Demonstrators and Books in the Latin Quarter

One day last week (I think it was Tuesday but the days are kind of jumbling together right now), Tom and I decided to follow one of the walking tours in our Michelin Green Guide. We decided on the Quatier Latin because Tom wanted to see where he would soon be studying.

As soon as we got off the metro, we heard a commotion. What looked like a rather depressing parade was, in fact, a manifestation- a demonstration. We caught a glimpse of the banner. “Contre la privatisation de la poste.”




For the past week, I've been trying to figure out exactly what was going on. Here's my summary, with no promise that it's exact: the French postal service has to, by EU regulation, liberalize and become open to competition by 2011. Postal workers are worried that this means that the postal service will be privatized and will not be able to contend with new competitors. And so, as this is Paris, they went on strike, called grève in French. This confuses me a bit because I've read that they went on strike the 21st, yet we've seen trucks out and about, delivering mail. I've also read that French citizens are voting from today until October 3. But what for? I think that it's a vote to have a referendum (so maybe it's like a petition, demanding a referendum?). It's not a vote held by the state. I need to get in the loop some more.

After finding l’Institut de Langue et de Culture Françaises, part of l’Institut Catholique and Tom’s school, we set out towards the Seine. Our walking tour started at Quai St. Michel. We didn’t get too far until I spotted les bouquinistes- secondhand book sellers that have booths along the Seine.




I feel a bit sorry for Tom when we come across a bookstore. Whether it’s Borders or it’s these adorable stalls in Paris, whether it’s new or old, I love looking at books. And I take forever to do it. I didn’t have anything specific in mind, I was just looking for an author or a book that I’d heard of. I ended up buying A la recherche du temps perdu: La prissonière by Proust, which is where the title of this blog comes from, for 3 euros. I soon discovered that I might not be ready for this one. A few days later, at Fnac, I bought La mécanique du coeur, a sweet story that is a little easier to read.

Our tour ended at the Panthéon, but we got there right as it was closing. Another day ☺