Late May 2009 found the author taking a brief detour to spend a weekend in Paris. The grand 19th century elegance of the Hôtel Concorde St-Lazare provided a reassuring base amidst the commotion of a city entering the high season for tourists and the arrival of sweltering temperatures.



With a M4 camera, a couple of rolls of Reala film, and a bag of oranges to revive flagging spirits, curious feet found themselves rambling the streets and parks of the city: past the department stores on the boulevard Haussmann, pausing with a coffee across from the Opéra Palais Garnier, promenading the gardens bordering the Place de la Concorde, before dining in sight of the Trinité church.



Sunday saw a number of skirmishes with the legions of fellow tourists, prompting swift departures in the face of an overwhelming assault on the summit of Montmartre and the queues strewn throughout the Île de la Cité. Clemency was received only later in the quieter streets south of Saint-Germain once the shadows started to drape the cobblestones and thoughts of the day's paths were being savoured.