" /> Manjula goes blogging...: May 2005 Archives

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May 10, 2005

Tales from Paris

You have already heard that an Atlantic leatherback meeting recently took place in Paris. All week, from morning to early evening, the participants worked very hard on leatherback issues and models, but the late evenings were spent exploring Paris. Here are a few glimpses from those evening excursions:

Happy at the Place de la Concorde

We indulge in the arts at the Musée d'Orsay

Mike James and Edo Goverse select a dinner dish from a mouth-watering menu at a charming Mediterranean restaurant in the Quartier Latin

Relaxing at a cafe in Saint Sulpice

A few anxious minutes are spent wondering why the instant photo machine at the Metro is not spitting out the photographs...

...but they pass quickly...phew!

And every night, we returned to "Le Guichet," the train stop for our hotel in Orsay

It was a jolly group that explored Paris every night...only Charles Trenet is needed in the background to complete the effect!!

May 09, 2005

Ahead of others...


This is a very charming little town called Beauregard in the region of Quercy in southwest France. The stone houses are 200 to 300 years old, whereas buidings in the town center date back to the 14th century. While the architecture takes one back several centuries, the local, ultramodern supermarket, E. Leclerc, is way ahead of many other countries in their environmental consciousness. After paying for several items at this huge grocery store, I was very pleasantly surprised to discover that no plastic bags were automatically provided for my purchases. Having not had the foresight to bring my own bag, I somehow juggled my numerous items in my arms while I waited for friends to finish their shopping. As I watched others go through the checkout counter, I realized that shoppers who had not brought their own grocery bags and needed one, simply had to pay for each of these plastic grocery bags provided by the store. They all came with a simple message: Together, let us protect the environment.