Favorite Walk in Greece~ Travelin' Tuesday

We are anticipating a possible business (paperwork) trip to Greece this fall

so my favorite walk is on my mind. 

For years I have craved, zoomed, snapped and framed

the colors of Earth's natural blues and greens together, 

against each other. 

Even though the camera never does them justice,

I can't help myself. 

They have become touchstones for me

and I honor them and my dreams together. 

This walk along the backside of Nafplion's Old Town

scales both the rocky cliffside and the water. 

And ends back around toward the Old Town 

with a cup of Greek coffee (not to be confused with Turkish),

a view of Bourtzi in the foreground

 and Argos across the bay.

And when the deep, rich, hot demitasse beverage made from the beans of a tree

have taken hold, 

a walk along the palm-lined waterfront to the Old Town is in order.

I'll save the town itself for another post. 

Fall is now upon us. 

Hope you are enjoying all that it brings. 

(Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Light in Paris

Just sending out a little love light

to some people in Paris who are having a very difficult time.

Wishing I was there, wishing I could help, 

but light I can do.

Every little bit helps. 

Evenings with an Author~ Peter Steiner at the American Library in Paris

This Tuesday September 18th, 2012 at 19:30, The American Library in Paris presents-- Evenings with an Author-- featuring Peter Steiner, American novelist and cartoonist for The New Yorker. 

His detective series, starring former CIA agent Louis Morgon, is set in the Loire Valley where Steiner also spends time. His most recent book, The Resistance, flashes back to the 1940's Nazi Occupation where every French citizen is forced to resist either the Nazis, their neighbors or their own morality. And with his arrival to St. Leon-sur-Deme in 1975, under the floorboards of his own house, Louis stumbles upon a 30-year mystery. 

Booklist calls it: "Brilliant, evocative, elegiac and infused with sadness...A powerful and beautiful reminder of Faulkner's dictum that the only thing truly worth writing about is 'the human heart in conflict with itself.'"

While I haven't read his work, you can bet I will be. He also has three previous thrillers (The Terrorist, L'Assassin, Le Crime). 
Click Here to find his blog. 



American Library in Paris  is located at:
10, rue du General Camou
(Just off the Champs de Mars and the Eiffel Tower)
75007 Paris, France
• Tel. +33 (0)1 53 59 12 60
http://www.americanlibraryinparis.org/ 

More Passy Walk and Delicious Italian Deli~ Missing Paris Day

We're back at the Cimetiere de Passy for another Walk in Paris.

Just a few more interesting tombs (or is that an oxymoron?), 

this one with the often-used phrase for those buried after World War I. 

And this one reminds me of the Annunciation,

of which I took a series of photos, while traveling across Europe,

for a friend who collected them. 

One frequently finds stone flowers and bouquets among live plants 

lovingly placed by friends and family who care for their tombs with meticulous detail. 

And my favorite. While I don't know exactly the patriarch's profession,

one can speculate. This is one of the most visually descriptive I've seen in tombs. 

**************

Just down from the cimetiere,

 off rue de Passy and Place de Passy

(which has a permanent covered market

from Tues-Sat, 8:30-1 & 4-7

and Sunday 8:30-1)

is rue de l'Annonciation

with one of our favorite Italian traiteur and deli's at #40. 

Delizius,

filled with cheese-stuffed peppers, marinated artichokes and pasta of all kinds,

is the perfect take-out stop before heading home or picnicking along the way. 

Picnicking being a favorite French past-time,

one can do it most anywhere,

in the park, along the highway, I mean anywhere.

Hope you enjoyed the last of this segment of Passy Cimetiere,

at least until you can see it for yourself!  

(Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

The Blood of Lorraine~ Teaser Tuesday

Hosted by MizB at should be reading.

Here's how to play:

*Grab your current read,

*Open to a random page,

*Share a few “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page,

*Please no spoilers!

*Share the title and author.

Today's selection is from Barbara Corrado Pope's 'The Blood of Lorraine' (p. 58):

"Martin heard another cough, and much shuffling of papers behind him. Charpentier had caught on. Martin was about to grind the witness down by asking in slow, excruciating detail about her past and present life. He would make her spell out every name, every address. every date. And drive her a little mad in the process. 

This should not have been difficult. Martin's refusal to respond to her provocations seemed to have put her in a state of animal-like alertness. Although she maintained her pose, straight as a statue before him, the way she clutched her shawls together with white-knuckled fists gave her away." 

