Metro-less Marshmallow Fluff

So the metro's been on strike since Wednesday. So I've taken this opportunity to actually get out and walk and see my quartier, the 15th.

Yesterday, I climbed (via elevator) the Montparnasse Tower, the tallest business builing in France, and took in a fantastic view of the city from the 56th floor restaurant and 58th floor observation deck. 360 degrees of sun-beaten Paris, with few clouds (but still a slight visibility block, due to some type of smog, I guess). Check out the pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/maggiemagee1/MontparnasseCemetaryTower?authkey=1ng4dwLP-Qc

The first 20 photos or so are of the Montparnasse Cemetery, which I had checked out the week before. Those really old cemeteries are cool to take pictures of. And, in those photos, you can see the huge black Montparnasse Tower in the backround.

Today I went out in my new brown plaid knee-length coat and walked up Rue de Rennes and St. Germain and some other little sidestreet, eventually making my way to this tiny park across the Seine with a splendid view of Notre Dame (last two photos of the series). I was exhausted from 2 hours of walking in the freezing cold, so by some stroke of luck I ventured in the Metro in hopes of catching one of the very few trains that were still running, and as soon as I stepped foot onto the line 4 platform, a metro came chugging along and I silently did a little dance in my head.

Highlight of the day? Checking out the exotic foods in the Bon Marche (very $$ mall) Whole Foods-like grocery store. In the "United States/Canda" section, the specialties were marshmallow fluff, Mississippi peanut butter, and candy. So that's what they think of us.