Treasures from the Auguste-Blanqui Market in Paris

On Friday mornings in Paris, the rambling Auguste-Blanqui Market is in full swing. When you get off the Metro at Place d'Italie you're immediately caught up in the swirl of activity, which extends for many, many blocks. The vendors mainly sell edibles, but there are other treasures to be found.

I'm contemplating the figues de Barbarie or prickly pears

One of many cheese stands

Dean admired these tomatoes

I happened upon a basket full of African bracelets and I had to have some. I should have bought more than three. C'est la vie.

The basket of colorful bracelets

                      Then I saw some typically French espadrilles and I had to have some.

Modeling my purchases from the market

Our plan was to walk up to the the nearby Butte aux Cailles after the market and sit in the lovely park we had discovered on a previous trip. The Butte aux Cailles (quails) was originally a tiny village on the outskirts of Paris. It's flowering gardens and cobblestone lanes dotted with convivial bars and restaurants is now an integral part of the 13th arrondissement. We enjoyed staying there when we went on a Yoga trip years ago.

Above is a typical view from our park. And then we decided to walk up Rue Gobelins to Rue Mouffetard, as we had done a few times on previous trips. But unfortunately we had left our maps at the hotel. This being the quaint Butte aux Cailles, we passed a dusty old newsstand and the proprietor found a couple of Paris maps buried deep in a dusty drawer. We bought one and it turned out to be the best "plan" we had ever seen. We kept it and we'll take it along next visit.

I'm working on a longer blog about the Loire Valley but in the meantime I decided to post this little ditty.