Picture taking playground: Monumenta by Daniel Buren Exhibition at Grand Palais

Looking through two glass ceilings at the checkered ceiling at the top of the glass roof in the
Grand Palais.

Last week, I went to see one of the many exhibits at the Grand Palais: Daniel Buren's Monumenta 2012 (on display until June 21). It really is a photography playground, with installations of glass ceilings of different colors placed around so you can let your inner photographer run wild and play with the different colors and angles. It is only 5€ to enter, and is an interesting exhibit that can last anywhere from 10 minutes (if you just walk through) to an hour (if you decide to take lots of pictures and eat there). But it also gives you a chance (or excuse) to see the Grand Palais, which was built for the 1900's World Fair.

Arrows on the road leading to the Monumenta exhibit.

There are usually many simultaneous exhibits at the Grand Palais, which hosts art/photography exhibits, fashion shows, and other events or exhibitions centered around daily life or cultural happenings. Make sure you get in the correct line for the exhibit you want to see, otherwise you could be waiting for a while only to find out that you have to wait in another line. For the Monumenta exhibit, there are striped arrows leading the way.

View of Monumenta installation.

In the center of the exhibit, right under the main glass dome of the Grand Palais, are mirrors so you can look at installations and people at different angles. Beware, girls in skirts!

Telling you guys "bonjour!" through the looking glass.

P looking at Monumenta from the staircase in the Grand Palais. I think he might actually be looking
at other people's food below.

At one side of the installation are grand (and beautifully ornate) staircases so you can have a bird's-eye-view of the glass ceilings. There is also a food stand to buy (expensive) food and drinks. But then you can chill at a table under your chosen ceiling color. Green would be a good choice so you can pretend that you are eating something healthy.

French kid scooting around the exhibition.

I don't know what the rules are about what you can and cannot bring into the exhibit, but it seemed pretty lenient (unlike other exhibitions in Paris). Definitely cameras are allowed (they even have competitions of sorts to for the best photos taken Monumenta). I brought in a water bottle, and kids and parents brought in strollers and razor scooters.

Mini-Cocottes are much cuter than Regular-Cocottes

Deliciousness in tiny portions: mini-cocottes with carotte/coconut milk puree and tomato soup
topped with a large crouton topped with tapenade.

Although this title may also apply to the second definition of cocotte (see: a woman with loose morals), cocottes are more respectfully defined as single-serving baking dishes, typically with handles and a lid. In the past year or so, the mini-cocottes, which does not fit much more than a few (regular-sized) spoonfuls of food, have become more popular. Especially for apéritif (or apéro)! If you have experienced French culture, then you know one of their favorite (or is it just mine?) time is apéro... the time before dinner where you drink (something light, like a kir or beer), have some snackies, and socialize.

For Christmas I received (and actually, also gave) mini-cocotte sets and mini-cocotte apéro recipe books. There is a nice combo pack by José Maréchal sold in France for less than 16€ , although I just looked on Amazon.com and it was selling there for $46. But imagine all the little casseroles you can make in these! Now that my life has settled down a bit, I decided to finally make my first mini-cocotte attempt. Pictured above is the carotte and coconut milk puree, topped with marinated cilantro and  warm tomato and onion soup topped with a crispy crouton and olive tapenade spread. They took less than 30 minutes to make each, and were both super delicious and super cute.

An ode to the RER B

 This blue life-line runs
     through the middle of Paris
 and smells like French farts.




Yeah, I'm not very classy. But if you have ever ridden the RER B, you would not be able to deny it.

Information on front page of RATP website warning fellow public-transit-goers
of the impending strike.

Tomorrow, in true French fashion, they are holding a strike. Luckily, they are warning us beforehand that the trains will be late(r than usual) and far more crowded. This happens quite a bit, so it's always good to check the RATP website before you need to ride the trains (especially to the airports). There will be a pop up window with strike information at least 24 hours in advanced.

My Top Things to do in Paris (as a non-tourist)

Rissy and I become part of the exhibit at Beaubourg.

Before moving back to Paris, I started reading "My Life in France" by Julia Child. The first chapter, a discussion on Julia Child's own experiences moving to Paris, was aptly named "La Belle France."She talked about meeting French people and Expats, enjoying the wine and food, and her personal favorite, walking around the markets with its fresh smells and colorful sights... and all done on a very limited budget.  It was a wonderful way to reignite my own excitement to return to Paris.

