Montmartre Sales
Friday, July 30, 2010 Posted by Eric Tenin
I photographed this scene at the Sacré Coeur, the large church on top of Montmartre. During the tourist season (which is basically 365 days per year!) you can see lots of "Vendeurs à la sauvette" (street hawkers) that sell everything from fake Vuitton bags to silly little stuffed puppies like in this photo. Of course this is highly illegal, but the Police cannot chase them every minute and they always have someone on the watch. I must confess it made me feel uncomfortable, because it gives this place a kind of Souq atmosphere which is pretty far from the high-end, sophisticated fashion capital Paris likes to think it is... NEWS FLASH: a bus just fell into the Seine, and an American tourist caught it on "tape".
July 30, 2010 12:07:00 AM GMT+02:00
Souq was a new vocabulary word for me...had to look it up....i .can understand your feeling though....after all it IS a cathedral....
July 30, 2010 12:09:00 AM GMT+02:00
ah...i correct myself....a basillica
July 30, 2010 2:47:00 AM GMT+02:00
Very different from the online video I saw of an impromptu musical being performed on the steps of Sacre Coeur. (I'll bet Tall Gary will find it.) I don't remember these merchants being there the day we were there, but this quarter of Paris is very touristy, not the high fashion part of town.
I think your photo gives a fun point of view, Eric.
July 30, 2010 3:21:00 AM GMT+02:00
I like the photo! Love the composition.
The puppies are not that cute close up but one had to make a living. I'd rather see people try to make a living selling crap on the street than go through your pockets ;0)
July 30, 2010 3:22:00 AM GMT+02:00
* one has to make a living
July 30, 2010 4:23:00 AM GMT+02:00
The vendors here and at the Eiffel Tower are so annoying. I can't believe the city of Paris can't really do away with them if they really wanted to. If they can't accomplish this, it will be interesting to see if they can abolish short term apartment leasing.
V
July 30, 2010 4:55:00 AM GMT+02:00
Really cool shot, Eric, but . . . zut alors—if he's gonna sell cheap, ugly toy puppies in Paris, at least they could be French poodles!
V -- are they trying to abolish short-term apt. leasing?? If so, there goes half the Parisian economy!
July 30, 2010 5:04:00 AM GMT+02:00
They will feel right at home in Manila. We don't even call them illegal anymore, as long as they don't obstruct vehicle and pedestrian traffic flow.
July 30, 2010 8:43:00 AM GMT+02:00
Love the contrast of style between this young couple sitting on the bench (who seems rather discret, without trouble), and this young man with the cap, who seems to care a lot about his appearence and is likely to run away in case of emergency. To live rather dangerously does not prevent him from having a social standing in clothes! lol
Eric: have you noticed that your "latest comments rubrique" makes old comments show up for some days instead of the newest?
July 30, 2010 8:57:00 AM GMT+02:00
PDP...the 'new' CNN....I love the NEWS FLASH...I hope no one was hurt.
July 30, 2010 9:07:00 AM GMT+02:00
Yes, I saw these vendors on Montmartre when we were in Paris last time. Thanks for the link to the bus going for a swim in the Seine. Shame about the amateur camera work.
July 30, 2010 12:38:00 PM GMT+02:00
Eric -- I think that I will have to stay tuned into your blog as you may have been the first to report (at least on this side of the pond) -- Merci!
July 30, 2010 3:53:00 PM GMT+02:00
I think you're right about the atmosphere, i was in Barbes shopping just a few weeks ago. There was a woman in a Sympa shop that left her purse on a rack for a moment while trying something one. An employee of the store yells out (in French), "Mesdames, please watch your purses, there are pickpockets around here and they work very fast"........I thought that was nice.
July 30, 2010 4:52:00 PM GMT+02:00
Was anyone on that bus that sank????
July 30, 2010 5:25:00 PM GMT+02:00
I hope there was no one aboard that bus. What would that say about people? A bus sinks in a river while people rush to take pictures of it, but no one rushes to help?
Abolish short-term apartment rentals? That can't be true. Why would Paris do that? Staying in hotels and eating 3 meals a day in restaurants is unaffordable. Short-term rentals make tourism possible.
July 30, 2010 6:33:00 PM GMT+02:00
These tour buses do park pretty close to the Seine -- if the brake does fail, yep, it will roll into the Seine. It really freaked this American tourist out, that's for sure.
July 30, 2010 10:07:00 PM GMT+02:00
They're saying there no one was hurt.
Wow, that's a first.
July 30, 2010 11:29:00 PM GMT+02:00
Interesting idea, Eric. I know it isn't the "best" way to deal with the situation of making a living, but it is better than pickpocketing or stealing, I must admit. Our town is so small that no one would think of doing this here--good grief--we even have regulations about not drawing on the sidewalks with sidewalk chalk!
July 31, 2010 12:35:00 AM GMT+02:00
@Flore: "Eric: have you noticed that your "latest comments rubrique" makes old comments show up for some days instead of the newest?". No, I hadn't. I don't understand why. Thank you for alerting me.
@Alexa "Really cool shot, Eric, but . . . zut alors—if he's gonna sell cheap, ugly toy puppies in Paris, at least they could be French poodles!" LOL
@Tomate " I'd rather see people try to make a living selling crap on the street than go through your pockets ;0)" True...
@Genie "Eric -- I think that I will have to stay tuned into your blog as you may have been the first to report (at least on this side of the pond" Well probably not the first, but I'm on it!
No one was hurt (see my Saturday's post)
@Virginia "it will be interesting to see if they can abolish short term apartment leasing." Are they really? I heard they want to put a tax on it, but not abolish it. Where did you see/hear/read this?
July 31, 2010 3:50:00 AM GMT+02:00
Eric,
The NY Times has had articles saying your dear Mayor is seeking to eliminate leases on apts. less than one year. MonDIeu. Say it isn't so Eric. I'll find the article and email it to you.
V
August 2, 2010 7:45:00 AM GMT+02:00
super blog,felicitari
August 2, 2010 12:57:00 PM GMT+02:00
When I was there last, it was string bracelets. When I stopped just for a second, a guy had put a bracelet on my wrist and told me I owed him 5 euro. I didn't know what to do!