An Eyeful of the Eiffel

           Before launching into the topic of the month,  the editor needs to address some previously held misconceptions vis-a-vis the French, in general, and Parisians, in particular.  Calling a spade, "a spade", my biases have prompted a veto every previous time a measure to travel there has been brought to a vote of our full house.  They include the following:

            A) The French are haughty and arrogant.  This conten-tion is baseless .  Au contraire, they are friendly and engaging people.  Only once during our stay here has anyone fallen into the old stereotypical notion.  This individual was an employee of the Louvre, whom when asked the whereabouts of the nearest lift, looked dismissively down his Roman nose, which conveyed with body language, "Inquire about impressionists like Degas or Cezanne; their use of ochre or burnt sienna in subtle brush strokes, but don't waste my time with talk of lifts."
                    Patrick, our Chinese waiter with an Anglicized name, serving food in a Thai restaurant with French menus, was among many who proved to be the rule rather than the exception.  With every trip to our table, he delivered a joke which brought a round of guffaws.  When a brief power failure occurred, and the lighting was subsequently restored, he proclaimed to all, "Happy New Year".
                   B) If you don't speak French, you will be looked upon as a visitor from another planet;  the planet Pluto, in fact, which astronomers have recently relegated to "lesser planet" status.  Wrong again!  Everyone from tour bus drivers to desk clerks to just plain folks on the street were eager to at least try to provide help, while the majority were most willing and able to converse.  We found this to be true of all age groups, save ours.  Bottom line, if you require directions in gay Paree,  ask anybody but a "q-tip".

                    C) French motorists are plumb crazy.  This point is debatable, but it must be acknowledged that there is a method to their madness....  albeit one that only they can truly fathom.  The circular street around the Arc de Triomphe is
a prime example.  This route is a potential cuisinart for cars.  There are no lines to delineate lanes.  This makes for some very interpretive driving.  Five cars across can be lined up to funnel through three cars abreast; moving at right angles toward the formidible five.  Add to that the traffic advancing from the opposite direction, and you have all the ingredients of a recipe for controlled chaos.  But strangely, in all the time your fearless spectator gazed down at this scenario, there was never a fender-bender.  What's more, seldom was a horn honk heard.

           The wife of a fellow traveller from Vancouver B.C. was stuck behind the wheel of her rental car, in the innermost circle of vehicles around the Arc.  Try as she might, she could never slip out of that ring.  She finally gave up, stopped her car in the flow of traffic, and called the rental agency to have them pick up her car.  The caveat:  If  you're going to parlay, you'd better be able to do more than parlez.

           Oh!  About the Eiffel.  It richly deserves its status as the signature of the City of Eternal Light.  It was well ahead of its time as a marvel of architecture and engineering. 

     Urban legend has it that Hitler, on arriving in Paris, wanted to ride up on the tower's elevator. However, an electronic malfunction denied him that opportunity, and he was forced to climb all the stairs to reach the highest possible vantage point.  After he left, an electrician was able to restore service to the elevator with a single twist of his screwdriver.

        

         The Eiffel experience is well worth the time and the tab, but quite frankly, the Golden Gate Bridge does more for me.                             HLR