Day 6 & 7


The last two days (6 & 7) have been very tiring. Having visited most of the big sites in Paris, i no longer have the urge to wake-up early in the morning. Now, i get up around 12, shower, eat, then hit the road without rushing.

I have visited Basilique Du Sacre Coeur and the Orsay Museum.
The Basilique is an imposing hilltop white structure with beautiful domes. It is surrounded by a cozy town where you can find great Algerian food.

The Orsay is truly a treat. the building use to be a train station and now houses a museum with a collection from 1820's on. The entrance is a large opening that reveals the ornate ceiling of the dome like structure. There is plenty of great, and unique art. None of that post-modern garbage.

Upstairs, at the very top, is the smaller of two restaurants. The view is amazing and the deserts are superb. I had the raspberry pie with a glass of white.

I also had the pleasure of meeting some of the members of he French Armenian Gay Society. They were a fun crowd and they took me out to dinner. I felt uncomfortable when they refused to accept my contribution towards the bill and after a few failed attempts i told them to contact me when they visit Los Angeles. This way i can return the favor and once again enjoy their company.

After ice cream we headed towards the Plage (beach by the river.) This is the newly elected gay mayor's idea. They turn part of the river bank into a beach by dumping lots of sand. It is a fun, well lit, hang out place. There are bands, more ice cream, and lots of games to play. It is an overall success.

Last night i visited the Eiffel Tower at night. I got there at around 11:25pm and the top level had already been closed. I was upset at first, but delighted later. They close it for a reason. At 12am the tower is lit with even more lights. They are flashing brilliant white lights designed to resemble the sparkle of a flawless diamond. Having only been able to go to the mid level, i was able to look up and see this spectacle from up close. Had i been at the very top i would have missed it. ( See Video)

Day 5 

Today I visited the Rodin Museum.
All i can say is, WOW. It is a small two-level house with a magnificent garden.

The entrance is through the gardens.  Once inside, one immediately notices a full sized version of the famous Gates of Hell, a replica of which is on display outside the Stanford University museum.  There are also other large pieces, a nice fountain, and a great ice cream stand.

The Museum is cozy and one can easily spend hours inside.  There are many impressive sculptures.  My favorites: Misery, The American Athlete, and 2 Balzacs. (Pictures Available in My Album)

The Thinker is also on display.  But the excitement associated with it's discovery escaped me because i have seen many copies of it.  After about an hour I left for the gardens and had three flavors of amazing ice-cream for breakfast. ( Apricot, Green Apple, and Berries)

Then i headed towards the Eiffel Tower.  It is at the end of a large park on the other side of which is a modern glass structure that has the word "peace" written all over it in many languages.  It should say "appeasement for oil" instead. After all, oil is the reason that the French government refused to help us in Iraq and now refuses to stop the genocide in Sudan.

The Park itself is gorgeous; filled with flowers, playgrounds, loving couples, children, and lots of ice-cream stands.

The tower is far more impressive than i had imagined.  It is very decorative.  This feature is usually not depicted in pictures that try to capture the tower from far away.

There was also a noticeable presence of French military personnel with automatic machine guns.  Safety first!  I did not climb the tower.  Saving that one for night time.

Across the tower is the Homme Museum.  It has great fountains where children swim, and a rollerskating area.  Took some great shots of kids doing high tricks with the Eiffel in the background. ( See album)

DAY 4

Finally, the clouds have gone and the day is bright. Paris, in full sunlight, is stunning.

I went to Musee de L Armee. It is another big and bold structure.  There are maps, paintings, and tanks on display.  Also, for 5£ one can visit the tomb of Napoleon.  I chose not to.  Why bother when there is a perfectly good, large-sized picture of the tomb near the ticket stand.

Then i walked towards Place de la Concord and chilled a bit by the glorious green an gold fountains.  As i was about to take off, and Indian guy stopped me and asked me to take his picture.  I did his bidding, and then we began to talk.  He was from UCSD, an engineering PH.d. candidate on vacation in Europe.  We buddied-up and walked along the river towards the Louvre and Palais Royal.  After all this walking and talking i became tired and decided to visit the Louvre later on in the day.  The advantage of this decision was two-fold.  First, i could take a nap with my birds flying around the room.  And secondly, i could save the admission fee for the Louvre (Free Mondays After 6). So, I exchanged e-mails and parted with my new friend.

The Louvre

The mother of them all. Truly the biggest single building i have seen in my life, so far.  But the collection is less than impressive.

Before you mock my taste, let me explain.  Art, for me, is impressive and worth my time only if it speaks to me in the language of feelings.  I care not for trivia and why the artist chose to paint the hands slightly bigger then the subjects head.  I want to be overwhelmed by he work.  I want it to grab my attention, hold me near, and make me feel something. Anything.

