Paris

Back from a trip to Paris. Stopped by London while I was there. Wonderful trip. I don't want to be back. Saw an awesome and extremely modern performance at Theatre National de Chaillot called Iiris by Philippe Decoufle. Started out really weird, one thinks, what's going on? Gradually, the movements, the music, merge, the video screen behind also brings in an additional element not normally present in traditional presentations. I thought it was interesting commentary when a Chinese dancer dressed like Woody from Toy Story rode on his horse in the Chinese opera sense (with a wooden stick, if you've seen Chinese opera, you know what I mean) all the while in the background a video screen showed images of bombings and nuclear explosions and a voice repeatedly chanted "I am peace" (in French).

I also had the chance to visit the Institut de France, saw their library (it's what you would dream a library to be like), and ate with the Vice President (lamb, yum). Can you believe Fourier's original publication on the Fourier Transform is in that library? It's like, wow..cool. Many of the articles are works of art that are just as beautiful as the Mona Lisa or the Virgin on the Rocks! Funny I had just finished reading the Da Vinci Code, so I got to take a semi look around the locations mentioned in the text. It's a wonderful story isn't it? I would so like to believe in it.