Meetup.com

One of the best tips Marilee (who owns the apt. we are living in) gave us is to check out a websiste called Meetup.  It's a site designed to matchup people with similar interests in a city or area.  In our case, Paris.  What a find!  Bob has really enjoyed the photo groups on Meetup, we both enjoy the walking and hiking meetups, and I was able to add a Bootcamp workout to my Paris experience thanks to Meetup!  It's not just a Paris phenomenon, I understand that there are Meetup websites in many large cities throughout the world.  

My first few tries to attend events on Meetup were nonstarters.  I signed up for a Circuit Training class in one of the many lovely Parks, only to have it cancelled a day before.  Even my first Bootcamp meetup was cancelled.  It would have been held in the evening (not my favorite time, as I enjoy having "wine time" around 5 or 6 each evening), and was cancelled because the instructor was having trouble getting back to the city after the August holiday so many Parisians enjoy.  The instructor, Chris, is a British man who married a Parisian and came "kicking and screaming" to Paris (his words).  It turns out that he also teaches classses ourtside of the meetup schedule that are in the morning!  Perfect for me! So now I am a regular Thursday "Bumper and Jumper", as he calls us. I also go on Saturday Mornings.  There are usuallly 8 to 10 others of varying ages and conditioning, so I can easily keep up. I'm sure I'm the oldest in the class, but it feels good  that I don't fall behind!

Since class is held at the Champs de Mars, by the Eiffel Tower, you never know what you'll see or who will see you!  The first Thursday class I attended, we were witness to a "rumble" between rival Roma groups.  They frequent the Eiffel Tower to hit up tourists for money by pretending to be deaf, or asking you to sign a petition and donate $$, or...  These two groups almost came to blows, and there was alot of yelling, and we assume cussing going on!  This Thursday, there was a man dressed all in black with a beret, who was filming himself juggling 5 bright red balls.  He must have done about 15 takes, each ending with a dramatic flourish and a smile.  He looked "oh so French"!  Of course, his backdrop was the Eiffel Tower!  We also have to be very careful about broken glass on the grass from partiers the previous evening. Another good reason for going to a morning rather than evening class!

Chris has invited Bob to come sometime and take photos, so perhaps next week I'll have more photos to share.  Here's one that Chris snapped of me at the end of class.  I just love the background view!

Other groups I've signed up for on Meetup are French Language and Sketching.  These are not as active of groups as some, but I did manage to get to one of the French Meetups, nevermind that the organizer was a no-show!  Unfortunately, she injured her back the morning we were to meet, but four of us met up at the Cafe at 8:30 a.m. and managed to connect.  It was a friendly group of young women: Kirsten from Minnesota working as an Au Pere for a year; Sandra from Vancouver B.C. here because of her French boyfriend, and Ann from Thailand, here with her husband and 2 yr. old child.  I was quite nervous prior to the meeting, afraid that my "kindergarten" French would humiliate me.  Well, I needn't have worried, the others were only slightly better than me. We talked in English getting to know one another a bit, but when we realized that Sandrine, the leader was going to be absent, we broke into French for the rest of the hour.  It was good practice and we all agred to come again if another meetup was publilshed.  I also joined a French for people of a "certain age" group (aka, over 50)... I will attend my first meeting of this group next Wednesday afternoon, so stay tuned!

Tomorrow is my first Sketching Meetup.  We are to meet at in the Parc del La Villette in the 19th Arrondisment.  There is a very large art installation there and we are to meet "near the huge Monkey in the fountain"!  More on this later....