Bubbly Tea

The sun has been out and about in Paris for the last week or so and I have been in the holiday mood that heat and sunshine seems to create. With highs of 32c the city has come to a lethargic standstill. No more rushing and dashing. Half of the Parisians have left for their annual month-long holiday (the other half leave for August) and everybody else makes the most of this quietness to relax in the parks, sip rose in cafes and visit the many ice cream shops that Paris has to offer. I could not be more on board with this mentality and have been embracing French summers like a native, not even a moment of cultural adjustment needed! Its lovely to wander the calm streets with no sense of purpose, being guided by your senses and taking time to breathe in the summer-infused air. It was one hot summer evening that IS and I were reunited in the hazy heat on the steps of Opera for a bubble-tea rendez-vous. Doesn't the idea of a "rendez-vous" seem so much more exciting and romantic than a "date" or "meet-up"? 

We bought out chilled, iced bubble-teas and made our way to the steps to lap-up the evening sunshine and to soak in the atmosphere of buskers, shoppers, tourists and fashionistas.

A bubble tea is a wonderful blend of iced tea, infused with fruit juices and sugar syrup and is served with tapioca balls in the bottom that you suck up through a chunk, slurpy straw. For me they are absolutely perfect, a hint of fruitiness, a little sprinkling of sugar and a big burst of refreshment. 

People watching and catching up. There is no better way to spend the evening. 

Mood - Bubbly 

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Solidays 2013

Those who know me will know that I am not really a festival girl. They include too much mud, rain and sleepless nights for my liking. However, when I heard about Solidays, Paris's big summer festival, my mind was changed due to the simple fact that festival-goers were bused back and forward from the city centre every night. This was the perfect solution for me, I could still enjoy the atmosphere, music and all round merriment of a festival without having to freeze to death and suffer blocked up smelly toilets. Sounds dreamy doesn't it? Well it was. 

Beautiful sunshine, incredible music, great crowd and a worthy cause. Solidays is all about showing solidarity towards finding a cure and help for those with AIDS. Something I could not be more supportive of. The weekend campaigns to raise awareness and to prompt government action into providing those afflicted with medicine. Des medicaments pour tous! During the weekend we took part in a "die-in", a sort of flash mob when festival goers all lie on the ground creating a human graveyard and in doing so create a powerful message for the world. 

Raising out hands to providing medicine for all AIDS victims! 

We also saw some incredible music over the weekend, and hopped, well walked, between the five stages to see as many bands as possible. Including Soma, Balthazar, Django Django and my new French favourite Tété. The highlight for me was being front row seeing the Hives, I have never been to a rock concert and for some bizarre reason being crushed against the barrier by a music-worshipping mob was my idea of heaven for an hour or so. Definitely ticked that one off the life-to-do list. 

The festival continued deep into the night and we spend hours dancing in the Desperado's bar, watching break dancers and drinking warm beer from eco-friendly cups. Bravo France bravo! 

On that point, the French have no idea generally how to organise anything, it usually includes months of endless amounts of complex paperwork. However, the French certainly know how to do a festival. No queues to get in, no queues for the toilets, good festival food, eco-friendly cups for all and the holy grail of all festival highlights.....toilet paper in the toilets!!! Very bizarre considering most French toilets are a positively inhumane experience. Enough about toilets, I apologise. 

We found some cool storage containers that had been packed out with bars and fun, including one painted entirely in chalk paint so we could write fun messages in florescent pens. 

JC and I very much appreciated the French attitude of "just because you are at a festival, it doesn't mean you should eat badly." Another point to France. We munched our happy way through gourmet burgers, italian gelato, nougat, pulled-pork baguettes and moroccan patisseries. 

We rounded off the incredible weekend dancing the night away to David Guetta's incredible set, complete with fireworks, lasers and a rain-storm of glitter. I can't imagine a better weekend spent in Paris and it was the perfect way to bid farewell to the wonderful JC, a girl who has added a generous sprinkling of fun to my year in Paris. You will be missed. 

Mood- tempted to go to Glasto! 

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Fete de la Musique

Once a year every single parisian hits the streets for an evening bursting with music, dancing and all round fun. The Fete de la Musique is a city-wide celebration of home-grown musical talent and displays it in incredible locations for the whole city to enjoy. Just walking along the street you bump into bands playing on street corners, organised concerts in every open space and groups of people picnicking and strumming guitars. AS and I hit the streets with a bag full of beer and our dancing shoes on. We started out with a little picnic on the grass outside Hotel des Invalides listening to several bands doing their thing. There was the perfect chilled out vibe, with friends just relaxing and enjoying some tunes. 

Next we headed down to the river and followed it all along towards Hotel de Ville, in the process we came across a giant floating cinema screen that was playing music videos and artistic creations. There is no better backdrop than the river, with boats drifting peacefully by and watching the twinkling lights on the other banks. 

The giant chalkboard was was my personal favourite and we spent a little while merrily scribbling our messages. I love that the whole of Paris is so accessible and that it is easy to see lots of events just walking around. 

We came across a bandstand on the river and everybody watching was sitting, tapping their feet to the rhythm, inching to dance. AS grabbed my hand and pulled me in front of the stage, we were quickly joined by many others and danced like fools, enjoying the music and just generally had a blast. 

Nothing brings people together like music and the Fete de la Music unites the whole city for a short few hours. The city is covered with darkness and slowly the Parisians appear on the streets, let go on their inhibitions and just enjoy the beauty and the sounds of their city. Children, couples, friends, parents and even the golden oldies join together in one celebration. Nothing gives me greater pleasure that seeing complete strangers holding their hands out to a lonely bystander, pulling them to the dance floor. 

The Fete de la Music was one of the best nights I have had in Paris and truly shows the city and its people off at their best. 

Mood - Proud to be an honorary Parisian. 

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