped. Just down the street I spotted Saint Sulpice, the church I had read about in the Da Vinci Code. Although they were doing some renovation of some sort on one of the towers, it was still beautiful – especially since I was there right at sunset! Saint Sulpice is actually only slightly smaller than Notre Dame…so this is one big church!

What I liked the most was Place Saint Sulpice, a big square right next to the church, and in the middle is the most beautiful fountain. It was a great time to just stroll around and people watch…shopping looks spectacular, I need to try and come back during business hours!