On Wednesday workers returned to their work, but high schoolers did not. For the rest of the week attendance has been very low. Some classes are completely empty. Sometimes there are classes with just two or three students. If you have 10 people show up for class this week, it's a really good turn out. It's a ghost town inside.
But outside? The kids are in the streets protesting. The gates to Jules Verne are chained and people are let in through a smaller entrance once at a time to ensure that the protesters do not get in.
Around 30 percent of flights were canceled at France's busiest airport, Paris' Charles de Gaulle, while cancellations at the capital's second airport, Orly, reached 50 percent, according to aviation authorities. Most of the affected flights were short-haul domestic flights or inter-European flights, according to a civil aviation authority official.
The parliament's lower house approved the reform last month. The Senate has approved the article on raising the retirement age from 60 to 62, but is stil debating the overall reform. The bill also raises the age of eligibility for a full pension from 65 to 67.
That means the retirement age has officially increased, but the minute details are still up for debate. As it has been explained to me by the people here, the current proposed reform is just too black and white. The people have accepted that the retirement age will increase, but what about the smaller details? What about people who work under harsher conditions, people who may not be able to perform certain jobs physically. Perhaps there ought to be guidelines. Perhaps there ought to be different rules regarding retirement depending on the profession and the circumstances of the worker. One thing people do not want is a black and white reform.
France's Senate pushed back a planned vote on the retirement reform bill until next Wednesday to debate some 820 amendments floated by the Socialist-led opposition. It had been scheduled to vote Friday.
French version of Ikea.
Chariot! What an awesome word for shoppping cart.
The first week of October and people are already getting ready for Christmas.
Being stuck in traffic is awesome when you have a good view.
Church in Reims. The kings used to come to this church to get crowned.
Inscription at the church.
This church is about to be 800 years old...
View from the Magdalene Church.
Close up view of Magdalene church.
Place Vendome. A name that evokes thoughts of luxury, now surrounded by high end retail shops and five star hotels. Architect Jules Hardouin-Mansart designed the square in 1699. It is named after a hotel that used to be situated there. In the center of the square is la Colonne Vendome. Her construction was ordered by Napoleon and the giant green monument was dedicated to la bataille d’Austerlitz. La Bataille d’Austerlitz took place on December 2 1805. The Battle of Austerlitz, also known as the Battle of the Three Emperors, was Napoleon's greatest victory, where the French Empire effectively destroyed the Third Coalition.
Ministere de la Justice
The Ritz Hotel.
The Ritz Hotel. There are some benefits to exploring Paris with someone whos the area. I.e. taking you to really famous spots you had no idea were there.
Latin? I have no idea what this means. Picture taken while exploring Paris on a Saturday with a new French friend.
Lily Wood and the Prick! Feeling homesick? Not for long! They sang in French and English. Afterwards I even got to talk with the band. I can not believe they came out all the way to the proverbial middle of nowhere. Cost for an evening rocking out? 5 Euros.
Lily Wood and the Prick.
Lily Wood
éteindre,ateindre,attendre... I understand the meaning of these different words and yet somehow I still manage to pronounce them all exactly the same way.
Mediatheque.
Jean de la Fontaine Mediatheaque. I go here for Facebook access in awhile. On Tuesday, it was completely shut down due to the strike.
This is where I buy the majority of my groceries.
Me and Marianne :)
Dinner party! I cooked meat and nobody got sick! I put a little olive oil in the pan, waited for it to get really hot, added hamburger and added a pinch of salt here and there continuing to stir until it was all well thoroughly well cooked. I do not remeber why but there is a special cooking reason for why you wait for the olive oil to get really hot before adding the meat. Then I added store bought sauce and I had a sphagetti meat sauce! Not that impressive, but for a girl who doesn't know ANYTHING about cooking - I have to start somewhere!!
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