I just finished Barbara Corrado Pope's 'Cezanne's Quarry' and so enjoyed Magistrate Bernard Martin's mysterious case involving painter Paul Cezanne in Aix-en-Provence that I went straight to her next book not even realizing it was part of a series. Now Martin is on a new murder case in a new town in France, 1890's Nancy in Alsace-Lorraine during the time of the Dreyfus Affair, and he must determine who is killing innocent Jews in the anti-Semitic atmosphere between two communities as well as how to face his own personal tragedy at home. 

Having spent some time in the country in Lorraine, I love reading the familiar descriptions of Nancy and learning about the historical significance and the diaspora of this time period which I knew nothing about. 

In looking for the book cover for this post, I just noticed on Amazon that she has another coming out next year set in PARIS!! Can't wait for that. What could be better? Historical mysteries set in French places I love! 

Angels and Shepherds in the 16th~ Missing Paris Day

Just across the Seine from the Eiffel Tower

and across the street from the Trocadero,

in the 16th arrondissement,

is the Cimetiere de Passy

where you and I have walked together before. 

I'm not sure if you know this about me yet

but I have a thing for

cemeteries. 

And angels.

I could spend entire days wandering around the alleyways 

looking at the ornate tombs and beautiful inscriptions.

Look how clean and perfectly lovely the cobblestone walkways are.

My sister and I visited our mother's gravesite during her visit home this summer

and it looks absolutely nothing like this.

A pioneer cemetery, we chose it because

 it had a natural, messy, chaotic beauty to it

that reminded us of her. 

With my niece and nephew,

we weeded and beautified her plot together 

until we had it looking respectable. 

I love how the little shepherdess looks like she's 

adding to the small garden plot from her own armful of flowers.
I still have a small cornucopia of photos from this walk in Paris
so we'll continue our stroll in Passy next time.



Cimetiere de Passy
2, rue du Commandant Schoesling
Metro: Trocadero


(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen) 

From the Trocadero~ Missing Paris Day

It's been hot in Paris lately, I'm told. 

I'm miserable in heat without air conditioning

so I know how I would be 

but something in me would still like to be there,

walking the sultry streets~

enjoying the revelers in cafe chairs~

the picnickers on the lawn of the Champ de Mars~

the trucked-in sand of the Paris Plage.

The summer has flown by here,

weeks escaping like wind on the moors.

I've barely had time to catch my breath.

I had the weekend to myself which I thought would do it 

but I still feel like I just scratched the surface of my To-Do List!

Hope you all have enjoyed your summer

and are getting ready for that 

To-Do List that is fall. 

I can feel it already in the air. 

Enjoy the last precious days.

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen) 

An Evening Stroll~ Missing Paris Day

Just a little walk for us tonight along the Seine.

I ate at the Cafe Marly many years ago for lunch

and I'm thinking it's time to renew that experience. 

But I loved this shot of the arched ceiling and columns of the entry

so even if we're not breaking bread here together,

at least we can share the beauty of the exterior

and pretend we're on our way in for a little glass of bubbly.

Now a little walk across the Pont Neuf ('New Bridge').

According to the Paris.fr page on it, 

the design of the Pont Neuf marked the end of the Middle Ages 

and was the first bridge to be built without houses on it. 

But my favorite line about it is that it was seen as a meeting place 

for every kind of pleasure in Paris.

It was said that one could meet,

"a monk, a white horse and a streetwalker' here.

Most likely we have and just didn't recognize them. 

A look back across the Seine toward Notre Dame

(its spires shining in the background),

the Grande Dame of Paris.

At a little cafe on a corner near Notre Dame,

we can partake of a Parisian favorite:

 soup a l'oignion.

I'm told this dish is traditionally eaten at the end of a long night 

on New Year's Eve in France

but clearly can be enjoyed anytime. 

And we end tonight's walk reveling in the mysterious beauty of the shadows 

of l'Hotel de Ville, giving a somewhat ominous but thrilling sense.

It feels to me a little like a particularly good ghost story.

And we all know there are plenty of ghosts in Paris. 

Hope you enjoyed our little stroll.

So glad you could join me. 

Nothing like a night walk in Paris!

(Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Un Cafe, s'il vous plait~ Missing Paris Day

I've been missing Paris quite a bit of late. 

I have family visiting here from Paris and occasionally

they break into French because, for them, it's easier.

Wish it was easier for me. 

Have missed my blog peeps

and looking forward to making the rounds. 

Time to start planning the next Paris cafe visit.

And writing time sitting at a spot just like this. 

A bientot. 