The Mona Lisa is certainly one such work.  However there were so many people around it, flashing there cameras, that one could not begin to concentrate.

There were a few others, handful, that caught my eye, but overall it seemed like a lot of wasted space.  This statement is further amplified by the fact that 2/3 of the collection is stored below ground because there is lack of space in the gallery itself.  Oh, well.  At least it was free.

Below the exhibits is a wonderful restaurant.  Here i had my first, official, French sit down and eat experience.  Up to this point i have mostly been feeding on pastries and sandwiches.

The food was great, and very reasonably priced. I had duck with a salad, and a glass of awesome Montballziac desert wine. 30£ including tip.

Tip of the day:  In Paris wine can be cheaper than Cola.

Day 3

Notre-Dame  &  Ste-Chapelle

Once you have seen a French cathedral, you have seen them all.  The interiors of most look alike and contain the same ceiling patterns.  Notre-Dome is no exception.  However, I was lucky enough to enter its premise during time of mass.  The organ was playing and i stood in line to receive a slice of “his flesh.”

Afterwords i took a seat at a near cafe and waited for an hour until the uppermost viewing deck of the ND was open.  I had a crepe and a cup of Viennese coffee. Read some from Steve Martin's latest and got in line.

One thing about Paris is for certain!  There are plenty of friendly Americans willing to chat.  I met a mother and daughter team in line and we hit it off well.  We climbed the tower together and had a good time discussing our mutual fears of heights and narrow spaces.  You see, in order to climb the ND one must walk up at least 600 steps through a narrow, spiral path that lacks windows.

Afterwords, both i and the mother,  got the impression that the daughter was getting to cozy with me.  So the mother decided to part and we wished one another good luck. The daughter was gorgeous.  A mix of Asian and White. But then again, she was only 14.

Next I walked around the island and ended up at Ste-Chapelle.  Nice, small, with uniquely stained windows.  Too bad the attached castle was closed for the day.

Off to feed the birds.

The setting :

Small angular office that use to be a common pantry.
There are 2 computers, 2 chairs, some lamps, 4 Port-Royal chocolates, and I.

DAY  2 

Went on the prowl for some fun in the queer district.  It’s big, bold, and fabulous.  There are many friendly faces all over.  However, most are too skinny.  Not many big guys in Paris.  They seem to be over the whole butch-queer phase.

Found a few coffee shops and visited Open Cafe; well known for its cruise scene.  The waiter reminded me of Mr. S; a handsome and pleasant bartender at Here Lounge.

Off to the Pompidou
It is a large inside-out building.  Had Frank Ghery done it, it would have looked so much better. The collection is unimpressive and limited.  2 out of the 5 floors are libraries. The rest of the galleries are filled with large frames containing tiny black dots.  I think this is called modern art.

On my way home i ate more great food and bought two friends.  Two cute red-eyed birds (32£.)  Not as exciting a purchase as i thought. They literally sit in one corner of the cage and sleep. To liven things up and ensure that they are receiving the required flight exercise, i take them out of the cage and chase after them until they give up, get tired, fall down, and allow me to catch them.

This is my company now that i am no longer on good terms with my local cousin.
 

From Paris

I have arrived in both good health and spirit. The plane ride was safe, comfortable, and I had a good meal with lots of wine. To my surprise the gentlemen next to me was a Lebanese Armenian on his way to Edjmiatsin church, the oldest in Armenia. You see, his US born son will be baptized there. I chatted with him a great deal and will most likely see him in Armenia.

I landed in Paris. Took a cab and bus to University of Paris. My cousin had given me the wrong directions so i ended walking a bit more than i would have liked. Nevertheless, I found her building. The first night i went to a lecture with her. The award winning architect professor lectured us about his new design for a 10 city block area of Paris. It had just been approved and we all witnessed the uncovering of the detailed schematics. Then we went out for a late snack at an exceptionally friendly Greek restaurant (Cafe Des Arts) near the Notre Damn. Off to bed afterwords.

DAY 1

Woke up at 8am and walked out the door at 8:45am. Took the Metro to the Latin Quarter and went to Luxembourg. To say the least, It is big with decent gardens and some great sculptures of naked men. Spent about 30 minutes there and left towards a curious dome visible slightly over the top of the adjacent building.

