Crazy week for me this week, I have stories (I always have stories!), but there may have been better ones that I missed, so forgive me if I have nothing that piques your interest. I was in a workshop for 2 days called Crucial Conversations, based on the book of the same name
On to this week’s stories!
Peace, love, and kick them when they’re down? Apparently that’s Berkeley for you. In a report released in collaboration with the National Coalition for the Homeless, the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty named the top 10 meanest cities when it comes to how they treat the homeless. In spot #10? Berkeley.
It surprised me. It seems like Berkeley has always been a haven for the homeless. Berkeley is home to People’s Park where the homeless have a permanent spot to camp out. I know that people are fed up with the “problem” in San Francisco, but I thought Berkeley had a little more heart. I am sad to see that this is not the case. To see the rest of the list, check out the article on Huffington Post.
This week was the two-year anniversary for an extraordinary program in Paris. The “Velib” system, a bike rental program, has changed the way Parisians get around, and served as a model for other pedal-powered programs around the world. And even though maintaining the network is a logistical challenge, it is the right thing to do.
I still can’t believe that this system is in the U.S. in some small form. There are 20,000 of these in Paris with about 1500 stands and despite the fact that there are a lot of bikes in the picture I took here at a stand on the Rue de Rivoli, it is usually not the case. It is a well used program that should be adopted everywhere.
Big news! For the first time since 1906, there will be stores open in Paris on Sunday in areas that are frequented by tourists. President Sarkozy wants to allow people who volunteer to work on Sunday, getting paid double their normal rate, to do so in order to boost the economy a bit. I say hallelujah.
When I lived in France and worked in Switzerland, this was always a huge debate. A lot of my Swiss and French friends believe that closing shops at 6 at night and closing completely on Sunday encourages family time, but I never saw it that way, maybe it is a part of the American in me that I cannot suppress, but I believe that is constrains my freedom to buy things when I want them. Of course, I made it work when I lived in France, but I never got used to it. But from now, if you are a future tourist visiting Paris, you will be able to shop on Sunday as well.
And now on to some fun stuff! I have two giveaway winners to announce!
First, the winner of the $70 worth of Opie & Dixie giveaway is comment #6, Jen of JenX67!
And the winner of the copy of French Women Don’t Sleep Alone
That’s it for this week, see you next Saturday!
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I love these posts. It makes me yearn for Europe and Paris specifically. Shopping on Sunday? All I can say is that we only had about 36 hrs in Paris and if we had accidentally booked for a Sunday we would've been screwed because we had no idea. Still, we had issues with dinner, etc.
The bike story is also awesome. Go Paris!!!
Hooray for Sarkozy! I knew that he'd be great for France. I can never get used to the Sunday store closures – even pharmacies and markets! The same practice holds for many places in the south of France, too (with the exception of the high tourist season in the summer). I can't wait to get back to the Riviera to see if they're planning to make similar changes.
YEAH!!!! I can't believe it. I never win nothin'!! =) Yipee. I'm so excited! Thank you!
That bike program sounds so interesting. I want to learn more about it. I think I've heard of it somewhere else, too – via Globe Trekker – one of those PBS shows.
There is a Gen Xer I followed from Philly who up and moved to Paris. He doesn't post often, but thought you might want to know. It's "Old Man Neill." I'll find the URL and DM you, also.