It is now 19 years we’ve been coming to Paris thanks to our good friends, Steve and Melody Karian who invited us to join them on a trip here 20 years ago. They had just purchased an apartment in Paris and thought it would be great if George and I did the same. Steve spoke French having gone to medical school here, but we didn’t have that ability and so hesitated — but not for long. Steve said it didn’t matter and as it turned out, it really didn’t though had one of us been fluent it would have made some things easier. As we soon learned, there were lots of people willing to help us get over some of the rough patches of ‘home’ ownership in Paris. Steve had introduced us to a wonderful young American woman who was living and working in Paris, finding apartments for Americans and helping them get settled here. She not only found our apartment three months after our first trip here, but helped us to move in, get settled, and even better, has been a close and dear friend ever since.

That’s how it all started. Since then we’ve been coming 2-3 times a year, staying various lengths of time– up to 2 months sometimes. As we think back we are feeling very lucky. Do I need to list the ways? Hardly — it’s all self evident. Now, we are wondering if each trip will be the last. Although we are more comfortable here in Paris than I think we’d be in Boston or New York, there are certain considerations which give us pause. All that said — I know that once we go back to the Cape and a few months pass, we’ll look at each other and say, “I miss Paris…” and start to plan the next trip.

Over the years we’ve walked every corner of this city – never takng a taxi or Uber — always on a bus or in the metro – or preferably –on foot. But, over the past two years given difficulties with mobility (to put it nicely) we only take Ubers or taxis and hardly walk anywhere. I even took a taxi coming back from Picard’s the other day. (Without shame!)

Through one contact or another, we have the good fortune to have a cadre of Parisian friends — both French and Armenian — who enrich our experience here. We socialize with them, go to dinner or lunch, and go to exhibits or sometimes to the ballet or an opera. Interestingly though, life here for everyone is getting busier and it is hard sometimes to find the time to get together. But over the course of a couple of weeks we manage, just like tonight when we have invited two couples who are neighbors to come for a glass of champagne. The appetizers are ready and the champagne, which we bought from La Grande Epicerie last week, is chilling. We had a lively evening.

Finally we are out and thoroughly enjoying this fabulous day. There is so much to write about that I don’t quite know where to start. Yesterday we went to a special mass held at Notre Dame by the Armenian Catholic Church of France to commemorate of the 111th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. It was impressive. The entire central area of the church was filled- estimating maybe 2000 Armenians were present.

After the service we walked to a garden close by and then had a bit of lunch. The area was jammed-packed with tourists. The season has started.