Being in the US for 3 months has given me a chance to think about all the things I've missed most about living in Paris. Here I have compiled my favorite things to do in Paris as a non-tourist. I wasted no time.... I've been back for a week and have already gone through the list.

1. Picnic along the Canal St. Martin or the Seine

On the banks of the Seine

Hannah and David munching baguettes at the Canal St. Martin

As soon as it becomes warm enough, scores of Parisians can be found with their choice of baguettes, meats, cheeses, wine, beer, and cigarettes along the banks of the Seine or the Canal. I personally prefer the Canal because it is less crowded and is further away from the main tourist attractions. A good spot to start looking is near the Jaurès metro stop which is at the junction of the Canal St. Martin and the wider Bassin de la Villette. Grocery stores (Franprix, Carrefour) can easily be found for the deli meats (they have many charcuterie assortments), patés, cheeses, wines, beers, etc. The important thing is to get the baguette from the boulangerie, not the grocery store... your taste buds will thank you!

2. Walking around the Marais

This one may be categorized as a bit more for the tourists, but I definitely love meandering through this part of the city. Anytime people visit me, I usually take them on a walk through this area. The great thing is that this area is so diverse that I can tailor a walk through this neighborhood to my friend's specific interests. The Marais is unofficially the Jewish and Gay area, with many kosher restaurants (many concentrated at rue des Rosiers) and gay clubs and bars (near rue des Archives).  But there are also vintages stores and many interesting and unique shops, such as a shop that specializes in Absinthe or Lomography. There are also nicer, more typical shops for clothes, trinkets, furnitures, etc. The (free) Musée Carnavalet, the museum about the history of Paris and the Place des Vosges, a beautiful square containing Victor Hugo's house is in this area.

3. Velibs!

Marie and Jeff checking out the Velib' station

Paris has a very handy bike-share system called the Velib, with 18,000 bike stations throughout the city and bike paths complete with little bike traffic lights. They are 1.70€ to rent for the day, with the first 30 minutes ride (each trip) free. That is, if you ride in 30 minute intervals throughout the day, you do not have to pay extra. Additional 30 min is 1€. There is also a 150€ safety deposit that is returned at the end of the 24 hours. It's a bit difficult for Americans to rent these because it requires a credit card with a "chip" instead of the magnetic strip. Although my friends were able to get a debit card with the chip at the exchange office which worked on the Velibs. This was handy at other automated machines as well (such as metro ticket stations).

Marie cruising in a bike lane

Jeff picking his bike

4. Eating/Drinking outdoors (on the Terrasse)

Christina, Abby, and Lisa waiting for the next round of drinks.

This is perhaps the quintessential Parisian experience. Sitting on the terrasse (the outdoor seating) of a café or brasserie, drinking, eating, people-watching, chatting, generally just slowing down. There are many reasons French people love this: 1) they like being outdoors during warm weather, 2) you can smoke on the terrasse, and 3) they love drinking. But as an American, the actual experience is not always as glamorous as this sounds because many outdoor areas are on narrow sidewalks, with tables extending right up to the curb. Thus it can be crowded (by other tables or pedestrians walking by) and smoky (from French people smoking on the terrasse or exhaust from the cars driving by). To avoid the undesirable portion of this experience, find a place that has ample sidewalk!

Philippe enjoying a Panaché and a Monaco on the terrasse.

5. Eating Crepes!

Crepe with Caramel au Buerre Salé, crepe with chocolate, and a glass of cider.

I admit that I am a big crepe snob... and I missed eating really good, authentic crepes. There are a couple of good places in Paris (although to get really great ones, you need to go to Brittany). The savory crepe is made out of buckwheat and the sweet crepe is made out of flour. The default savory crepe contains ham, eggs (typically sunny-side up), and emmental cheese. For me, you could never go wrong with the goat cheese (chevre) with something sweet (honey or jam), or something with caramelized onions. My favorite sweet crepe is caramel au buerre salé... very authentic to the Brittany region, if the creperie does not have this on their menu, I just don't believe that they will have good crepes. And of course, no crepe meal is complete without cider served in a ceramic bowl or cup. It's common French knowledge to drink cider with crepes.

