We
step down from the Thalys
at
Gare du Nord, to find
armed
soldiers dividing
around
us, seeking
prison
escapees,
or terrorists, perhaps,
and
we find ourselves
in
the middle of what
Parisians call
En Strike,
museum workers wildcatting
shutdowns, protesting
something, tourists
perhaps,
Mona
Lisa’s smile hidden
behind
locked doors,
the
Impressionists at d’Orsay
suddenly available
for a few hours, anyway,
we
hear a rumor that Versailles
is open but the Arc de Triomphe
is not
but
we find a small bistro for dinner
and
a café for jambon et fromage
and
Rue des Martyrs filled
with small shops
and
lunch on top Galleries Lafayette
and
a dinner on the bateau mouche
and
what it’s like to take the Metro
at
11 at night and somehow we fall
in
love all over again.
Vive
la revolution.
It’s
Bastille Day, and dVerse
Poets is celebrating all things French. The above poem is an entirely true
story. (I left out the parts about the pickpocket, the visit to the police
station, the strike at Charles De Gaulle Airport and the long walk down the
Champs Elysees.) Please visit dVerse
Poets for more poems about France.
13 comments:
whew that felt rather like a whirlwind, one thing to the next which i imagine my first visit might be like...wanting to see everything...falling in love though...now that makes for a beautiful closure...
Wow, like Brian, I found myself in a whirlwind and flurry of activity, unexpected and unanticipated. Much like I would imagine being caught up in a revolution might be for the unsuspecting. That love is found in the midst of chaos - that's the ticket!
Blessings, Glynn!
Sounds exciting anyway... I especially like-
Mona Lisa’s smile hidden
behind locked doors
The listing aspect of this works very well, listing in both meanings of the world. Really intersting. k.
cafe and small shops.....sounds like a good time
Good things. Bad things. The stuff of memories.
Confusion, excitement, and love ... sounds like you had a great time!
a wonderful adventure
I want to go to there! :)
Revolution is feminine. So it should be LA revolution. (And there's supposed to be an accent, too.) Those are my French teacher comments.
I like the poem. That's my reader comment. :-)
I love this piece! It made me smile because shortly before reading it, I had a Gardens of Time quest to the Arc de Triomphe! :)
Glynn, my husband and I celebrated our anniversary (39th!) yesterday. This lovely poem makes another perfect way to remember la quatorze du Juillet.
Merci.
L'énergie d'une grève à Paris, ce qui permet l'abandon des péchés du passé minuscules. La ville des lumières allumer vos coeurs.
Yes
Paris lights, and the abandon of a strike opened your hearts.
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