The Resistance 1940-1944

This Friday, Peter, Martha, Erica, Jessica, Eric (and another visiting American friend) took the walking Left Bank tour of the Resistance and Occupation given by our friend Mary-Ellen.  We want to put in a plug for Mary-Ellen, a seasoned English language tour guide with Paris Walks found here and more detail about the tour guides including Mary-Ellen here.

The Entourage

     Using plaques, sculptures, photographs and written testimonies from ordinary people who did heroic acts during the German occupation of France, we learned about everyday life during the Occupation, including poignant stories about how the secret resistance operated, always at great risk of torture and death.  Participation in the Resistance was always of short duration (six months being the maximum time allowed). There were betrayals by neighbors and co-workers.  Mary-Ellen talked about the plight of the Jews living in France and the round ups.  The most heartbreaking moment of the tour was when Mary-Ellen read the last letters students wrote to their parents just before their executions.  It was a very powerful learning experience for all of us. 

Étudiants morts dans la Résistance

Bronze statue in Jardin du Luxembourg of two young men.

One is falling; the other stands proud.

Ami, si tu tombes, un ami sort de l'ombre à ta place.

Friend, when you fall, a friend will step out of the shadow and take your place.

We thought you might enjoy reading an abbreviated English translation of DeGaulle’s famous appeal to the French people on June 18, 1940 to rise up against the Germans, often considered the start of the Resistance.

"The leaders who, for many years, have been at the head of the French armies have formed a government. This government, alleging the defeat of our armies, has made contact with the enemy in order to stop the fighting. It is true, we were, we are, overwhelmed by the mechanical, ground and air forces of the enemy…

"But has the last word been said? Must hope disappear? Is defeat final? No!
Believe me, I who am speaking to you with full knowledge of the facts, and who tell you that nothing is lost for France…For France is not alone! She is not alone! She is not alone! She has a vast Empire behind her… 

"This war is not limited to the unfortunate territory of our country…This war is a worldwide war…Vanquished today by mechanical force, in the future we will be able to overcome by a superior mechanical force. The fate of the world depends on it. 

"I, General de Gaulle, currently in London, invite the officers and the French soldiers who are located in British territory or who might end up here…to put themselves in contact with me. 

"Whatever happens, the flame of the French resistance must not be extinguished and will not be extinguished…

                   Charles DeGaulle 18-June, 1940

Holes remain in the wall since August 1944,

from bullets shot during the liberation of Paris.

Le Calife – A restaurant cruising the Seine

Last night, we had an unusual and delightful dining and sightseeing experience. Jessica and I joined Erica, Martha and Peter for a great meal on the river. We boarded our riverboat docked across from the Louvre at 8:00 PM in a light rain. After settling in at our table, we ordered our food and drink, and began a great evening. Soon we were on our way upstream toward Notre Dame.

There is nothing quite like moving along a river, relaxing with food, drink, and friends, taking in the experience. After passing Notre Dame, we noticed an unusually lit large room atop a building on the left bank. This was was La tour d’Argent, literally translated the Silver Tower, but a great play on words since Argent also translates to “money” and La Tour d’Argent is perhaps the most expensive restaurant in Paris.

Just beyond that point, we turned around and began heading downstream. We again passed Notre Dame on the other side. (Notre Dame is on the island Île de la Cité which is located in the middle of the Seine.) 

We passed the Louvre the enormity of which is well appreciated from the river. All the while, we ate and drank none too wisely but well.

We passed the Eiffel Tower at 10:00 PM, well timed to see the display of lights (see below) which are turned on for a few minutes at the top of the hour. 

On the hour, thousands of lights flash on the Eiffel Tower, making it one of the most spectacular sights in the city. 

We saw a miniature version of the statue of liberty located on an island in the middle of the river.

Each bridge is a work of art. Amazing sculptures are present on most of the bridges, to be seen only by the river traffic.

It was a great experience and we recommend it. You can get more information here.

Heroes

This story begins in the Paris Metro a few days ago. Jessica’s sister Erica met her friends Peter and Martha at the Gare de Paris-Est train station upon their arrival from Berlin Friday evening. While waiting for the metro to take them from the train station to our home, Martha rearranged her jacket and bags and had not quite gotten things together when the metro train arrived. They jumped on the train.

    As the doors were closing, a young, observant Parisian named Pierre spoke urgently to Martha, saying that she did not have as many possessions as she had when she arrived in the metro station. Sure enough, Martha had left two bags on the platform that contained their money, passports and other belongings that one does not really want to lose.

    During the two-minute ride to the next stop, Pierre had time to scheme. When the doors opened, he bolted up the stairs and across to the opposite platform, caught the train going in the opposite direction, and traveled back to the previous stop. Pierre’s girlfriend Eva got Peter, Martha and Erica off the train, all the while keeping in cell phone contact with Pierre.

