lilaki - I'm trying to visualize your explanation. Is there a picture of this on the internet you can reference? Is there a name for this position, besides contorted. LOL

DeborahAnn, I googled rood screen and saw the church. That is one of my favorites and I never knew the name! It reminded me of eyelet. I can't go past a church w/o going in.

flygirl, I've been to several of those pictured. I sat on the balcony at procope, the oldest resto in Paris. Go for the history, not the food.

Just got back from L'Insulaire, Madame was on the street drumming up customers when we walked by. Excellent food. We went early enough that we did not have a problem getting a table. This afternoon we went into several churches - St. Roche which was near the Louvre - it was more Romanesque style - it had a gorgeous painted dome. More walking and went in Germain aux erbois just east of the Louvre. My gosh each church is different enough to make it glorious, DH wants to see St Gervais tomorrow which is where Catherine deMedici ordered the slaughter of the hugonauts. flygirl thank you SO much for the list of historic cafes. We have been walking around these streets and not knowing exactly what we were passing or what we were looking at. Being first timers here, we are so ignorant. So tomorrow we will walk around the neighborhood again looking at things with new eyes. We knew everything was very old, but not the significance of some. It seems like we have walked past Les dux Magots every day! Does anybody know where it was that Hemingway hung around in this area? lilaki, today was the first day my PF acted up. I had an injection in the heel before we left and I wonder if it is wearing off! Darn it. My other problems feel better - the shin splints feel way better today. The calves still hurt, but this afternoon was the heel. The seems ricidulous, but those with PF will understand - I brought 4 different pair of shoes with me and of course the orthotics. I did not wear them the past few days because I got blisters on my toes - the blisters are better so wll go back to the orthotics tomorrow. Oh, I had a girl try and pull off the ring trick - bent over like she found a gold wedding band and asked me if it was gold. Then tried to sell it to me! So glad I was wise to her little trick!We leave here on Sunday morning, so 2 day left. Why do vacations go by so quickly? Tomorrow I think we are going to Montparnasse - want to see Sacre Cour, Moulin Rouge (drive by, or in my case probably walk by). We need to see the opera house yet and we may go back to the crypt at St Denis. Tomorrow night the oraganerie stays open till 9:00 so we may try that again, or wait till Saturday. All that even seems like a bit to me for one day! Another wonderful day forcasted!

i just googled "yoga toe stretch" ... i can't find a picture of the stretch but i found a few sites that explained it WAY better than me ... :)

i should have explained the stretch by using the word KNEELING instead of SITTING (wow, my mind is just not working today!) ...

check out this description from http://www.sunandmoonstudio.com/Articles/feet.html:

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Squat with Toe Stretch (knees on floor)

Kneeling with the toes tucked under is a great way to stretch the bottom of the feet. This can be a very intense stretch for beginners as it breaks up tension in the sole of the foot.

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as an aside, i also use a golf ball as a 'foot massager' at home. i forgot to pack my golf ball in my bag to paris last year. i DEFINITELY will be bringing it with me this year!!

I'm soaking in cold water in a bowl as I type!

i found a picture of a yoga pose that seems more advanced ... but the foot position is very similar to the one i mentioned. you get a very deep stretch along the sole of the foot -- which is a big deal for us PF people ... if you've got high arches, don't bother!!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardspics/846821079/

"I'm soaking in cold water in a bowl as I type!"

yay!!! that should hopefully help!! :)

just remember to use the sani-cycle in the dishwasher! i'll be using those same bowls myself when i'm at the apt in october!!! :)

btw - how are you finding the size of the apt for you and DH?? okay?

Patti - I love St-Gervais/St-Protais. The stained glasses are great and notice the little stools for sitting.

Have you been to the Mosque on Place du Puits-de-l'Ermite behind the Jardin des Plantes. It's great but don't go on Fridays as it's the sabbeth. I took a tour of the mosque through Paris Walks but had been there before on my own.

BTW - Sacre Coeur is in Montmartre, not Montparnasse. Two different places.

When you go to Sacre Coeur don't miss the small church to the left of it - St-Pierre.

And not far from your apartment are 2 churches - St-Germain-des-Pres with painted columns like all Gothic churches had and St-Sulpice. Will you still be in Paris on Sunday? There's an organ concert at St-Sulpice at 4:00. These concerts are free.

lilaki - there is no dishwasher in this apartment! But I'm not actually using a kitchen bowl - there is a kind of flower pot type thingy I'm using - so rest easy!! It is a small apartment - but it is plenty large enough for the two of us. The only down thing that DH has mentioned. There isn't actually an easy type chair - just two kitchen chairs at the table. But he lays on the bed and watches the television anyway. There is a two burner stove, microwave, fridge, pots and pans and dishes. There are towels and toilet paper and paper towels. There is laundry soap and dish soap. There are no washclothes for your shower so I would bring one along. We also bought some bar soap. There was black tea and cubes of sugar, oil, coffee filters, coffee maker, pot to heat water for tea. Thierry supplied us with a bottle of wine, juice, bread, marmalade. The computer is great! I use the washing machine every day. When we go out I throw in the towels and when we come back they are done. There are many different cycles that Thierry explains - so I can just partially dry my jeans and then hang them to completely dry them. You can't put very much in at a time. There is an iron here and a mat to iron on. There is a curling iron and hair dryer. Thierry answers emails in a flash and tells us to call if there are any problems at all. He's great. The street is quiet, but a short walk away you are right in the thick of things. DH goes out every morning to the bakery and brings in goodies. It's in a really great location. I'm so grateful that I listened to guenmai when she recommended this area! Patti

adrienne - We already went to St Sulpice last Sunday!! We heard the organ play for a while before mass started! That was just the day after we arrived and I felt so blessed! Thanks for correcting me on Montparnasse - I knew that - just a brain malfunction. Thanks also for letting me know about St Pierre - will make sure and go there as well. Have not been to the Mosque, yet.

Thanks lilaki. I was asking for a friend who suffers from this. I was lucky and my PF went away in 3 months and hasn't returned. It was painful and I got it 9 days before a Paris trip. I usually put the balls of my feet on a step and drop my heels and then lift up with my toes (30 reps) and that keeps me limber. It also helps my tight hamstrings. I do have high arches.

adrienne - I have totally flat feet! I do the step thing as well for a good stretch.

hi patti,

oh you're right about the dishwasher. i totally forgot! oh well!

thanks for telling me all about the apartment. we stayed at another one of thierry's properties last fall and were impressed at how little we needed to supply ourselves (nothing!!) ...

i'm glad you found a flower pot thingy. no doubt that i'll be using it too when i'm there to soak my feet! :)

Patti - did you notice the Delacroix frescoes in St-Sulpice on the right when you walk in. There's a button to turn on the light if you need to.

Yes we did! I studied "Jacob wrestling with the angel" when I was in an art class. I was stupified at first not knowing that it really was the real thing! That was while I was listening to the organ. Talk about being in a wonderful place. Like I said that was our first morning out - still today when DH and I were walking along the Seine with the Louve on one side and the river on the other we just looked at each other and said "can you believe we are really here?"
Now it is becoming normal to see the Eiffel tower in the distance and I don't have to take a picture every time I see it now. I forgot to tell you that we leave Sunday morning.

can't wait for tomorrow's installment! :)

Glad you're having a great time! Happy Travels!

Don't forget to have your photos taken up at the Trocodero with The Iron Lady in the background! Or have you done this already?
Glad to hear L'Insulaire worked out fine.
Looking forward to more news later..........................

Yellowrose:

Did you notice the effects of the transportation workers' strike? Is is over?