6. Walking around Flea/Antique Markets (les Puces/les Brocantes)

People inspecting items at Puces de Vanves

Often times there are traveling outdoor Puces and Brocantes around different areas, set up in the medians of the road. There are also permanent ones such as Marché aux Puces de Saint-Ouen (the largest flea market, just north of Paris... I got lost here once) or Puces de Vanves (smaller market in south Paris). It's always fun to walk around and look at the items (and perhaps buy Harry Potter in French for 1€). You can also get food at many of these places and hear traveling musicians.

Traveling piano

Supplemental activities:

There are a couple of other things I wanted to add to this list, but don't quite fit the list description because they are actually outside of Paris (Fontainebleau) or is a proper tourist attraction (Saint Chapelle).

7. The Forests of Fontainebleau

The forests of Fontainebleau

Fontainebleau is just a wonderland of activities with natural trees and an extravagant castle. Although I have never been to the castle... the allure for me is Nature. Paris is such a crowded and dense city, that it is nice to escape every now and then. It's a great place for walking or hiking, biking, picnicking, and, my personal favorite, bouldering. There are many rocks spread all over the area that it would take several days and a car to cover all of them. There are also "climbing circuits" set up, to guide you from climb to climb in the same vicinity at similar climbing grades.

Boulder showing two climbs for the red circuit and the blue circuit

Hannah crushing a boulder

8. Saint Chapelle

The majority of people here would definitely be tourists, and not residents. But it is quite beautiful, and my favorite touristy thing to see.

Stain glass windows

Painted ceilings

Getting a visa to work in France aka A Tale of Two Cities (with French Consulates) aka Immigration Woes

Many people are asking me: "You are still in America? I didn't know it was going to take this long!" It has been about 2 and a half months since I've returned to the US to wait patiently for my long-stay work permit/visa approval. In contrast, the visa (scientifique visa) I had to get for my postdoc in France took a couple of weeks. So what's taking so long?

Well, like most French administrative dealings, there were many delays from such things as misunderstandings/miscommunications, too many people working different parts of the procedure (job security?), holidays (aka not enough people working), paperwork missing, technological problems, etc etc. Let me walk you through this typical procedure I've had to experience to obtain my visa...

Let's start with the people/companies/entities involved:

1. The applicant aka the immigrant aka the victim (me)

2. The awesome company that hired me (SGR)

3. The company my company hired to help with immigration procedures (CSE)

4. The French immigration office (OFII)

5. The French Consulate in the USA (Houston)

6. The other French Consulate in the USA (Miami)

The process:

1. In general, the first step is to get hired by a company in France. After 2 months of interviews with 2 callbacks, and 2 languages, I was fortunate enough to receive an offer from SGR in December. I feel extremely lucky given the circumstances of the economy nowadays, especially with the debt troubles with the EU countries, the 10% unemployment rate, and anti-immigration sentiment in France (see: Marine Le Pen, who received 17.9% of votes in the first election round).

2. Obtain a work permit from France. This was chiefly done by CSE, and included

2a. Collection of personal and corporate documents and application preparation  
2b. Submission of application to Labor Authorities
2c. Transfer of application to OFII
2d. Transfer of application to the French Consulate

This entire process takes about 7-9 weeks.

3. Application for long-stay visa at the French Consulate. This takes 1 - 3 weeks.

4. Receive visa, go to France (finally).

5. Medical examination, application for residence permit (carte de séjour)... other stuff that I will encounter soon enough.

So, we are looking at a minimum of 8 weeks and a maximum of 12 weeks for the whole process... so two and a half months is right around average for the whole process. Except that my paper work should've started BEFORE I came back to the US. That is to say, even though I've been in the US for 2.5 months, the application process has been in the works for 3.5 months (well above the maximum).

The woes:
This started pretty early in the process. Due to complicated immigration policies, it is 99.99% guaranteed that a work permit WILL NOT be approved if I currently work/live/study in France and need to change from scientifique (or student) visa to long-stay (this is a whole other story). But the consequence was this: I was not allowed to be working in France during the application process because that is a dead give-away that I work/live in France. Thus I had to quit my post-doc early and crash at my parents place in Florida for a while. I call it a forced vacation, and the French love their vacations!