    When Pierre returned to the original metro platform, the bags were nowhere in sight. A homeless man, surrounded by all his worldly possessions, lay close to the spot where they had boarded the train.

Peter simulating a homeless person in the metro

    Pierre questioned the man. He denied any knowledge of the missing belongings.  Pierre, however, noticed something sticking out from behind the homeless man’s pillow.  The two bags were “recovered”.

    Pierre returned on the next train to his girlfriend Eva, Peter, Martha and Erica who already knew of the successful recovery. Gracious tears were shed, kisses given, and Peter and Martha extended a drink invitation to Pierre and Eva.

    They accepted and the five of them had a great conversation and Martha told them what a great heart Pierre had.

    In the course of their conversation, they learned that Pierre and Eva live near us in the 7^th arrondissement. Pierre has some notoriety in the skateboard community since he has skateboarded from Paris to Copenhagen, and from San Francisco to San Diego!  Eva biked with him on the California trip.  Martha told them about the AIDS bike ride she did from San Francisco to Los Angeles, establishing an even greater connection.   You can go to Pierre and Eva’s blog here to see the marvelous photography of Pierre on his custom skateboard and Eva on her bike.

So, the next time someone says something nasty about the Parisians, just remember the story of Pierre and Eva.

Opening a checking account in France

For the fourth time since we got here, we attempted to open a checking account. Why would we even want a checking account, you might ask. Three reasons:

1.              We wanted “chip and PIN” credit cards (more on that later).

2.              We wanted to have some permanence to our cell phone account, rather than buy-as-we-go SIM cards. One must have a checking account in order to obtain a cell phone contract.

3.              To pay our landlady by check, and to minimize transfer costs from our US bank account.

   On our first attempt, we presented our passports and rental agreement to the bank person. “And where do you work in France?” We pointed out that our visitor’s Visa explicitly forbids us from working in France, and that we had to prove that we were able to support ourselves without work. Non. “no job, no checking account, no exceptions”

   On our 2^nd attempt, the conversation was brief:  Non.  We were then advised to try the Post Office. In France, le Bureau de Poste also provides banking functions, and we were told that all we would need are passports and rental agreement proving that we lived somewhere in Paris.

So, our 3^rd attempt at le Bureau de Poste at first went smoothly – until we were asked for our Renters Insurance. We were told the rules are complicated. Renters insurance is required to open a checking account (!?)  We provided him with a copy of our US Renters Insurance policy, and a letter from State Farm stating that the insurance fully follows us to France. Non. The policy must be written in French.

So finally, our fourth attempt:  Our landlady spoke to someone at her bank, and learned that non-residents could open a non-resident bank account IF they could provide passports, rental contract, and proof that they pay taxes in a different country. So off to the bank we went, armed with our documents.

            “Non” we were told. “America has a new law forbidding Americans from opening foreign bank accounts (!!!???).  We explained in our fractured French that we are living here, we have been told explicitly by a member of your bank that such a non-resident account is possible.  “Ah, you actually live here. You are not just visiting.” Right. There was a breakthrough. She relented and transformed from gatekeeper to sales person, showing us pretty brochures of the various accounts and credit cards (they are actually debit cards, but they are called carte de credit.)  We then witnessed the transformation of several board-feet of paper into more fine print than a law firm’s incorporation documents. After 20 minutes of nearly constant printing by the laser printer, we began to wonder how many more trees would have to die for this endeavor.

We did emerge with a checking account, and our chip and PIN cards would arrive at the bank in a few days.  Now we could then move on to Orange (France’s answer to Verizon) to convert our smart phones to French smart phones. We presented our passports, rental agreement, AND our new bank account number and Voilà! We had smart phones with brain transplants!

A word about credit cards:

The rest of the world is way ahead of the US on this one. The magnetic stripe on US cards is old technology. The rest of the world has converted to chip and PIN which is difficult to use if stolen, and difficult to counterfeit. Although most vendors in France have credit card readers that will accept cards with magnetic stripes, many do not. Most ATM machines in Europe will not accept cards with only a magnetic stripe.

The preferred card has an embedded computer chip that not only stores data, but also performs encrypted data processing. We tried unsuccessfully to obtain chip and PIN cards prior to leaving the US.  We were able to obtain a hybrid – chip and sign card (even though there is a PIN). This card has a chip and a magnetic stripe. That means it can be read by all the vendors, but a signature is required rather than a PIN. So if the card is stolen, it can be used with a fake signature. However, it cannot be used in an ATM unless the thief also has the PIN. Soon we will have our French cards, and I will worry a little less about our cards being stolen.

For more information about how credit cards work, check out this description of the technology.

  

We are making headway here.  Today Jessica got a loyalty card at Monoprix, the Paris approximation of Target, and successfully maneuvered self check-out en Français.