TRAVEL DIARY

A weblog regularly updated by Jodi Rose.

Friday, April 11, 2008

11:08 PM
Posted by jodi rose

I can't keep up with myself. Yesterday stroll along the Canal Saint Martin for a few hours, listening to bridges and watching the way people use them. Quite a lot of standing around in the middle, sometimes to look at the canal boats waiting for the locks to fill up - which is completely intriguing; and I am so glad to finally understand how they work - various groups of a. tourists b. a jazz band posing for photos, and c. a lone man pissing over the side of one bridge. Very patti smith although not so stylish. Discovered the best bars and cafes along the way, and found the energy afterwards to attend the nemo - media art festival - opening party. Screening: some fun animation and music clips; far more commercial than I would have expected, had i thought about it beforehand, great to see a few music video clips though, I really miss that about Australia. Rage!! Gorgeous performance; really stunning images and abstract sounds; although a few moments of 'look what i can do with my new toy', mostly fabulous. Excellent french pastries, and very friendly crowd, in elysee cinema just off the champs elysees; which made me feel very special.

Toda, after the trip to simone de beauvoir bridge, visited mains d'oeuvres and heard the complaint choir - beautiful performance; although missed all the content as it was in french, but gather a litany of complaints about everyday life. Sung with vigour and zeal. Met Laura, and hung out on the balcony outside the office looking over the city - away from the peripherique, everything changes very quickly. Amazing how such an artifical; arbitary boundary can have so much impact. Caught the bus back into town, beautiful ride through those picturesque parisian streets, missed the stop I thought I wanted; then found the one I ended up at was exactly the right metro line with no changes. Perfect.

Out past the city boundary again now; over the river at Sevres - next to the famous ceramic factory, which now apparently only produces ceremonial plates for royalty and special ocassions; it has lots of gold inside, and enormous kilns the size of a small castle. Everyone is running around at La Generale; preparing for the big event tomorrow; art installations; opening; tours to versaille sculpture park and some other nearby cultural organisations; then a concert back here in the evening. In the ballroom. Too magnificent. Maybe I will chance a visit downstairs to see what the kids are up to. Crazy French artists; I love them, and seem to have exchanged one set for another. Superb.