6/23

Today after Lecture, we had 3 hours for lunch so I decided to go to the Espace Dali, a permanent exhibition in Paris dedicated to Dali.  I was excited because I am a big fan and had never seen such a wide collection of his works. 

When I exited the subway, there was a big crowd of pickpockets, women and children with their cardboard and pens in hand ready to ask me if I spoke English.  I tried to quickly maneuver through them and soon forgot about them as I headed to the exhibit.

When I finally got to the gallery, I did kind of get lost in the neighborhood, note to self: not a good idea, I had plenty of time to look at the collection.  It was a small building and the pieces covered every inch of the walls.  I liked the way the museum was organized, explaining his works and the different stages in detail.  There were a few people in the museum as well, mostly tourists.   The works were so interesting; for example, there was a golden obelisk on a bronze elephant’s back and the elephant had ostrich like legs.  I enjoyed the darker atmosphere of the exhibit, where the works seemed more disoriented and eerily fitting against a dark background.  The different techniques and stages of works were unique and I like how his famous motifs, like the melting clock and insects, were repeated across much of his work.

Afterwards, when I left the exhibit and headed back to the sloped stairs to get back to the subway I saw many of the pickpockets I mentioned before sitting along the wall (last three pictures).  The police were at the top of the stairs frisking them before they could pass.  And after they were checked, they had to sit in the hot sun against the wall where the police questioned them again, demanding them to return the stolen items.  The stolen items were placed in front of the group.  A small crowd had gathered to watch this crackdown on pickpockets.  I felt guilty for taking pictures of them and taking part in making a spectacle out of them.

This was when I realized Paris wasn't just about the visiting the ancient sites, eating, or viewing art and architecture, it’s also about understanding the continuous melding of people there and how it impacts modern Parisian culture.  The growing immigrant community, and their culture and ways of survival, be it positive or negative, have affected and become part of what is considered modern Parisian culture.  For example, pick-pocketing was a means of survival for so many immigrants and it has slowly become the norm to not only the locals but also the tourists traveling throughout Paris or other European cities.  Before I came to Europe, I heard about pick-pocketing and I thought everyone did it so I had to be suspicious of everyone, but its only when  I’m really here do I see that the people go about their own business and probably try not to get pick-pocketed or mistaken for tourists.  The Parisians have come to accept and deal with pick-pocketing and many other bits of the different immigrants’ culture, as their own and it is also becoming a big melting pot.

Well, I certainly put that subway ride back to use to think about this.  And I even made it back with a half hour to spare before our first walk began.

Thank goodness for technology! I'm not trying to get lost ;)