Thursday, December 15, 2005

Artificial forest in front of the Paris Pantheon


I don't know if you remember this photo sent by Erica who got proposed to in Paris and who sent me a photo of her posing in front of the Pantheon (5th arrondissement). I went back there yesterday evening and enjoyed their Christmas decorations. They actually "planted" a "forest" of Christmas trees in front of the building and lit the whole thing. Very nice.

15 comments:

  1. I like the human shadows in front of the Pantheon!

    Sure, we remember Erica! How is it going, kid? Are you married, now? :-)

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  2. Probably capitalist christmas trees, again and again. People are probably having the "soupe populaire" next to these trees, I hope at least they are happy about it, and they will ask and thank Jean-Tiberi how much it costs to display those trees, at the same time they are starving.

    Damien

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  3. Mort de rire, ce Damien est un faux je suis sûr, une caricature !

    Eh Damien, ça t'arrive d'avoir un peu de fun dans ta vie ?

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  4. Damien, why don't you go and help them with the "soupe populaire" instead of lamenting about the capitalism.

    Actually, why don't you sell your capitalist computer and let us breath our capitalist air? Huh?

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  5. One of the things I love about Paris is that it is forever trying to make the most of it's stunning architecture by highlighting and exploiting it in imaginitive ways. The way it coloured up lots of the most famous buildings in its (failed) olympic bid was a good example. The Academie Francaise looked particularly spectacular all multicoloured with the Eiffel Tower in the distance. Nice shot!

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  6. Ah, I hung out around there quite a bit last May and June!

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  7. sab> Another thing that was quite impressive was when Christo wrapped up the Pont Neuf. I agree that it is amazing that such events can take place in Paris. A sign that creativity is valued, even if it has a cost.

    JM-

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  8. Damien, creating, building the trees, putting them in place, cleaning, lighting, all those capitalist(ic) activities help some workers not to attend "les restaus du coeur"...
    Ok, silly reply. I know ;)

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  9. Gee Eric, I never thought your wonderful photos would spark such a debate over Christmas decorations. This is a nice shot with the lighting just right. We still haven't heard from Erica here to see how things are going. Maybe she's still on her honeymoon?

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  10. JM said...
    sab> Another thing that was quite impressive was when Christo wrapped up the Pont Neuf... a sign that creativity is valued, even if it has a cost.

    Yes, JM. At a cost, of course. A cost to the city of Paris. Which comes out of tax payers pockets. I was walking along the rue Montorgueil today, and they had the words "Rue Montorgueil" written in big bright lights above the street.

    And I asked myself: is this worth it? Do I want to pay for this?

    And as FredB and others have hinted at, yes, I do want to pay for this, among other things, such as giving every month to under-privileged children because I can, but also enjoying the feeling that we have an ostensible chance to transport ourselves, however superficially, away from the sometimes grim reality of our daily lives to another place, inhabited by fairies and genies like Eric who conjure up beautiful pictures for us every day, completely free of charge, to cheer us up, because he wants to and he can.

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  11. sab> 100% with you.

    Not everything comes out of taxpayers' pockets though. The Christo's finance their projects on their own by selling art. The wrapping of the Pont Neuf didn't cost anything to the Parisians.

    The Xmas lights and decorations are often funded by local commerces, which is the case of rue Montorgueil. So these are paid for by the local shoppers.

    JM-

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  12. I've just posted a picture of the Pont Neuf... I didn't take it though. It is on Lostparis.blogspot.com

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  13. wonderful, I love this picture
    makes me feel very nostalgic about paris
    I like your blog
    thanks for sharing your pictures

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