Securing the Fort in Prats-de-Mollo, France

(from July 27) Chris drives, I ride shotgun, the ladies are in the back seat. We wind our way west from Céret, through tiny towns clinging to the Pyrenees foothills. Arriving in Prats-de-mollo, we park, walk through ancient castle gates, settle on a cute little restaurant where yam and mashed potato swans swim on an edible hand-painted landscape.

Collioure On The French Coast

(from July 26) Chris, Ali-Sun and I trip to the coast, passing through a couple small towns just north of the Spanish border, landing in Collioure, a lovely and completely ordinary town on the coast in the south of France. We walk, watch, dine, drink. Home late to Pausha and the doggies who had a quiet evening.

A Portrait of the Eiffel Tower

Ali-Sun and I have walked, perhaps for miles. Along the Seine, through the Invalides neighborhoods, past cafés, brasseries, bistros, boulangeries, tabacs, tapis and patisseries. The long rectangular park appears, the cold steel Eiffel Tower dominating the skyline to the northwest as the sun dips lower in the horizon.

Paris at Sunrise

4am is a peculiar quiet. Even the subtle sounds cease. No rumble from a passing municipal bus. No rattle of pipes from water running two floors above. No hum from a passing Metro train. I am awake to hear the sound of silence. I lie in bed for an hour, then a half hour more. I rise, work for a …

Two Sides of Montmartre

Montmartre sits at the highest point of Paris. It is topped by the basilica of Sacre Coeur, as close to God as a Parisian might hope to get, at least in terms of altitude. We visit at night. It is wet, but not rainy. People gather on the steps, drinking rosé, rolling their own. Vendors hawk glow toys and gold-painted …