Over the hills, under the moon - and off the beaten path

During our recent wanderings in Paris, we  - quite unexpectedly - had an apartment 'jumping upon us' when we happened to look at the window of a real estate agent. The displayed apartment was tiny but manageable - and most important: It was in our favorite area of the 18th arrondissement with a rooftop terrace and the most fantastic view across the iconic grey zinc roofs of Paris up towards the Sacre Coeur. We contacted the agent and visited the apartment, we stood on the terrace and enjoyed the view, we talked to our bank at home and we thought hard for the next few days, but -  eventually - we gave it up! It was too nerve-racking to buy the very first Paris property, we had ever looked at. We felt we needed to have a further look around.  Now - weeks later, we fear this apartment might actually turn out to have been the best find we will ever have inside our possible price bracket.  Regardless of possible regrets - 'our' apartment is way gone. In the overheated rea...

  Am I surrounded by crackpots or concerned citizens? Probably a bit of both.  But one thing is certain. The people marching the streets of Paris this Saturday are mad as hell and the throngs of policemen and gendarmes in full riot gear, constantly running and shifting positions, seem ready to attack every moment. The demonstrators, who have taken to the streets every Saturday since the end of July, are opposing the French 'health pass' which is required if you want to access restaurants, museums, cinemas, and inter-city train travel. To get the pass, people need to be fully vaccinated, have a recent negative test, or have proof they recently recovered from the virus.   The marchers, I talk to, say they are here because they do not want to be "guinea pigs" for new vaccines. Some, who had already been vaccinated, see the imposition of the French health pass as a "disguised obligation to vaccinate" and the perceived start of a "control society...