As i walked i noticed a food stand and recalled the words of my cousin Ani. “Try everything, everywhere.” So i did. I had something sweet and a coke. But, as luck would have it, i spilled the coke on my Armani shirt. I guess i was being punished for drinking the quintessential American drink in France. So i stood there dumbfounded, cursing the French gods when i remembered the words of my mother “Spend as much as you must, you deserve it.” So I listened to mother, for once, and spent 20£ on a tight black muscle shirt.  Yes, i have muscles.

The dome that had caught my eye was none other than Sorbonne. Truly a magnificent structure with a nice library that is off to visitors unless the guy at the front desk thinks you are cute. I walked all over and visited a few classrooms then headed off to the Pantheon. I decided to take the tour of the Church/Pantheon. The next tour was an hour away, so i took a walk around the outside. In front of the Pantheon is the mayor's building which also houses a gallery. So i checked it out and was impressed by the galleries modest collection of Salvador Dali inspired clothes, works of Albrecht Durer, and others. I also decided to take a picture with the first openly gay mayor of Paris. Unfortunately he was out, no pun intended. So i had some of the mayoral water in his office and went back to the Pantheon in time for my tour.

The tour was nice but the building itself was overwhelming. I cannot describe it but am glad that cameras exist. 2 hours later i was off to to see the National History Museum. It is a lavish 5 story open-interior building with all glass elevators and dark oaked walls and ceiling. The stuffed animals and whale skeletons were cute.

After leaving behind vegan-hell, i went to see the St. Germain chapel. It is the oldest in France and is once again a magnificent piece of architecture. The left tower is currently being restored. Here i lit a candle for my cousin Rose. Next i headed towards the Yves Saint Laurent store, near which i ate more food and discovered a great desert place. I spent an hour eating here and was treated like a chubby child in a candy store. (They pampered me so well.)

Afterwords, i visited a few more shops and churches, then went home. My feet were killing me and i arrived on campus to find Sona missing. I had no key for her unit and decided to get my own room for 20£ a night. You see the campus becomes a hostel in summer and all are welcome. Plus, i had a few disagreements with Sona and chose no longer to stay under her anal-retentive gaze.

My room is cool. I have a view, a bed, table, pillows, a phone, and a sink. The bathroom and frig are common property, yet are clean and well maintained. Freedom is a good thing, and i highly recommend this hostel (Foundation Denois) to all.

Shut-Up Clown and Sing.
 
Elton John is an idiot.  This man is the quintessential example of a liberal hypocrite who expects the right to speak his mind against our president, but despises all who contest him for doing so.
 
This is a horrible liberal tactic.  A says B is bad. Then C disagrees with A and A cries censorship, McCarthyism, and rape.  In Elton’s case we can eliminate rape for obvious reasons.  But the McCarthyism critique needs to be addressed.  The Venona Project has cleared the name of Joe McCarthy and McCarthyism should no longer be used as a derogatory term. Unless, of-course, you are a Stalinist or a queer-fascist.
 
Just to set the record “straight;” not all gay men have such idiotic views. Some of us are mature enough to handle criticism when opening our mouths.  And unlike Elton, a man known for canceling his shows 10 minutes before start time because of an unfilled auditorium, we take responsibility for our words and accept the consequences of our actions. 
 
His latest stupid rant is the last straw for me.  I will no longer buy any of this clown’s work. Furthermore, I doubt that the country will tolerate any more of this.  My problem is not that these individuals offer criticism, it is that they snub at my right to critique them back by either refusing to buy their CDs, calling them idiots, or point out the fallacies and inconstancies in their argumentation.
 
If you can’t take it, don’t dish it. Byaaaach.

I may be 24, but I am still dashing.
My birthday was yesterday and it was a blast.

Had all the ribs I could eat at “Roma’s.”
Had all the free drinks I could dream of at “Here.”
Had my close friends and family around me; separately of course.

And best of all, received a phone call from my sister/cousin who is currently patiently awaiting my arrival in Paris.

Life is good once out of school.

Reagan On AIDS

After having read a vast sum of literature, I am still baffled as to why President Reagan “ignored” the AIDS epidemic. The facts are simple and irrevocable. Reagan did nothing to address the issue until 1987. Prior to this, his administration refused federal funds (CDC) for AIDS research on all occasions. Many left wingers have called Reagan irresponsible and homophobic. Reagan may have been both but the latter was not the cause of this specific neglect.

Others, such as Larry-Buffoon-Kramer, have bitten the cliché hook and have begun a cheering campaign to celebrate the death of “Adolf Reagan.” You see, many in the gay community falsely believe that Reagan ignored AIDS because of his religious zealotry and that he deserved what he got; both the debilitating illness and death.

So far the true cause for Reagan’s avoidance of the issue seems to be unexplained. Nevertheless, Michael Bronski offers the best and most guiding answer to this puzzle.