[kj] "Last Pogo in Paris"

Sun, 19 Oct 2003 18:44:51 +0100

Guess you're the type that sits there watching TV programs you don't like, 
complaining like hell and all the while the purpose of the "Off" button 
completely escapes you ;)

Quoting dub <dubireland@eircom.net>:

> Is this the Killing Joke list or the fucking travel show list? Fuck this
> shit. Mail yer travel report to some list that cares or off list ye
> muppet!
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: gathering-admin@misera.net [mailto:gathering-admin@misera.net] On
> Behalf Of Alex Smith
> Sent: 19 October 2003 5:59 PM
> To: gathering@misera.net; gathering@misera.net
> Subject: Re: [kj] "Last Pogo in Paris"
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Bonjour y'all....
> 
> Back from beautiful Paris, and a hearty thanks to everyone's advice of
> where/what to visit. Peg and I had a marverlous time and were truly sad
> to leave. Some highlights....
> 
> 
> Highlights....
> 
> - Instead of a hotel, we rented an apartment on Isle St.Louis from a
> little operation called Guest Service Apartments. It was completely
> wonderful, and probably a closer approximation to what it's like to
> actually live in Paris than staying in a hotel. Visit them here:
> http://www.guestapartment.fr/
> 
> - One of the nicest views of Paris is from the roof of the Arab
> Institute (itself well worth visiting).
> 
> - With one tiny exception (courtesy of a maitre'd at newly-opened
> Franco-Asian hepcat lounge, Kong), everyone in Paris was unfailingly
> nice to us.
> 
> - Apart from maybe Japan, France displays the most refreshing
> appreciation for the much-maligned art medium of comic books. The sheer
> number of well turned out and immaculately presented comic shops was
> truly heartening (for a recovering comix geek like myself). Bought a lot
> of needless Tintin & Asterix crap.
> 
> - Want to really hate your fellow countryman (more than you already
> may?) Travel abroad! Americans in Paris stick out like viscous clumps of
> tepid dung in the Foie Gras, and behave accordingly. No wonder they hate
> us. Also, the second they find out you're a Yank, the fist words out of
> their mouth are "Ahhh, George Bush!" Yeah, thanks alot. You then spend
> few minutes apologizing for him. 
> 
> - Courtesy of some of the folks on the ILM boards, I found a great
> record shop in the Bastile area called, inexplicably, BIMBO TOWER. It's
> quite hard to find (down at the ass end of a easily missed back alley),
> but it's well worth seeking out. It's teeny tiny, but they pack the
> place with all sorts of ephemera (not just music related). It's a bit of
> a geek's paradise, as its brewing with all sorts of odd material
> (Japaense toys, odd fanzines, t-shirts, totschke, etc.) Didn't find
> anything too mind blowing (wasn't looking for anything specific
> actually), but picked up a Rough Trade Post-Punk compilation just to
> show my support.
> 
> - While sipping a beer (preggy Peggy had an Orangina) at Les Deux Magot
> on the Left Bank (where Hemingway used to hang out in between visiting
> Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas at Shakespeare & Co.), we spotted
> John "Duran Duran" Taylor (well, he actually passed our table on his way
> to the men's room). At Peg's wide-eyed urging (herself a recovering
> zealous Durannie) I later interupted his salad consumption (much to the
> chagrin of the pissy woman with two-toned hair he was sitting with) and
> got him to sign and autograph (on the back of our receipt). To his
> credit, he happily obliged and was quite a hecka-swell fella about it.
> 
> - On our first night (my birthday), Peggy's parents (in town on their
> way back to Houston from Tunisia, long story) took us out to the
> legendary Lido for dinner. A highly touristy and somewhat embarassing
> joint on the Champs Elysees, the Lido is famous for being the first
> place to zealously display female breasts. Huzzah! Along with a very
> nice dinner, you are treated to a glitzy Vegas-styled show featuring
> countless numbers of topless French women and various acts of
