Yesterday was a nice day in Paris, sunny and warm. Since I didn’t care a bit about our sorry soccer team, I went to meet one of my friends who works close to the Louvre.
We had a nice friendly girly chat and then it was time for another appointment.
Since it was so sunny and I’m getting used to my ankle «apparatus», I decided to take a leisurely walk along the Seine, at least for a while. The sidewalk was much too crowded so I crossed the road and decided instead to stroll around Saint-Germain-l’Auxerrois. The history of this church is quite interesting but won’t be my point today.
I always carry a camera with me, just in case! So there I was, taking pictures of the church front... very oblivious to my surroundings, the way I always get when I’m taking pictures.
But all of a sudden, I heard a metallic sound right by my feet. It kind of startled me. Right in front of me, there was this shining golden ring lying on the pavement and still oscillating.
A ring falling from the sky? Goodness gracious! No one around...
I was wondering whether or not to pick it up when a man’s hand did it for me.
It really startled me out. The guy was young and smiling at me. He held the ring to me and said in quite a good French with a mild eastern accent: «There you are, Madame. Look what I found for you. A lucky charm for you. This is for you. I found it for you. Take it, please.» And on and on...
I didn’t want it but I hated to create a scandal in public. Passers-by were darting curious glances at us. So I took the ring with a thank you and started walking away.
The guy who was very tall came after me. How stupid I can be!
«Now that I gave you the lucky charm, won’t you give me some money?» There no longer was a smile on his face. I could feel he was desperate and really hard up.
I dug into my purse where I keep a few coins, just in case, found one 2 euros coin. I took it out and I stuck them in his begging hand, along with his ‘lucky charm’... and kind of limped away. Wished I could have run because the guy was screaming to the top of his lungs: «But Madame, this is your lucky charm. See. It’s too small for me. This one belongs to you. I want to give it back to you.»
Could have been a lucky charm after all. Had I put it on my finger, I would have become invisible. So much fun!
Hey, wake up, girl! This really was a swindle but an interesting one... A real artist!
How did I get away tho, me and my purse and my camera? A empty cab happened to be driving by! Lucky me after all.
*Good Luck, and Good Night*
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