Monday in Paris

This morning I woke to the swish swish of the cleaner's broom in the courtyard below the bedroom window. On Mondays he takes garbage cans from the shed to the street for pickup, cleans the courtyard and garbage areas, and vacuums the halls & stairs.

On the ground floor are several medical offices, very common on this short cul-de-sac that opens off a major street. The tiny elevator goes to the 6th floor (American 7th) but I've never been higher than the 3rd, where this apartment is located.

After some fiddling with THREE remotes, I've managed to pull in both TV and radio. First thing I saw on the CNN website was the same Croatian tourism advertisement that played constantly as Nancy and I floated down the Danube last year!

This year's contender for Beautiful Advertising Photos of Balkan Places is Macedonia, which promotes itself as a place to do business rather than a tourist destination.

Meanwhile, the most interesting news in on Al Jazeera English. Nice to get a different perspective from time to time.

Yesterday I checked out the big, noisy, cheerful market on the Place de la Bastille, and took a few pictures.

I should apologize to Monsieur, as the wind blew the plastic bags just as I snapped...