> ridiculously over-the-top shobiz shenanigans. Honestly speaking, after a
> while, one is numbed by the sight of naked French nipples, but it was
> completely hokey and fun all the same.
> 
> - On behalf of a friend of mine here in NYC, I dragged poor Peg off one
> day in search of a mysterious place on the Left Bank (in the Latin
> Quarter) called Deyrolle. Apparently, my friend Sam's brother had
> purchased a strange poster there called "Squelette de Lapin" (Skeleton
> of the Rabitt) and he covetted it considerably. Happily obliging, Peg
> and I pinpointed Rue de Bac (the street is was supposedly situated) on
> the map and set off for it. When we reached the storefront, we found an
> empty, dusty, bare room....though with a sign saying "Le Boutique
> Deyrolle ouvert". After a few awkward moments, a rather disagreeable
> woman descended a flight of stairs, chewing me a new one in furiously
> speedy French for interupting her lunch. I stammered out my apologies in
> my broken French (you'd think after eight years of the language in grade
> school, high school and college I could manage at least one coherent
> sentence). After squinting and furrowing her brow at me, she led us
> upstairs into a truly strange set of rooms, flanked with disarmingly
> lifelike taxidermy and medical charts. Fetal pigs in jars, exotic jungle
> bugs under glass, wild boar heads protruding from the walls, it was like
> room out of The Adams Family house. Turns out they did indeed have the
> poster (a rather grotesque image which Sam's wife will invariably resent
> me for life for once he frames it and mounts it on their wall). I tried
> to convince Peg to search around for something for our house, but she
> politely demured (disembowled farm animals aren't really her aesthetic).
> Mission accomplished. In any event, next time you're in Paris, search
> this freaky place out.
> 
> Anyway, that's all for now, but we had a truly tremendous time.
> 
> Cheers,
> Alex in NYC
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ----------
> >From: "Alex Smith" <vassifer@earthlink.net>
> >To: gathering@misera.net
> >Subject: [kj] "Last Pogo in Paris"
> >Date: Fri, Oct 10, 2003, 11:40 AM
> >
> 
> >
> >Gatheruzz....your assistance, s'il vous plait...
> >
> >    As I may have mentioned, the wife and I are taking a last minute 
> >holiday before the spikey mallet of impending parenthood biffs us in 
> >the hooter. Peg's already in Germany on business right now (for the 
> >annual Frankfurt bookfair), and I'm flying over on Saturday to 
> >rendez-vous with her. From there, we're taking a train to Paris for a 
> >few days (back on the 18th with a few days to rest up before KILLING 
> >JOKE DISEMBOWEL NEW YO....er.....Killing Joke squeeze in as much music 
> >as they can into their paltry one-hour set at Webster Hall) being that 
> >once our baby arrives in April, we probably won't be going anywhere 
> >ever again. Honestly speaking, I haven't been in Paris (the "City of 
> >Light", if I'm not mistaken) since the balmy days of 1987....and most 
> >of that period was spent drunk anyway (although I do remember finding 
> >probably the only Punk Rock record store in Paris at the time called 
> >L'EVASION. Wonder if it's still there!) In any event, I'm going to be 
> >there for about one full week, and would *HAPPILY* welcome any 
> >suggestions of places/things to go see/do/experience/etc. I'm not 
> >talking about the obvious touristy shit like the Eiffel Tower, the 
> >Louvre and stupid Jim Morrison's grave, I mean cooler, a bit more 
> >esoteric stuff. Most of you know my sensibilities, so let them be your 
> >guide. Nothing outside of Paris either, as being that Peggers is 
> >preggers, we want to keep this journey relatively low-maintenance.
> >
> >Merci beaucoup in advance, mes amis!
> >
> >
> >Alex dans NYC
> >_______________________________________________
> >Gathering mailing list
> >Gathering@misera.net 
> >http://four.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/gathering
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> 
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