Blogging from France: First of all, these European keyboards are different from those in North America. If there are more typos than usual (and they ARE usual on this blog) blame it on that! There's an important entry in my Webmater section, and general thoughts after the Hunger Site link.

DANCE at the Hole In The Wall: Theater X-Net

Starring: Ida Rubinstein Belle Epoch Russian/Parisian beauty.
Read more about Ida in Sisters of Salome by Toni Bentley

Webmaster Notes: I visited four places my first day in Paris that had some kind of connection with Ida Rubinstein, and took pictures of three of them. The fourth was The Village Voice Bookstore, where Ida's most recent literary biographer, Toni Bentley, made a personal appearence earlier this year -- check her website for details.
The gentleman behind the counter at Village Voice helped me locate the nearby Rue Vanneau where Ida had her studio before WWI. The exact addresses are somewhat in dispute, but I took photos of newer buildings on the sites of 52 and 54. Number 82 is near Andre Gide's home on the corner, so it is already a destination for literary pilgrims. He also gave me directions to the #63 bus stop which made my journey to Place des Etats-Unis much easier -- Rubinstein built a magnificent home at Number 7 Place des Etats-Unis that was either ransacked or razed by the Nazis in WWII, or both. There is a modern boxlike building standing where Ida used to live.
I got a few shots of the theater where she became famous during the VERY important debut of the Ballet Russes in 1909 -- it is now designated The Paris Musical Theater on tourist maps, but it's name is still Theatre Chatelet (Shah-TEE).



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Traveller's Tales: My hotel is near the Charles DeGaulle Airport, but that means I'm almost an hour our of Paris via public transportation. It is remarkable what one sees as one travels -- grafitti has been sprayed on every reachable surface trackside all of the way into Paris. There are a lot of "brown belts," decaying housing, and large-scale industrial construction along the way too. I sat with the people who live there on my way back to the hotel. They were mostly working people of all races and varying urbanity -- Africans in bright robes, daishikis, and wrapped dresses mixed with teens wearing hip-hop clothes, side by side with Muslim women in head scarves, and women from every continent dressed sleekly in the latest fashions.
Speaking of fashion -- there's a whole museum devoted to it off of Woodrow Wilson Blvd.
I oriented myself by starting at Notre Dame Cathedral and the Louvre Palace grounds. The camera worked well after it's long journey, but the noontime light made photography difficult. I guided myself to the aforementioned Village Voice Books, and had a fabulous lunch in the restaurant next door. The waitresses spoke English very well, and one even had a California accent because her father lived there! People-watching couldn't be better, but those damn Gaullois (Go-wah) cigarettes foul the air everywhere.
I'm glad I walked, but I'm equally glad I introduced myself to the busses and Metro. Tomorrow will be much easier as a result. The stations are logically laid-out and clean. Paris is also pretty clean for such a big scrambling city. All those trees are a godsend in this hot (80 - 90 degrees F) weather. The drivers watch for pedestrians, but I'm glad that I'm not going to deal with these busy crowded crazy-quilt cities as a driver on my trip -- Bourges looks pretty compact.