Paris under cover.

This morning I had to say goodby to Nicole, Chad and Abby as they headed off to Amsterdam. We had a final breakfast together and made plans to meet up again in a few weeks, back home in Cranbrook. I decided that today would be a good day for me to do some serious walking. I had read about "Les Passages" and now I shall give you a little history lesson.
In the early 19th Century Paris was in a time of peace and prosperity, and these new and "modern" covered shopping arcades (forerunners to todays malls) were a huge success-and in a city with no sewers and no pavement, these covered arcades allowed shoppers to stroll from store to store without dealing with the filth, noise and bad weather outside. At one point there were approx. 150 of these galleries, however today less than 18 remain, some in great disrepair. However, there are a few left that are still "operational" and I decided to go for a walk and check them out.
I followed the map - up and down the little streets north of the Louvre, and even though I was on the correct street according to the map, the area seemed a little seedy and, well, not quite nice. I looked for the entrance to #19 Jean-Jaques Rousseau St. and finally saw a weather beaten gate that looked to be the entrance to an alley. I was a little hesitant to enter a strange and grotty ally in an unknown area of the city, with no one knowing where I was, but I figured: "Oh what the hell, it's an adventure." So in I went, and when I turned the corner, sure enough, there was a "passageway" with glass vaulted ceilings, tiled floors and a multitude of stores. Some were empty and some were still in business with the old gas light fixtures still intact (albeit now electric) It was interesting, but not amazing. As one exits this passageway, the street is even grubbier and I wondered if this was worth the walk. I walked down the street and saw an even more grungy looking alley, however when I emerged from this one, imagine my surprise to find myself in a HUGE sort of a garden, with fountains, statues, green grass and benches to relax upon. The entire perimeter was filled with all manner of shops, from high end clothing places, to tiny little nooks that specialized in various things like music boxes or old military medals, one was nothing but tin soldiers. It was a delightful, whimsical place! Most of the stores date from 1786, and you can still eat at the Cafe de Foy from where the French Revolution broke out in 1789. My spirits were quickly raised!