Welcome, Monday. I’ve officially been in Paris for a month.

Yesterday was la Fête Nationale or le quatorze juillet – or as American’s say, Bastille Day. It’s a national holiday here, for sure, celebrated with aircraft flying over the city (which is not otherwise allowed, so it gets your attention). The bleu, blanc, et rouge streaming behind the jets will also get your attention. It’s quite beautiful.

Last year, if you followed me, you know I had a surprising and lovely (perfect) view from Luigi’s apartment. Again, Luigi is my charge, whilst here. He’s a French cat with an Italian name. That sounds so slang, so hip, but literally, he is a cat, a feline. You’ll be seeing and hearing more about him soon – as I will be moving into his place in the next few days.

So this year, living in the Bastille quartier, what to do? Well, there’s always a lot to do in Paris. And this summer is no exception. In fact, this July is exceptionnel.

Nous voyons: La Tour de France, Les Jeux Olympiques, et le quatorze juillet arrivent à la même temps.

Recapping. Last year, I spent the morning watching the flyovers on the terrace with Luigi and his sister, Chépas (r.i.p.). Then, Jennifer and I had dinner with a view of la Tour Eiffel, and afterwards, she and I sat in the street on a blanket watching magnificent fireworks burst forth from the la Dame de Fer till midnight.

I couldn’t see being able to duplicate that, and honestly never imagined I’d be so fortunate as to be here again at all, let alone during this time of year. So, since I’d already experience my dream come true, what to do? I’d had the magnificent historical tour and storytelling of the Bastille the day before – on the 13th – which was the perfect setup for today.

And, as this is Paris’s Summer of the Olympic Games, I decided I would try to get a glimpse of the arrival of the Olympic torch. It’s itinerary had been made public, so thanks to Nathalie (Luigi’s mom) sending me an email, I knew it was scheduled to arrive here at the Bastille and the Village of Saint-Paul on le quatorze juillet, which could not have been a more appropriate date to arrive in this neighborhood.

I headed out, and as I turned the corner onto Rue Saint-Antoine, I saw a police presence, and the street quietly lined with Parisians waiting to catch a glimpse of La Flamme Olympique.

Jennifer and I had been texting, and she wanted to see the torch at nearby Place des Vosges, so we headed there for maybe a better photo op. (Jennifer is in marketing, and it shows!)

But it was crowded! And I’m not tall. Jennifer is 5’10,” so one of us would catch a glimpse, right?

I positioned myself on a corner on the outside of the crowd… spilling onto the street. The torch bearer would turn here! The Gendarmes motioned us back often, to accommodate the police vehicles and motorcycle accompanists, but there was no room to back up. We all tightened up best we could, and suddenly you could hear the crowd roar approaching us. Then, all the various police escorts, cameramen, and finally, the torch bearer. What a thrill!

I won’t even pretend to know who it was who carried the torch, but it was magnificent to behold amidst these 400-year old buildings in the oldest square in Paris.

Jennifer and I then made a mad dash for la Bastille – its next stop. We arrived and watched the members of the corps de Ballet de l’Opéra de Paris perform excerpts of Swan Lake around the tall monument as the torch approached.

Two principal dancers (Les étoiles) carried the torch and held it high during their pas de deux.

Perfection for me.

We went to a local café to share in some bubbly and toast the day’s events.

And at home…

In other news, I awoke yesterday to the news of another mass shooting in the United States. This one involving a political figure, so it gets a new title that includes the awful « attempted assassination. » Unacceptable. Shameful. Horrifying. Sad. We seem to never run out of adjectives.

I’m here in a country with a lot of history, and a lot of it violent. It’s depicted in paintings, museums, and re-told in historical walks around the city. Our country is young, we have been lucky in a lot of ways in not having to face our Napoleon(s) who want to crown themselves King. Let’s keep it that way, as Benjamin Franklin suggested.

I’ve lived through more than a few assassinations of political and other leaders, though was a babe and don’t remember them all. I do remember it being normal, though. Kids in America today have lived through way too many mass shootings. It’s a sad part of every American’s history to know where you were when a certain shooting took place.

Not everyone is ok in Pennsylvania today – as is always the case – and that has sadly become the norm at home.

This is just a blog about my travels and my personal renaissance. While I don’t wish to ignore the going’s-on at home, I am not well-versed enough to speak to all the issues we are facing as a nation. I hope and pray we face them and overcome them with strength and grace.