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Project 365: Week 7 – Galerie

This week’s word is not an entirely foreign word, but when F suggested it to me as the theme to photograph, I knew immediately that this makes a good opportunity for me to explore the galeries et passages of which some are well-known but many stay pretty hidden. These Parisian galeries can be think of as precursors to modern shopping malls.

Created at a time where waste management was a citywide problem yet demands were there for more comfortable (window-)shopping experience, these covered passages offered well-maintained arcades and shelters from the elements. Some of them are still kept in good condition, but sadly a good few more are quite run down. Many had also been demolished – in its heyday, some 150 were present but only about 1/6 of them remains today, and not all are open to public.

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Galerie Vivienne

Galerie Vivienne

10 Feb: I couldn’t resist posting more than one photo of Galerie Vivienne, the most elegant galerie that I’ve visited in Paris, and certainly the best known among the visitors who search for something off the usual grid. Elaborately decorated entryway, mosaic flooring, stylish lighting, and surely enough, the shops that line this passage are also seriously upscale. A walk deep into the passage reveals private spiral staircase, presumably leading to some residences. I wouldn’t mind having such a prestigious address here ;)

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La Table d’Aki

F and I marked our anniversary with a small splurge – dinner at La Table d’Aki. Promptly at 8pm, the window cover was raised, and we stepped into a dining room about the size of the living room in our cosy Parisian apartment. Definitely minimalist in decor, monochromic palate of white (except the draft-blocking curtain and the low wall, both in red, by the door), as we were seated, I whispered to F: “16 covers only!”

Dinner @ La Table d'Aki

Dinner @ La Table d'Aki

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Project 365: Week 6 – Finesse

La finesse is one of those words I hear often but the changing context had me questioning if I really understood it. My 20-year-old mini dictionary said little except “fineness” yet I often hear it as a word that describe the finer things in life, of elegance, of delicateness, of refinement. Other contexts suggest physical shape of a person, in the state of being slim and slender, as well as one’s behaviour, worthy to be noted as in fine moral standing. I suggest we explore the finesse in French objects.

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Sea nymph

3 Feb: This is not the first time I’ve posted a photo of this water nymph on Pont Alexandre III, and it’s unlikely to be the last. I adore this sculpture. I always drop by to say hello when I’m in the area, and I’m also very pleased to see it free from the clutches of love-locks (yes, some muppets put locks on her before). There are many other sculptures on this same bridge, but I find her presence calming and radiates a certain inner beauty.

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Naïve little Asian

January kickstarted the year with a busy bout of moving-related activties and whats not, but February doesn’t plan to be overshadowed with a peaceful lull. Instead it throws in a challenge that had been most unexpected – something that threw me off, shakened me – and had me questioning, for one short second, if I am suited to live in a big city.

Sculture

In short: I was blindsided and scammed in my own home. Definitely not my day.

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Project 365: Week 5 – Écarlate

When the word écarlate was picked, I thought photographing this should be relatively straight-forward. Not quite so. To try to differentiate scarlet from all the different shades of red is far more challenging than I’ve prepared for, so much so that I think renaming this week’s theme as red would be more appropriate. Well, enjoy “scarlet” ;)

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Swatch watch

27 Jan: Some of my friends would be surprised to hear that it has been a while since I ventured into any Swatch shop. It is for my own good, considering I have hard time resisting picking up a new one every so often to add to my collection. While I don’t have as many to rotate for every day for a month (yet?), it is a tad excessive to own quite so many watches – am thinking I should donate some away.

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Project 365: Week 4 – Doré(e)

It’s strange to look at the calendar and to note that January is coming close to an end. Among family and many friends, the chatters of the day revolve around the preparation for the upcoming Chinese New Year, prompting some action on my part to organise a CNY dinner with a few close friends next week. Sadly, it has been years since I spent CNY at home. Ah, those were the golden times indeed… And oh, speaking of golden, that brings us to the word of the week: doré(e)!

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Perfume

20 Jan: Have you ever wonder why perfumes exist mostly in shades of gold? I understand from marketing stand point, of trying to evoke this sense of luxury and wealth, and link it to a certain status bestowed among perfume users, but shouldn’t the fragrant matters more than the colour of the liquid? In my mind, the darker the shade of gold, usually the more off-putting the scent. Too strong, too intense, just too much.

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Project 365: Week 3 – Composé

When I was photographing with this week’s word – composé (composed of, compound) – in mind, I was wondering how much of a stretch can I go in interpreting it? I’m still trying to familiarise myself with my new neighbourhood, and there are still things to be done to turn the apartment into a home. With my head half in the air, certain interpretation may be shaky. If only it’s possible to photograph the compounded stress I was feeling earlier in the week but slowly dissipated as more and more task got struck off the check-list…

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Pastries

13 Jan: You know the whole “stressed spelled backward is desserts” thing? Yes, I sought some sweet cure today, in the form of a mixed box of bite-sized treats. Adorably called the children’s selection, six different desserts have been put together, checking the boxes on: fruitiness (lemon tart), nuttiness (hazelnut tart), chocolateness (chocolate tart), crunchiness (candied choux), silkiness (vanilla slice) and fluffiness (praline choux).

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Project 365: Week 2 – Bordélique

This week has been completely bordélique and I have pretty much abandoned a whole bunch of things aside to concentrate on the move (although not before completing another MOOC). Packing up our lives after two very comfortable years while accumulating more things than ever was a lot of work, and cleaning up two apartments added to the load too. It appears the previous tenant to our new apartment doesn’t understand the concept of hygiene and cleanliness…

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Brochures

6 Jan: I guess packing could be a whole lot easier had I not been obsessively keen on keeping every single brochure, map, ticket and whats not from our travel. I’ve been meaning to sort them out and save only the most “important” ones in a travel scrapbook, but clearly I’ve been procrastinating… I won’t have time to go through them now but I will definitely get working on the scrapbook as I unpack, so nothing beyond the necessary will stay in the new apartment.

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10 first bites

It is no secret that I love to eat and I always prioritise things that seem unusual when picking from the menu. Sometimes, when there are more options than I can manage on my own, I throw the puppy eyes at my dining companion in hope he/she picks up on my inner plea to order one of them… ;)

Last year, in writing the list of 101 goals, I added “10 things I’ve never tried before” and hope it’ll make food discovery more interesting. However, actually having dishes in front of me often translates to “busy eating, no time to think or take photos” and therefore writing this post had taken a little longer than expected.

10 new food

1. Courgette flower: semi-hidden here between a slice of chorizo and a cherry tomato, the courgette flower is bright to look at and delicate to taste. They don’t transport well nor last beyond a few hours after picking, so it’s not something that can be easily found in Paris (much easier in south of France though). It tasted like, well, courgette, but a “lighter” version. The flower also has a soft velvelty texture, like most edible flowers really.

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Project 365: Week 1 – Aléatoire

With seemingly a gazillion and one things happening, this week’s photos consist of a random mix, summing up the chosen word rather nicely: aléatoire. I must admit, photography is low on my priority at the moment, as we dealt with certain apartment-related hiccups, postponed our move by a week, and started to pack (and still packing – how much stuff can one own while living in a small Parisian apartment?!) everything up. Intermittently, there were friends to see, closing exhibitions to catch, and galette des rois to eat.

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Carousel

30 December: Throughout the month of December, all the carousels owned and operated by the city council have been offering free rides to much delights of the children, and perhaps parents/grandparents too, especially those whose young ones normally want to ride it over and over and over and refuse to leave without throwing a tantrum. Afterall, it can get expensive quickly. The danger, of course, is said children in question will continue to seek the same, if not more, number of rides once they are no longer free again…

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