Culture Shocks

Walking around Paris one is struck by the juxtaposition of the traditional and the modern, like the courtyard in the Palais Royale that the Ministry of Culture has elected to fill with black and white striped columns for no particular reason.



A smaller culture shock comes from the presentation of pre-tied bow ties in the best shops in Paris. They are tied by hand with a buckle back so they can be donned and removed without tieing or untieing the knot. Of course, the buckle would be a real faux pax with a wing collar, not that we have many of those to worry about any longer.

I find this a bit odd in that we are advised not to leave our four in hands knotted, but the bow ties in several Paris stores are sold this way and who am I to argue? I'll wear it this way once, with my blue mohair suit, before I untie it. It would never do to find that I can't put Humpty Dumpty together again without so much as a single wearing.