Paris. The city of romance, pastries, and French. I didn't get any of the first, I had plenty of the second, and I've decided that I should definitely acquire more of the third. 

I only had a day there this time, and most of that time I was exhausted, and therefore not entirely lucid. But it was great after I got some sleep.

I was able to hit a lot of the major tourist sites last year, so we decided to wander around in some of the less-central parts of town first. 

St. Paul's cathedral.

After our excursion into St. Paul's, we wandered off the beaten path into an area recommended by our Parisian friend. there were almost no tourists, and it was lovely. We found a café for lunch.

Beef tartare with green salad and hot potato salad. I must confess: the beef tartare was a bit of a surprise. I had no idea that the dish was served raw. But it was an interesting experience, and I enjoyed it, even if I might not often order the dish again.

Rolls and a fruit smoothie.

Crème brûlée. Wow. One of the culinary delights of my life. 

 Enjoying Parisian architecture.

A funny store front: "Monsieur Poulet--Original Chicken Clothes." Only in Paris.

 Crossing the bridge towards the Notre-Dame cathedral. 

 The view from the bridge.

There are walkways under the street level. I feel like I should use this idea in a book—the world under the world. . . . 

Charlemagne. Near the Notre-Dame. He is very regal looking, I think. And somehow forbidding, too. Which is appropriate, considering that he is going to war. 

The cathedral. While we were there, the bells rang. It was beautiful. It started with just four bells pealing, and then one by one, lower bells joined. I recorded it, but I'll have to wait for better internet to upload them. 

A little cathedral, out of the way of tourists. There were very few people inside. I sang—the acoustics were wonderful. 

I think I need to learn French. Last year I felt a little overwhelmed by all the French, but this year I found I could understand a lot of what people were saying. Maybe I'll get some CDs and start listening in the car. 

I am now safely in Verona, Italy. I had a wonderful day at church. I went to Bergamo, and they were reorganizing three wards. So there just happened to be a couple at church from Verona who offered me a ride. This was really nice, because my flight got in late last night, and so I was tired. Thanks to their generosity, I got into Verona nearly two hours earlier than anticipated, and I could take a nap. 

The opera workshop starts tomorrow. I'm not sure if there will be a lot to blog about, so there might be a dearth in blog posts for the next little bit. We'll see.