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Click to view JPEG Close-up This appears to be in a poor section of town, probably near the large outdoor flea market (or "fly market" as a Parisian friend called it) at St-Ouen (Porte de Clignancourt) on the outskirts of Paris. You might notice a transaction taking place in the background, which leads me to believe this is actually within the market. The rush of different people unmindful of one another made me, a New Yorker, feel more at home in Paris than I expected.
We didn't buy anything at the market, but we did enjoy real French fries (pommes frites) al fresco sitting next to an older German couple who were having problems with the waiter. I don't think the waiter realized Adora understood as he mocked the Germans in French. Obviously, the Germans did not understand; they thought the waiter was trying to communicate. It was interesting to note the stereotypical attitudes: the French resentment (or is it hate?) of the German and the German couple's superior and bossy attitude, which caused the Frenchman's remarks in the first place.
To me, this photo includes many icons of Paris and Parisians:
So many French people smoke that a pack of Gitanes to me is a French icon.
I was fascinated by the influence of Moroccan/Algerian culture in Paris and some of the best meals I could afford were Moroccan lamb stews with cous-cous and hot spice -- the kind that you mixed sparingly with a ladleful of sauce before garnishing your dish with it. Being heavily influenced by Marxist ideology, I was acutely aware of the former French colony's cultural presence in the Motherland. I realized that the North Africans were second-class citizens in Paris, probably tolerated the same way Puerto Ricans are tolerated in New York City -- as a necessary low-wage labor force.
