Paris Mayor Bertrand Delanoe paid a visit to the best city in America (allegedly) yesterday. Aside from enjoying some of our world-class leisure amenities (and probably making fun of our wine), Delanoe was in town to renew Sister City vows that the City of Light made by looking deep in Willie Brown's eyes some 16 years ago.
Because San Francisco has never been one to be stuck in a traditional relationship, Paris is just one of the city's 17 sister cities. Mayor Lee told his new pal Bertrand that it has been "too long" since the last time the frenchman visited the Paris of the West to get the slick-backed Gavin Newsom tour of the city in 2006. The two signed a romantic memorandum of understanding in Lee's office while discussing the many similarities in attitude that the French share with San Franciscans. "There is a style of living [in San Francisco] by living together, by being different," Delanoe said.
As a gift, the city gave Mayor Delanoe a "set of large color photographs of the Golden Gate Bridge" on its 75th anniversary, to which Delanoe replied in English, "I love the Golden Gate Bridge." Mayor Lee has been invited to visit his new pen pal in Paris for an official visit sometime next year.
In honor of all this Francophilia, here's Céline Dion doing "Oui, Je T'aime Encore":
