Sometimes when I am on a plane I meditate………. ie,  breath deeply and chant in my head, focus on a point, usually my navel …..and try to empty my mind;  because I hate flying.

The idea that I am in a metal cylinder and there is nothing between me and the ground other than thousands of feet of air scares me to death and I want to forget about it.

This technique is very effective in calming my anxieties and very often interesting thoughts pop into my mind.

The other day it was

“the question of whether there is a deity or not is really irrelevant,   because if there is a deity  he, she,  or it,  is there for everybody anyway,  believer or not .  Lets face it, at times of extreme stress everybody asks for help “just in case”.

So instead of debating the question and trying to prove or disprove it, it would be better to just get on with life and be as nice to everybody as we can.”

Ok, so this is a half baked philosophy, and probably  not very original but it was my profound thought for the day.

Then suddenly to my surprise the plane wheels came down with a bump on the runway at Charles de Gaulle, making me jump.  I had arrived again in Paris.

I’ve had a bit of a bloggers block this last week.    So I thought that my Paris trip would inspire me, but instead I found myself a bit overwhelmed.

Paris is a smorgasbord  ( Josephs word, like it) of experiences and opportunities, for culture, food, art , architecture shopping, fashion etc and I didn’t know where to begin.

So on the first day, I got on a velib and set off towards the river, just soaking up the atmosphere.   I love to cycle in Paris, the air is so soft and the terrain gentle.  I don’t  get all sweaty like I do a home.  I love how the Parisians cycle in their ordinary clothes, as though they are the most important on the roads and the cars should give way to THEM…..although there are some high vis jackets and helmets creeping in.

I don’t really want to go on about it…… I have said it all before .   My Parisophile friends all “get it” only too well,  but I have to say I really love this city and  the way it makes me feel and    I don’t know why.

After the past few weeks , I was nervous about leaving Michael, would he be Ok? would I worry and fret? but it was as if Paris welcomed me with sunshine and wrapped her ( she is always feminine)  arms around me and gave me a hug with beauty, music and excitement.

I know all that sounds like yucky sentimental tosh, but it is true.

Anyway, I cycled to Hotel de Ville and checked out the Haute Couture

exhibition , where I just walked in, no queue!   I  walked through the gallery of photos of designers, workshops etc  and then spent an hour drooling over the beautiful frocks and accessories..

After about an hour, a bit like in art galleries, I started to get a bit desensitised, they all started to look alike in fact my one thought was that not much has changed in a century.  The couture clothes they wore way back then could be quite easily worn today, and suddenly I had enough.

So after a browse around BHV, looking for an elusive scarf to match my race outfit.  (difficult to find a plain scarf in orange and fuschia!) I got back on a velib and continued on to the Grande Palace where ther is an exhibition called Cinema Paradiso.

Maybe it was not the best time to go to see this exhibition., but it was welcome shelter from the hot sun

There is a drive in movie, complete with cars that shows films late in the evening.

The rest of the place seemed to provide entertainment when you are waiting for the film. Art, Skating, pinball machines, old fashioned slot games like frogger ( took me back to being a mum) there were also computer games, Barbie, even a barber. And of course popcorn and snacks

To be continued

Love Denise

A year ago I was pondering about toilet rolls!

https://denisefrombolton.com/2012/06/21/are-you-a-front-hanger-or-a-back-hanger/