Sunday, September 14, 2008

Many hope to see the Pope


You may have heard of it, the pope is currently in Paris. This morning (that is Saturday morning) he celebrated mass on the Invalides Esplanade. I went there hoping to take a photo for PDP - if not of him, at least of the whole set - but the police would not let me in... Too many people. So I took this one from the next bridge I could access to.

43 comments:

  1. I love the title Eric. It's like a pope in the eye!

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  2. But I especially like the white of the lights and the white of the bridge and banners together. Excellent!

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  3. Hey, how can I be first? I should be in bed!

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  4. The lights with the trees in the background are striking. I love the beauty of the green trees. And again the lights just pop out at you...

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  5. Thanks Gramma. I love the new profile photo by the way!

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  6. Nice photo Eric!!
    I love that bridge.I remember seeing it when I was in Paris last summer.It was also my mom favorite bridge.Ohhh that be interesting to be able to get a glimpse of the Pope!Nonetheless,this is a great photo.

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  7. Michael, LOL "it's like a pope in the eye" love it.

    Coltrane where are you? Michael is being witty just like you...;)

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  8. Oh Gramma, now you've gone and made me jealous. Coltrane, Shmoltrane... Soosha's already got him wrapped around her finger and now you. ;-)

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  9. The man is clearly very pope-ular in Paris if Eric couldn't even get close! But I like this photo very much, Eric. Great colors and lovely horizontal lines.
    Michael, I hand you the tidied-up crown, for being 1st, 2nd, AND 3rd. Add what you will to it.

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  10. Michael, this is for you and Coltrane both...

    "It is always the same: women bedeck themselves with jewels and furs, and men with wit and quotations." (Maurice Chevalier)

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  11. Thanks for the photo-op try, Eric. You did a fantastic job with what you had to work with!

    I love the lamps on the bridge. It is only a foot bridge, or is motorized vehicular traffic allowed when the pope is not there?

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  12. Grandma Ann: As Michael's totally unofficial cheerleader (and coltrain's) I would like to add that Michael has been around PDP forever, entertaining us with puns both good and BAD! Coltrain is the young (in PDP years) pretender to the crown. They are both so good that that there can be no fight to the finish. WE would be the ones who would die laughing , if there were such a challenge.
    This picture ,minus the modern clothes, looks like it could be a pilgrimage from many years past.

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  13. Nice, sunny day sur le Seine et les ponts, I see. It's raining cats and dogs here today. I enjoyed a rooftop terrace last night, with the full moon lighting the night and a large cathedral. (That's the thematic link to the photo.) Oh, summer apparel at a cocktail party. The night was full of many sights,
    But the Pope was not the hope.
    Yet home alone is still my plight
    (Mon Dieu, he's such a dope).

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  14. phx-cdg took the words right out of my mouth. Michael is definitely the old dog in the wit pound here! (haha Michael, I just called you old!!! I'm sure Coltrane wont mind that!)

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  15. Oh yes, and though it wasn't the photo you wanted, Eric, it is a fantastic photo anyway!

    One more thing, Michael: "Soosha's already got him wrapped around her finger..." Don't you mean Coltrane has me wrapped around his finger? Unless I missed something, which I don't believe I did!!

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  16. Ooooh, I love when you post bridge photos, Eric! This one is a beaut. You definitely have me wrapped around your photo-taking finger.

    phx-cdg and soosha-q, who is this "old" Michael person you are talking about? Our Michael is a babe. Right, Michael? ;)

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  17. The few times a pope has been to the Philippines, I didn't even try — the Philippines is a Catholic country and the crowds were just way too much!

    Btw, I love those lamps!

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  18. Oh thank you Lynn for your defense,
    Although I took no real offense;
    But Soosh I'm shocked you'd be so bold,
    To comment nice, then call me old;

    But Coltrane's good, we must admit,
    He has the charm and all that wit;
    With Coltrane's jokes I'll surely cope,

    But.......

    Don't get me started on the Pope!

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  19. (Silly me ... I just managed to put this comment on yesterday's blog!)

    I have always loved this bridge, Eric! What fond memories I have of the first day I crossed it.

    And hey -- What's this about the police not letting you in?!? You must have been humble, not letting them know about your being the celebrated Eric Tenin of PDP fame. If only they had known! Where can I write to recommend that you be given the key to the city of Paris with access to any public place at any time?

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  20. The same thing happened to me! I was happily flattened by all of the tourists. It was an exciting day!

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  21. Michael
    Congratulations on the GF

    Gramma Ann
    You talk about Michael and Coltrane being entertaining... you are not a bad entertainer yourself!

