title: streets of paris 1: the people

the general pleasantness of the parisians, especially when the weather is nice, came as something of a surprise to me. all we ever hear about the french in america is that they are grumpy and short-tempered. oh yeah, and that they hate us. well, i ran into the sort of americans that even americans hate (i.e. the kind who pronounce pigalle like "pig-alley", which i promise is something i actually heard), and that was the only time i felt self-conscious of my nationality. and at that point, my mom, aunt, and i were laughing at these people along with the rest of the metro car. here are some images of the people of paris, being cute and all-around french.
yup, that's a didgeridoo. the caliber of street performers in paris sets the bar very high for the rest of the world. take this guy for example:i don't know if you can tell, but he has a live goldfish in that jar on top of his head. and he was actually managing to juggle and dance in time with the music. he so deserved the money he was earning! i also gave some change to a guy playing "volare" on his guitar in the metro, and a guy who was playing the entire amelie soundtrack on his accordian in a metro station. i wasn't the only one with her camera at the ready! these people are all taking photos of a solid chocolate-and-swarovski-crystal representation of the paris opera. decadence, thy name is paris.
and what would a post about the people i saw in paris be without photos of my beloved mommy and auntie?
this was while having coffee on the first level of the eiffel tower. yum!
next up will be the sequel: the streets of paris sans people. (i just rhymed)