Writing in Paris

"If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life, it stays with you, for Paris is a moveable feast." Ernest Hemingway, 1950

It was not going to be possible for me to go through a year in Paris, a year of writing and blogging without mentioning one of my favourites, good old Ernest. Seeing Paris through his eyes and descriptions in "A Moveable Feast" has always been a joy for me. Many of the neighbourhoods he writes about, I know well. Many of the feelings he had about Paris, I have and will always have. Paris has always been part of my life, always will be and when I am not here, I take Paris with me wherever I go. When I return, she welcomes me back with open arms.

It has been such a treat to be able to spend much of my free time in Paris writing. Yes it sounds like a cliche, coming to Paris to write, but it was one of my main personal goals for this year. I am now onto my fourth writing class with WICE and these keep on getting better and better. I am lucky to be part of a class/workshop being taught by the lovely Christine Buckley, a talented writer, author, who is motivating, generous with her time, full of constructive, helpful feedback and ideas. We are currently a small group of five students, from various parts of the world, in a Memoir class, all writing about such varied experiences in our lives, many life changing. I feel fortunate to be sharing in these ladies stories and memoirs. There are going to be some captivating and bittersweet articles, books and memoirs coming out of this group.

Focusing on my writing has led to me being hunched over my computer for far too many hours. This has led to large painful knots in my shoulders. When this first happened, I rushed out seeking a massage therapist to pound out my knots and pain. The first place I looked, that I pass regularly in the neighbourhood, had young Asian women in tight revealing clothing on their web site indicating that they were "available at any time for their clients needs." I did not think this was what I was looking for. I have found a Thai massage therapist nearby, who beats me up trying to relieve my pain. This includes climbing up on the table, driving her elbows into my knots, back and neck and karate like chops on my corpse. She tells me that I need to come weekly for this treatment. I agree. I am not sure about the breast massage though. This has never been part of my Canadian massage experience. This could certainly be part of a Thai massage but I suspect it could be the French influence as well. This is not part of the Paris I take with me wherever I go, but all the cafes I have written in, the fellow writers I have met, the inspiration this city gives me and the many words I have put down on paper are all an element of my very own personal Paris. My very own moveable feast. Merci Ernest!