THE REST OF THE STREET SEEMS ORDINARY AT FIRST

ON RUE DE TOLBIAC BEYOND THE CROSSROAD, BUILDINGS ARE BANAL AND ANIMATION ABSENT 

But soon you pass what sets the neighborhood apart:

• Street art

• A City-run center for center for youth 

PHOTO

• An escalator

View from the top of the escalator: The next pages explain.

# # #

At the bus and métro stop, vendors from Bangladesh sold exotic fruit and vegetables...

A vendor under the snow.

Until the police forbade them (in 2022).

I miss the avocados, mangoes and herbs,

and the smiles of courage and good humor.

# # #

Added in August 2025: 

Vendors are back!

But a month later they had left. 

End of this section.

*    *    *

The next section,

3.1.3.

High-rises built too soon