change of scenery

Today I moved into another apartment. When I booked the one I usually stay at, I was only able to get it for part of the time. This morning the owner came to transfer me to a larger apartment in a residential area. Where I had an array of every kind of store imaginable, an outdoor market, great restaurants and cafés, I now am situated off a large, busy street. My apartment door is next to the apartment bldg garbage cans and the courtyard view described on-line is actually a view of the street with people walking by who can watch me cook, eat, sit on the sofa, or sleep in the bedroom. Every few minutes I hear the rumble of the metro passing by those same windows. Already I miss all the little nooks and crannies and the general ambience of the other apartment. Not to mention the multitude of metro lines to take to get anywhere now. To get to the metro you walk up and down at least 50 stairs just to get to the platform. The two just can't be compared. There is a bakery next door and the owner tells me it's excellent. Gonna make the best of it.

Today I went to a Welcome To France event at the Louvre. It was really nice with lots of booths and information about American and British citizens moving to France. Had some great presentations including a demo from the Cordon Bleu but missed it to take a walking tour of Jefferson's Paris. I've got to tell you, history class was never this interesting. After the 2 hour walk, I returned to the event to hear about how to start a business in France. Very informative.

Tomorrow I head to Belgium for the day via the train.