Thursday, November 19, 2009

When was it love at first sight?

Paris did me in. Much like a tall, athletic, attractive man. I had just turned 18 and it was my first experience outside of the United States. It was love at first sight but I really believe those first lovely inclinations nuzzled into my heart many years before through my grandma's (Grumsie) stories. She was a travel agent and guide. She's been everywhere and she's everything. A truly amazing woman.

Paris was it. Love at first sight. The romance, charm, beautiful language. It was everything I imagined of Europe and more. We went for ten days. The Louvre, Champs Elysees, Seine River, Eiffel Tower, Sacre Coeur, Jewish Quarter and so much more culture, art and history. But Paris, even throughout the beauty and elegance, has problems. A few years ago the headlines were all about France's negligence towards immigrants and before that it was war for independence with Algeria. How about if you keep digging further into the pass? Ever heard of the Vel' d' hiv' (Velodrome d'hiver) Round-up? July 16, 1942? Google it. You won't easily find a Wikipedia entry and not much else mainstream. Many French don't know much about and if they do, they don't talk about it. It's the past and why rehash the past? A little history....

It was the greatest mass-arrests of Jews ever carried out on French soil during World War II. It involved 13,000 victims from Paris and its suburbs. Nearly a third of the 42,000 Jews in France were deported to Polish death camps. Due to rumors of round-ups many men went into hiding so almost two-thirds of those detained were women and children (5,802 and 4,051 respectively). Single adults and childless couples were taken to the Drancy Camp, while families (8,160 men, women, and children) were assembled in the Velodrome d'hiver. From July 19 to 22, they were transferred to camps in the Loiret, where the children were forcibly removed from their mothers by the French gendarmerie. In August, the children were deported unaccompanied via Drancy to the Auschwitz gas chambers. Very few survived. Those responsible were never tried.

Check the history books and scan the Parisian streets for plaques. There aren't many and those you find are small and forgotten. But they are there.

Another Road

I love to travel. I'm also a horrible blogger. Between work, friends, ski season, and finding a new job, blogging is on the tail end of my to-do list. But I think if I can switch gears to something I love: travel, then I might have a fighting chance.

So start looking for new posts. Posts about where I've explored and lived; where I dream of knowing inside out; and where I love to back to again and again.

Raise your glass! Here is to turning a new leaf.