Paris Time Patrol seven

Auto-Tamponeuses. Auto-bumpers. Paris, 1964

“So you can’t turn back the clock, Scotty?”

Saint-Sulpice. 2016. Tourists still roam the church, with Dan Brown in hand.

“No Sir. I wish I could. I actually tried, but there is just no way.”

Saint-Sulpice. 1964. At second glance, there was a guy with a ladder running around everywhere in Paris at the time. See a previous Time Patrol, Place de la Concorde.

“I know, Scotty. Thank you for trying. So, all this… Time-Space travel thing is just a farce, a charade, a shadow?”

Elegante on the Champs-Elysées. 1964

“Not a shadow, Sir, more like specks of light.”

“Care to elaborate, my Chief-Engineer friend?”

Greek élégante (Goddess Athena) around the 5th or 3rd century BC. Louvre. 2016. She is not very different from the 1964 lady above, or the the next two:

“We can’t really go back in Time. Time is just a one-way street. So far. Our best people are working on it. But we can LOOK back. Any time someone steps into the light, the image can be captured forever. Your great-grandmother’s childhood photograph, back in the 19th century in India captured the specks of light that she was. At that time.”

Salle des caryatides. In Pierre Lescot’s 16th century ground floor wing, four sculptures were executed by Jean Goujon. Dress up those ladies in to-day’s fashion and none will be the wiser.

“You’re getting very poetic, Scotty. Next thing I know, you will tell me that we are Stardust.”

A Paris Élégante, Metro ad. C. 2016. Compare to the above.

“We are, Sir. Stardust. All matter, all molecules in the universe were originally formed in the heart of a star. So technically, we, you are, stardust.”

“Tell that to Uhura, my friend. How does that help us? If we can only look back and not go back?”

Tour Saint-Jacques. Paris. 1964. The former bell tower of the church of Saint-Jean de la Boucherie, it was built early 16th century, between 1509 and 1532. 

“Eyes, Sir. To begin with. Some people, with very good memory, can store away 90-95% of what or who they see. We are working on the possibility of retrieving and storing those visual memories. Another route is what we use on this Time-Space shuttle. I won’t go into the technicalities, but…”

“Please don’t. I flunked that at the Academy…”

Above and below: Tour Saint-Jacques, c.2015-2016.

Blaise Pascal, (1623-1662) French mathematician and philosopher is said to have conducted experiments on gravity from the top of the tower.

“Mirrors, Sir. We use high power mirrors, extremely high power. They allow us to ‘look back'”.

“Mirrors? Please elaborate, Scotty.”

Cour carrée. Louvre. c. 1964. Built in the 17th century during the reign of Louis XIV.

“Think about a radio-telescope. The most powerful can go back almost to the Big Bang. Now, closer than that, when a radio-telescope spots the image of a star, one million light-years away, It really allows us to see the image of that star, one million years ago. Not to-day. One million years ago.”

Cour carrée. c. 2015. Scotty’s instruments have been lacking in precision lately. The idiotic black contraption in the middle is a loo. “Folly and ignorance, etc.”

“And on this ship? We don’t have radio-telescopes.”

“Mirrors, Sir. High power electronic mirrors, which we point at past events, people who’ve lived in the past. We amplify the tiny, minute specks of light that are left everywhere.”

Cour carrée again. This lovely young lady could use a bit of dusting. The word scrawled out in the dust below, reads: “Joie.” I.e. Joy. Thank you to the anonymous scrawler.

“Like old photos, old videos, Scotty?”

Palais du Luxembourg, built by Marie de Médicis, Queen and regent of France around mid 16th century.

“Yes, Sir. Sort of. We may eventually break the Light barrier, but for now, it is the best I can do.”

Luxembourg, c.2016. Now houses the French Senate, and is surrounded by lovely gardens. One can easily find it walking up the Boulevard Saint-Michel from the Seine.

“Thank you Scotty. Specks of Light are better than nothing. Again thank you for the explanation. I must get back to the passengers.”

Marie de Médicis. One tough, don’t mess with me lady. Many Queens of France are represented on this sidewalk in the gardens of Luxembourg.

“Promises to keep and miles to go before we sleep, Sir?”

“Something like that, Mr ‘Frosty’. Oh. Was the mike on?”

“Looks that way, Sir. Oops.”

Le bassin du Luxembourg. For generations and generations, children have rented small sailboats to float on the water.

“Ooops no. It’s all right. Captain to all: Chief Engineer Scotty, the crew and Captain are happy to welcome you back on board Equinoxio Time-Space-Mirror Shuttle. Fair winds to all.”

1964 photo credits: posted on a previous time patrol.  😉