Les Soldes

The sales, the sales! The twice-a-year French phenomenon started Wednesday and is being billed heavily towards tourists in hopes of reclaiming the status of Fashion Capital du Monde. I went to the sales yesterday and today and didn't buy anything at all (the "sales" pretty much just make everything close to American prices, and nothing has jumped out at me quite yet), but for the most part it's been more overwhelming than anything. Too many people, too little bargains. Photos:






Oh well, I made up for it with a visit to Mariages Frères, the boutique tea shop in the 6th arrondissement. I went with Jenny, the Orientation Coordinator for the program in Paris who I got very close to last quarter. We had a lovely time chatting at the salon, and she insisted on buying my pot of tea (a hefty 8 euros, but I daresay worth every centime). I bought a little tea to drink in the mornings - Jenny bought about 150 euros worth of tea and tea accessories (she spent a long time in England and says Mariages Frères is the best tea in the world). I'll bring some home, if I remember.





So no clubbing last night, but we did get ourselves a little lost in the Bastille area. Finally, we found the café we were looking for - the Café de l'Industrie, a famous café/bar in the area, and had ourselves some delicious bordeaux. It still gave me a headache - I think I'll have to stick to white. We did, however, almost miss the closing of the Metro at 12:30/1 (we can't really figure it out, but we know we were cutting it close).

Final note of great enthusiasm: finally slept past 6 AM last night. I woke up at a luxurious 9 AM, having slept the whole night through. Hooray!