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  22. Awwww!!! You're all being to nice to this OLD newcomer.....But I'm lovin' it;)

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  23. BTW Michael, a poet too! Oh the things I have to learn.

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  24. what a beautiful bridge! & the lights are perfect against the trees!

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  25. Eric, this is certainly not a "bridge to nowhere" [for the Americans out there, ahem!] Magificent pont really!

    So some are having a "tiff" with a Pontiff on this pont. Tsk tsk! Can't the Royal P ever get a break? Was the Pope-mobile in town too? Now there's a photo op!

    And you know, even the former vehicles owned by His Holiness can command quite a royal price, too. I recall that one '99 VW Golf once owned by the Pope was for sale on eBay three years ago and minimum bidding started at $12,790; 300 bids later the price reached over 1.3 million bucks. One ebayer even asked if "black or white smoke comes out of the exhaust." Loved that line. BIDDA BOOM!

    I congratulate Miguel on grabbing the GF! Since you dig the Royal P so much maybe you can bedeck the crown with "Pope soap on a rope"! ;-)

    Soosha...where's the bishop (MP)when you need him, eh?

    PHX-CDG...did you really call me the "young pretender"? I'm not quite sure how to take this, since the association with that other young pretender "Bonnie Prince Charlie"(Charles E Stuart, 18th c) who was eventually exiled after a horrible run in with the Duke of Cumberland's army is certainly not too flattering. Ironically, the young pretender was buried in St Peter's Bacilica. Ironic, because this bloke was basically a dimwit (IMHO). Okay...now I see the reference; it just took me a while to get there! ;-)

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  26. All these people following one man, doing what he advises, talking to God via him... I'm sorry but it scares me.

    It doesn't mean that I don't like your photo Eric!
    To take it from the other bridge was a brilliant idea, it shows how many people were gathered to see the Pope, and it makes a nice range of greys and whites.

    GF Michael. Winner AND poet. whaa.

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  27. Ahhh! Perhaps the Pope could send a few prayers my way. We're experiencing flash flooding. Obviously nowhere near as bad as what Ike has pounded the south with, but still pretty unusual in my little neighborhood. We didn't even get this during '93

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  28. Wow Soosha, that's pretty impressive! Hard to believe! Stay warm and dry please...

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  29. Does the Pope in Paris make him a real P.I.P?

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  30. I agree, minus the modern cloths, this photo by Eric is a classic and timeless.

    Marie Reed, You made it to Paris. A two hour commute to Paris is well worth it. I would do it. You are so lucky to live so close by. Merci for thinking of me; I was delighted to receive your email.

    Cali Rose, You still think about my painting -- I'm honored.

    Coltrane, Are you talking about the Pope's golf cart? Does his holiness play golf. Really?

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  31. soosha, I looked at some of your flood videos. Was the flood a aftermath of "Ike?" Fortunately, "Ike" stayed South of Iowa and scuttled on by us. But not so for the people northeast of us.

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  32. They didn't let you in? Well, Eric, this is a first! That's OK, though, some things are best viewed from a distance ;)

    I wonder how people in Europe feel about this "new" Pope? I had the privilege of being in Rome and attended one of JPII's last masses. I am not Catholic but you couldn't be there and not notice the adoration that most of the people in attendance felt for him. They had come from all over the world and the emotion was truly palpable. When they wheeled him in in his wheel chair, people who couldn't see stood up on their chairs and clapped, as if he was a rock star. I had never seen anything like this inside a church.

    I wonder if this "new" pope enjoys the same popularity?

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  33. St. Louis does tend to get whatever is left over from the tropical storms and hurricanes. I'm no expert, but I'd say it was a bit of Ike popping in the say hello.

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  34. You know what, Michael? Although I was teasing a bit, I realize I was more serious than teasing. Writing to paris.fr as well as to the mayor of Paris is actually not a bad idea. Eric truly is an excellent goodwill ambassador for Paris.

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  35. I love the bridge and the echoing shapes of the garlands below, the signs in the middle and the lamps above. It's a great shot, Eric!

    Guille, you think like I do, except you think in French.

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  36. The title tells everything..

    I don't even have to read the entire content... Nice one there..

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  37. Nice Photo. Too bad you didn't get close. I have a photo of JPII in his popemobile taken when he visited San Francisco in the 1980s. I was a journalism student at the time and wanted to do a story about them but the powers that be in the archdiocese wouldn't let me. C'est la vie.

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  38. Bon article, très interressant, je vous félicite vivement pour votre blog.
    je vous souhaite une bonne continuation et longue vie à votre site
    à bientôt

    frank

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