This is a Breton cafe in Paris near the Montparnasse station.
Today France loosens it’s lockdown rules. This morning it was sunny and bright and we went to the local market. When we got there people were bustling about in a very jolly mood, and Heavens to Betsey the cafes were open! Well kind of. They are now legally open if everyone stays outside and socially distances.
They have set up gigantic tents outside the cafes. Surprisingly, this is easy in our teensy weensy little country town. The center of town is a big parking lot and the cafes just take over some spaces.
This is not the case in bigger towns where sidewalk space is at a premium. Small, cobbled streets are beautiful but not great for improvised, outdoor cavorting. In some towns they are levering in more people by installing plexiglass dividers. If you are going to invest in anything, plexiglass is probably a good place to start.
After we picked up our cheese and ham and creme fraiche, we managed to snaffle a table at the Cafe de la Place and ordered our first, cafe-made grande creme for the last seven months. At the table we could take off our masks. It’s been such a long time since I’ve seen lots of peoples’ faces in the same room. It was wonderful. Bretons are quite grouchy and taciturn but it was a real pleasure to see.
It turned out our neighbor was sitting down next to us and I did not recognized him. I hadn’t seen his face since September.
This is just the first phase of unlocking-down. The French government is taking baby steps towards normality. I suspect the French themselves are champing at the bit; this summer is going to see an avalanche of francaises out having a good time.