Although the application was supposed to be submitted in early February... it was not submitted until early March. The cause was some mixup with the mail which delayed the signature on the contract, thus changing the start date. But after that, things seemed to run pretty smoothly...

Within 3.5 weeks, my work permit was approved! I was going to get back relatively quickly! An appointment with the Consulate in Houston was made for April 19 and I just had to relax while waiting for a confirmation email from the Consulate indicating that they received my paperwork. What a great excuse to visit my sister in Austin... so I drove out to Texas a week early to just hang out with sister (note that I emailed CSE 4 times during this period to let them know that I still haven't received the confirmation).

The day before my appointment, I receive an email from CSE indicating that they cancelled my Houston Consulate appointment. The reason? CSE called the Consulate and realized that they never received my paperwork... something about "internet troubles." Could I stay another 5 days (their next earliest appointment... that is, assuming that I get the confirmation in time)?

Nisita mad!!!!

But who am I supposed to be angry at? The OFII office for not sending the documents, or the Consulate for not receiving it? Or CSE for not checking up on this sooner? Or the internet for not working?

The next day, they emailed me to assure me that this time the paperwork went through okay. My appointment will be on May 8th (earliest available)....in Miami. For some unknown reason, the OFII sent the paperwork to Miami the second time around.

Luckily I received the notification in time for the appointment, and as of today, received my visa :) So, France, here I come (again)!

I assume this is the "hazing" process that the French setup for immigrants as a way to weed out those who really want to stay in France. I have to say, we got off pretty easy because it appears that the hazing process to become President is getting struck by lightning.

In the end, I've had a nice "little" vacation here in the US! Instead of going to the French consulate in Houston, I went canoeing with my mom, sister, and sister's dog... which, I think, c'était mieux.

Happy Election Day Two!

Well, its official. Sarkozy has been replaced by Hollande, who received 51.7% of the votes. A closer match than what I thought it would be based on the first round. Parisian voters had a slightly higher preference for Hollande at 55.6%, and interestingly enough, the vote was split geographically right down the middle, with the right of Paris voting for the politically left candidate and the left of Paris voting for the politically right candidate.

Map of the 2012 French Presidential election results in Paris. Source: Google Politics.

Further map of results:

http://www.google.fr/elections/ed/fr/results

I wonder how many voters actually abstained or voted for no-one ("vote blanc"). In France, the two actually means different things where the former is when you don't vote at all, but the later is where you put in a ballot that specifies that you vote for neither candidate. Right now, it is a moot point since vote blanc counts the same as not voting at all. But it would still be interesting to know how many people did not like either candidate.

Happy Election Day!

This year is one of those rare years when the French and American presidential elections coincide (French presidential terms last 5 years)... and today is the first day for the French Presidential elections! Yes, strangely, elections are on a Sunday even though everything else in France seems to stop working on that day.

Polls will close in a few hours, and we will find out if there will be a second round of Presidential elections... that is, if no one gets the majority of votes, the top two candidates will run off on May 6th. The two expected front runners are François Hollande (Parti Socialiste) and Nicolas Sarkozy (UMP), the incumbent. To help figure out what candidate you would choose if you were a Frenchie, take this quiz from ouestfrance.fr (it's in English!)

The elections are more interesting than usual since immigration issues, very relatable to my situation, are often highlighted in the campaigns. Stricter immigration laws (usually from the right, UMP or Front National parties) are usually meant for restriction of gypsies/Eastern Europeans, North Africans, and Muslims... for example, they recently outlawed completely covering your face in public (no full face hijabs or green-man outfits allowed). But as a consequence, they make it much harder for me to get my visa for France as well. Perhaps its just French administration that is making it hard for me....

It was very interesting for me to speak to French people about the election since most of them seemed to be Hollande-supporters, or, more accurately, Sarkozy-opposers. Although this is probably a consequence of the group of people I associate with, which tend to lean more left. It also seems like the "cool" thing to be in France is anti-Sarkozy. Even the one person I know is definitely voting for Sarkozy didn't tell me until at least 30 minutes of questioning. And the full 30 minutes was spent Sarkozy-bashing. So I am not sure how many other closet-Sarkozy fans are out there.