Some people go to Paris to see the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe, and the Louvre, to shop at the chic boutiques along the Champs-Elysees, or maybe to dine at one of its haute restaurants and take in a famous review. Not us! While we can't claim to have done all the "must dos" in the City of Lights, it's the simpler pleasures of Paris that we?ve learned to appreciate.

Our visit during the fall of '95 was only for three days, but because we went without agenda, without the pressure to see this or to do that, it was one of our most interesting and relaxed. To borrow an expression from my Generation-X sons, we were just "hanging out."

One of the best ways to "hang out" in Paris is from a cozy and home-like apartment, and as our taxi made its way through the early evening crowds along the rue Rambuteau in the colorful Marais district, we were charged with excitement at the prospect of experiencing Paris like a native. Then it turned into a gray side street and stopped a half block down at No. 11 rue Pecquay, the address we'd been given. What greeted us was an undistinguished, gray-painted portal into a non-descript gray building. Could this really be the place?

Spring/Summer 1996