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Faith is Nourishment~ Buddhist thought for the Day

"On life's journey faith is nourishment, 

virtuous deeds are a shelter, 

wisdom is the light by day

and right mindfulness is the protection by night. 

If a man lives a pure life,

nothing can destroy him." 

~Buddha

It's been a whirlwind, in and out of town

for both the most difficult of family times, to the best of times and back again. 

Right after my father-in-love passed, 

I flew to Park City to join my father's birthday bash/family reunion in progress, 

then back this week for the extended family memorial service. 

An emotional roller coaster to say the least. 

I liked this quote because it exemplified exactly what everyone has been saying 

about my father in law. 

He is still with us. 

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen)  

Tribute to Abb

 

Please accept my apologies for being gone so long.

We have lost a beloved family member. 

My father-in-love of twenty years

lived a wonderful, full, happy life

and still left us too soon.

He welcomed me with loving, wide open arms on every visit
regardless of political differences.
He gave us joy, love and laughter...
and with a slight Texas accent, called us all 'Sugar'. 
He gave me my beloved
and taught him how to be a good man.

We miss you, Sugar. 

I will return soon, I promise. 

Happy Birthday U.S.A.

via Pintarest

Wishing all a Happy Independence Day! 

And especially to those who serve to protect our freedom every day.

Hoping everyone is enjoying a safe, cool and happy fourth of July! 

"We must be free not because we claim freedom,

but because we practice it." ~William Faulkner 

Chantons sous la pluie

Singing in the rain for his supper

on Rue Cler. 

And this was Rue Cler's version of a 'light' salad. 

There really is lettuce under there. 

Hope you had a lovely weekend.

(Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

Murder in Passy~ Teaser Tuesday

Hosted by MizB at should be reading.

Here's how to play:

*Grab your current read,

*Open to a random page,

*Share a few “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page,

*Please no spoilers!

*Share the title and author.

Today's selection is from Cara Black's Murder in Passy (p. 154):

" Drumming her fingers on the round marble-top table of the cafe overlooking Place Victor Hugo, Aimee watched for Irati. The outdoor rattan cafe chairs gleamed like copper in the mid-afternoon light. Sparse brown-leafed plane trees encircled the spurting fountain. Opposite stood Saint Honore d'Eylau, a narrow toffee-colored stone church. Hemingway married one of his wives here, the story went. She had a clear view of the three streets Irati might use to return to her car. 

A traffic light shone green above the PIETONS ATTENTION sign as a rush of pedestrians crossed the zebra crosswalk. 

She answered her phone on the first ring.

'Allo?'"

Some days, I find it's better to get lost in Paris and someone else's fictional drama (and murder and mayhem). I love learning a little about how another author inserts place as character (especially when it's Paris!). And she's got one for just about every arrondissement. Try one. And...see you  in Paris. 

Who doesn't love Paris!?!

What makes Paris so irresistible? 

It's a love affair! 

It starts with one of the most famous, and romantic, of all symbols:

The Eiffel Tower.

Who hasn't heard the stories of lifetimes together

starting at the top (or even bottom) of the Eiffel Tower. 

I've heard personally of several people who either proposed 

or were proposed to atop the tower or on a boat on the Seine while cruising past. 

In fact, visit Nathalie at Dolce Dreams 

for one such romantic love story. 

Then the love affair moves to the Seine,

a river flowing with history, fame and glory. 

One only needs to say the word 'Seine' and the world knows where you are. 

And of course there are the cafes!

The perfect place no matter the weather

be it a chilled kir in the summer

or the ever popular chocolate chaud in  winter. 

And for me,

the affair always includes the open-air markets...

with their vibrant colors,

and tempting flavors,

seasonal freshness,

and delicate seafood.

I love the glitz and fun of the holidays...

...the hidden courtyards,

the doors,

and windows,

And the metro,

night or day...

I adore the bread

and the cheese

of course the wine

and don't get me started on the luscious, decadent sweets...

and hot perfect frites,

...the art,

and architecture,

and the fabulous photo shots,

...don't forget the myriad choices and flavors of

'real' champagne...

...and the ancient finds on every walk. 

But above all else,

the biggest draw for me in Paris

is my very own heart...

My family!

My sister and her children live in Paris 

and it's because of them that Paris shines even brighter for me. 

There's no one in the world like your sister

and mine has given me Paris.

Not sure I'll ever be able 

to return such a favor. 

************************

Be sure to stop by Anita's

Castles, Crowns and Cottages

for the Simply Irresistible Paris Link Party. 

See you there! 

(Photographs copyright: Kirsten Steen)