A few days ago, en route to work, I spotted firemen at Cité U. Normally, they can be seen during sunny weekend morning playing baseball at the pitch, but on a weekday morning, that could only mean trouble. Sure enough, I looked up at the building next to where they were and big gaping holes with black charred beams were staring back at me. Ooops.
The fire broke out on the night before (and nope, I didn’t hear any siren even though my building is not too far from it) and has ravaged through the roof of that particular wing. A video that I found online showed it to be a pretty huge fire although well-contained that it didn’t spread further. For now, the residents of the building have been temporarily housed elsewhere in Cité U.
There is a pair of black swans at Parc Montsouris with bright red bills. This is rather unusual, as the swans normally spotted around this part of the world are white. A quick wiki check told me that black swans are more commonly found in Australia and New Zealand. I can only assume then this pair is part of introduced population? It is a veeeery long way to migrate from Oz to France otherwise.
While I was there, park visitors were amusingly throwing grass in to feed the swans. A woman even remarked “Do you think they eat grass? I hope they won’t get stomach ache.” Well, seeing the swans are herbivores, I’d say they’ll be alright. Sure, the grass is not the same as vegetations found in the lake but it’s not too far off either. Eat, swans, eat.
You know I’m always on the look out for nice pastries. However, it is also prudent that I don’t overdo it. As of present, I seem to be stepping in a pâtisserie about once every fortnight and for the intermittent weeks, perhaps a chocolaterie every second fortnight?
Arnaud Delmontel is a bit out of the way and quite a chance discovery. I had trodded my way to Montmartre in search of a small shop where I’ve previously bought some lovely matcha madeleine but unfortunately the shop is currently closed for its congé annuel. However, right across the street is Delmontel and its cakes on display just called out to me. Like moth to a light, I fluttered my way over and bought les petits gateaux for myself and Anne. The verdict? Mine was rich an creamy but Anne’s was a tad dry on the outside. A place to revisit when I’m in the area again next but perhaps not one to deliberately journey out for.
Bus no 21 runs between Cité U (well, Stade Charléty to be more precise, but it is adjacent to Cité U) and Gare St Lazare. After 4 months of listening to the announcement the morning that the bus is destined for Gare St Lazare, I decided to travel in that direction to see what the fuss is about.
While the station is not particularly large, it is the second busiest after Gare du Nord. A lot of commuters who live in the western suburbs and work in Paris would take their Transilien trains to/fro Gare St Lazare daily, and passengers north-bound towards Normandy (such as Deauville, where there is a real beach) would also grab their trains here. I was hoping to recreate the feel of Monet’s painting but there were just too many people around. Plus the train nowadays don’t give out that much smoke.
In Paris, you don’t have to go to the beaches. The beaches come to you instead ;)
The mairie has been busy since the weekend, constructing the quay-side beaches which make their appearances annually in July and August, for approximately 4-5 weeks. When I passed by this evening along Voie Pompidou, the landscapers were busy putting in the final touches while anyone unauthorised were barred from entering Paris Plages.
Trucks and trucks of sand have been brought in, new lounging chairs set in intermittent distances, and shower areas set up too. Now, nobody’s allowed to swim in the Seine (and I’m not sure if anyone would really want to either, without taking on the risk of disease) so the beaches would be use mainly as sand pits and sunbathing spots. However, there is also a floating pool near Pont Marie for a quick cooling dip and aquagym. And over at Bassin de la Villette, I believe there would be an artificial wave good for surfing too!
Paris Plages 2011 runs from 21 July to 21 August at Voie Pompidou, Hôtel de Ville and Bassin de la Villette. Click here for the full programme.
It’s not uncommon to find exposed walls of buildings which has been transformed into art canvases. At times, there are definite stories to tell. Other times, the works are more abstract and this one that I spotted today falls more in the latter category.
Nonetheless I like the gentle and wistful quality of this painting. There’s something familiar about it. In parts, it reminds me of broad strokes and wavy flow in Van Gogh’s Starry Night, perhaps just a bit more haphazardly in this case instead of the elegant, post-impressionist style applied by the Dutch master. (OK, my imagination is running too wild. Never mind. I’ll leave this be.)
I’m starting to think of Place St Michel as “city centre” of Paris and location of choice for many meet-ups . A little bit like the front gate of Trinity College in Dublin kind of thing. It’s easily accessible by public transport, has iconic meeting point (the square in front of the fountain), widely sign-posted and hard to miss while at the same time easy to spot people. Perfect.
Around the square are a number of cafés and bookshops. Unlike many (touristy) cafés and restaurants in central Paris area which prefer to boost the availability of Berthillon ice cream, this one opts to serve Ben & Jerry’s instead. Local and artisanal vs international and factory production – I think I know which one I’d go for ;)
It has been a while since I last visited Louvre. Well, no time like present to revisit, when a recent acquaintance suggested a trip to say hello to Miss Mona Lisa. Of course, Louvre is more than just this masterpiece of Leonardo. We’ve all heard of the time any visitor would need should each piece of work in the collection of Louvre be examined for mere 30 seconds each (some 12-13 days!) and so most time, tourists only zoom from one room to another in search of the most well-known pieces, snap a few photos, and off they go.
In any case, not all rooms are opened nor all items on exhibit at any one time. In fact, several rooms are currently closed for renovations, and some other rooms clearly have just been re-opened. Rather to my horror, these rooms now spot a modern office look with the beautiful old ceiling frescoes nowhere to be seen. Or worse, some rooms have had new frescoes painted to “themify” the rooms, e.g. Egyptian motifs in rooms where Egyptian artefacts are exhibited. I couldn’t even bring myself to photograph that. Seriously, why would one authorise such atrocity?
I recently blogged about the Montsouris reservoir and if you look back again at the accompanying photo, you would notice a fountain from which water is flowing freely at its centre. Named Wallace fountain after its generous donor, Sir Richard Wallace, there are over 60 of these fountains around Paris to provide free potable water in public spaces from spring to autumn.
Normally dark green in colour, imagine my surprise when I came across one today that’s fire-engine red! Mais bien sûr, this particular fountain is situated in the heart of Chinatown area, and this is the one colour that Chinese loves most. Perhaps the residents nearby feel they require the fountain to “fit in”, culturally speaking?
Personally, I’d rather they be dark green than red.
Parisians are, in general, a stylish lot of people. Standing at the fringe, I often wonder where so-and-so bought her effortlessly fabulous outfit and fashionable item of clothing/accessory/footwear. Often I couldn’t help feeling a little dowdy in comparison but reminded myself in turn that these don’t change who I am, only the “outer shell”, of what I wear.
La vanité mise à nu par ses thuriféraires is another thought-provoking sculpture by Daniel Hourdé, installed just across the road from Désillusion totale, that perfectly represents the stripping of vanity to reveal the fundamentals, the depth beneath this layer of superficial mask. We are vulnerable under it all; usually only the most devoted see this side of us, with the truest standing by us unconditionally. Trust of this kind is hard to come by and if you have earned it, never take it for granted.
