The longest queue ever...

The plan was to visit the Elysée Palace, home to the French president. I biked down to the 8th arrondisement to find the longest queue I have ever seen. It weaved it's way all the way to Place de la Concorde. I kindly asked the people standing at the front of the line how long they had waited; six hours was their answer. Six hours just to see the inside of the sumptuous Elysee Palace which has been the official residence of the Presidents of the Republic since 1874. French people are already familiar with part of the palace that has appeared on television as part of news reports: heads of state are welcomed in the entrance hall, while the traditional July 14th reception is held in the gardens ... therefore ... I will keep moving on swiftly!

I quickly changed my mind and took myself for a nice bikeride along the Seine to enjoy a wonderful sunny aftenoon.

La rentrée is fun!

The biggest change for us when we arrived in Paris a year ago was the switch from a Swiss public to an International school. Although the International campus felt familiar - the kids had attended an International school when we lived in Madrid - I had forgotten what it was like to be surrounded by a "Mini-United-Nation" at drop off every morning.

Last year after one week of school the kids had made lots of new friends. They told me about Kento, Amit, Ahmed, Antti, Vashnavi, Tomiris and Silje. Oh dear, I'm in trouble. I might be able to guess which nationality they are but are they boys or girls??? What happend to Eduardo and Raffaele, or Arianna and Gaia?

So, this year I was curious to hear where my childrens' new friend would be from. The turnover at an International school in Paris is about 30% every year!!! This obviously leaves a great deal of room for new acquantainces.

To my surprise the children stuck to their "old" friends from last school year and are happy spending time with them.

I, on the other hand, am having a celebrity moment. I have introduced myself to Vincent, showed off my biggest smile at Gérard, am wondering how I can strike a conversation in Spanish with Salma and seriously considering asking Zlatan for an autograph for Expat boy (eventhough he played for Milan and Barça - we'll just skip that fact).

What a start into the new school year!

Nice to meet you, Mr.Ambassador

How to convince your kids into visiting a museum? Mission impossible in my household. Expat boy and girl are wary of their mum trying to entice them into a cultural outing.

The European Heritage Days give me a perfect excuse to lure them into some intellectual activity. For two days a year in Paris and the rest of France, thousands of monuments, government buildings, and privately owned sites of interest open their doors to give the public free reign to areas that are generally not accessible.

After having dragged my kids to the Economic and Social Council of France last year I opted for more cheerful sites this year: the embassies.

We started out at the Italian embassy which was impressive, decorated with beautiful fresh flower. Located on the rue de Varenne in the 7th arrondissement, the stately building was originally called the Hotel de la Rochefoucault-Doudeauville and was built between 1732 and 1733.
We skipped the queue Italian style and ventured through the beautiful courtyard, passed the staircase through the Chinese room and into the magnficent garden. We did stand in line for a true Italian Illy coffee while the kids were running around in the garden.

Next on the programme was, of course, the Swiss Embassy given that the whole family posesses the little red passport with the white cross. The Swiss embassador's residence is located in Hôtel Chanac de Pompadour (also called 'Hôtel de Besenval'), built in 1704 by Pierre-Alexis Delamair and renovated by Alexandre-Théodore Brongniart in 1767 for Pierre Victor de Besenval de Brünstatt.

The rooms were just as impressive as the ones at the Italian embassy just smaller. The little boudoir intrigued Expat girl to no end. The main feature was once again the garden. I must admit it was on the shady side whereas the Italian one was bathed in sunrays.

As expected we were offered Lindt chocolates before leaving the residence much to the children's delight.

On our way to the Russian embassy we were invited to enter the Dutch embassy. This hotel was built in 1720. The hotel belonged to Avaray before becoming Embassy of the Netherlands in 1920. This embassy definatley seemed to be the most convivial home of the three. There were lots of personal pictures thoughout the living rooms, a big teak table in the garden ready to greet a round of friends for an amicalble feast and a two deck chairs ready to welcome sunbathers.

Personally my living standard benchmark has just risen a notch after having visited these embassies much to my hubby's concern.

Moi, La Parisienne!

I did it! I have come full circle. 365 days in Paris. This morning I ran La Parisienne race along with 28'000 other motivated women. I remember having arrived just days earlier last year and deciding to start my Paris adventure with a bang by participating at the yearly 6km race for women.

Yesterday I took myself off to collect my t-shirt and number tag feeling very happy about the weather forecast announcing 30°C. My kind of element ....totally!

About to trade my Parisian chic for a sports t-shirt!

Lucked out ... no queues!

The motiviation was palpable this moring. 28'000 women from across the country and beyond gathered today for a fun, music-filled race in support of cancer research.

I came across teams of the American hospital, the Simply Supermarket, Chanel, Clarins, Shisheido, Axa Insurances, just to name a few. There were teams in pink tutus, others were wearing a Cuban-style fruit basket on their head (made me think of a friend of mine). A team of Marilyn Monroes crossed my path  and a couple of Japanese ladies dressed in their Kimonos! The outfits ranged from Spiderwoman to a Hijab. We all had one commen goal: to show our solidarity and to reach the end... some runing others walking!

I must admit after a long summer vacation I was a wee bit out of shape but the Brazilian Samba band at the last corner provided me with the perfect last push to dance across the finishing line with a big smile on my face.

Here are the best teams I saw this moring:

Most competitive: Groupama (pushing by everyone else)

Most Exotic: La Reunion Tourist board in their traditional colourful ruffled skirts

Most Courageous: An orchestra marching the entire 6 km playing their instruments

Most Solidarity: the teams that ran in remembrance of a lost friend

Best advertising: Le Lido, although not all of the girls had long legs they certainly strutted their stuff

Best Suppport team: Le Bon Marché who rooted endlessly (including the dog) for their enormous team from La Grande Epicerie

I am soooo ready!

Waiting in the starting blocks below the Eiffel Tower

Warming up with some groovy music

Listen to the ladies

After one and a half hours this band was half-way!

 Roses for all the ladies at the end of the race!

Vogue's Fashion Night Out

We are back in town!

All good things must come to an end ... so goes the saying! Well, personally I have been hopping from one great undertaking to the next.

We left Paris end of June - the same day the kids got out of school - because we just couldn't take the bad weather any longer. School was out at noon and by 5pm we were on a plane heading south.

We have been bathing in sunshine and warm weather ever since .... until we arrived back to Paris last Wednesday night at midnight!

School started on Thursday, so there was no way out!

Paris has been blessed by St.Peter these days and currently it is 30°C. Yupee!

My return couldn't have gotten off to a better start: Thursday night was Vogue's Fashion Night Out.

The event is the brainchild of Vogue magazine editor Anna Wintour and was designed to jump-start an industry battered by the global recession in 2009. “Fashion Night Out,” has since turned into a global night of retail revelry in 19 countries, as store stay open late and offer drinks, entertainment and - if you're lucky - free goodie bags.

Designers, celebrities and shoppers in cities from New York to Milan roam boutiques. Paris IS of course the city of luxury and therefore on a whole different level.

Last year - having just arrived in the city of haute couture - I strolled down Avenue Montaigne in jeans and flat purple ballerinas... a big fashion faux pas! This year I promenaded down Avenue Faubourg St. Honoré showing off high heels and a delicate grey wool dress by a French designer who once said: "The only queen who I dressed was Eva Peron".

Enjoying the sunshine while it lasts

"A vacation is having nothing to do and all day to do it in."

Robert Orben

Parisian Windows

“Friends are like windows through which you see out into the world and back into yourself... If you don't have friends you see much less than you otherwise might.”
Merle Shain

1.August is Swiss National Day