30 April: Hot Hot Heat
We headed to our favorite wi-fi enabled cafe, Le Tabac de la Sorbonne, which translates to the Tobacco Shop of the Sorbonne, but it's really just a cafe with a portion of the interior devoted to selling cigarettes. (If you've seen Amelie, it's the corner of the cafe where the frumpy, hypochondriac woman worked.) We had to find some relief from the sudden heat wave that's descended upon Paris. Friday was closing in on 80 degrees, and we've surely passed that mark today.

We ordered two moyen (middle-sized) Hoegaardens, which turned out to be quite large indeed. The 50 cl (centiliter) almost looked like small flower pots, and their volume was about equal to just short of two pints beer back in Seattle. Despite our initial shock at the size, they were very refreshing and we didn't have too much trouble getting them down.

We were served by our favorite waiter, who seems to one of many folks we run into who enjoy their jobs. He likes to make a bit of a show opening bottles, using his shoulder for leverage as he pops it open with his waiter's bottle opener. We've been to the Tabac several times now and he recognizes us, and even shook my hand today, telling us (in French, translated by my wife as I looked on with a dumb-as-bricks smile) that he was very glad to see us today but was sorry he hadn't had the chance to talk with us (the outdoor terrace was completely full of thirsty customers and he was rushing about maybe a bit too quickly as we heard a few bottles go crashing).

The one downside to the Tabac is that they charge 0.30 euros per minute for wi-fi connection on my SmartPass (the connection account I use after the 15-minute free pass has expired), which is more than other locales have charged (which varies between 0.10 and 0.15 euros). But it's such a nice square and great service that I'm certain we'll be back.