Car Swap!

I pass by these cars almost every day and I've never taken the time to photograph them. It's not the result of an accident, but a unique sculpture (I was unable to find the name of the artist anywhere though). It's on display right at the entrance of an insurance company (Allianz) which aims to raise awareness of safe driving. I love it!

Holy cow!

In one of the most beautiful covered passages of Paris, the Galerie Vivienne (not to mention the one where I live of course, the Passage Verdeau, which to me is the most beautiful one LOL!), I found the store of Emilio Robba, a florist that specializes in "permanent botanicals and landscaping environments.". You may dislike the idea of "fake flowers and plants", but not after you've seen the ones of Emilio's! He even uses them to make beautiful scupltures, like this one of a cow that I could not hep but take a photo of. A must visit place, for sure.

When the sun goes down on Paris...

I was coming home a little late yesterday evening (around 9 pm), while the sun was going down on Paris. I could see it in the mirrors of my scooter and I was thinking to myself: "I must stop and take a photo, the light must be beautiful!". So I did... and I don't regret it! FYI, the opera house (Garnier) is at the end of this street.

Sewer street!

Had you walked in this street (Léopold-Bellan) about 500 years ago, you would have needed a good pair of boots or even a small boat for this was a huge sewer (it was even called sewer street - rue des Aigouts - at that time. It's only around 1815 that the sewers were covered and the street turned into a "real" street. If the people who used tho live there would come back today, they would certainly be surprised to see that it's now a pretty trendy area ;-)

And my favorite florist in Paris is...

...Hervé Chatelain, a very talented artist that I always admire the work of, when I pass by his shop at 140 rue Montmartre, in the 2nd arrondissement. I did today and took this photo in his shop window, I'm sure you'll agree with me.

An American woman in Paris....

Those who have been following PDP for a long time will recognize Lynn aka PHX-CDG who used to comment a lot until I changed my layout and puzzled a few people with the new login rules... Anyway, yesterday she invited me to witness - and take part in! - her little gig in front of of group of American women from... the American Women's Clubs Overseas - Paris. Purpose of the meeting: taste the hot chocolate from Le Grand Colbert (among the 5 best ones in Paris apparently) and answer a quiz about Paris (which believe it or not, I failed!). It was fun! A big round of applause for Lynn who was born to live on stage! 

Going to the market

Unlike a lot of people I'm not a big fan of traditional markets, like the many we have in Paris - and in France in general - but from time to time I like to visit one, just for the scenery. The Montorgueil one is particularly nice as, not only it's kept a certain traditional flavor, but on top of that it's a very bobo (Bourgeois Bohême) place with lots of interesting bars and cafés in which you can see and be seen. In the morning, you can actually find people who really do their daily shopping, like these ones I caught in the eye of my camera.

Going back to the cold!

OK, maybe I'm exaggerating a bit (especially after I told you that this winter in particularly mild in Paris...), but after one month of heat in Bangkok I really feel like I'm going back to the - very - cold. Anyway, as you can guess I took this photo last year in the rue de la Paix (you can see the colonne Vendôme in the background). Next photo will not be a "canned" shot, but a live one (I'm surprised to have been able to last a month with my stock actually ;-))

Ready to party?!

Yes, it's D Day... Unless you live in Saudi Arabia where the "Commission of the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice" will make sure you don't celebrate New Year's Eve! it's very likely that you will stuff yourself with more food and Champagne/Wine tonight ;-) I know it's silly, but I will do the same... I wish you a happy celebration wherever you are in the world, hoping that you'll be surrounded by people you love.  I took this photo at Mademoiselle M, a food place/lab where you can learn extraordinary things...

Turning old into new...

Yesterday, I passed by a former HQ of a bank (Le Crédit Lyonnais) which is currently being totally renovated and turned into a brand new and connected building. To do so, they kept the beautiful facade and emptied the inside of the building totally so that you have the best of the two worlds: the look of the old outside, the comfort of modernity inside. Isn't that clever? I did not know what photo to take and I finally chose to shoot behind the grids. To have a better and broader view, check they website (you'll see drawings of  course since the building is not completed yet).

La Parisienne (in the rain)

Things are really improving! I even drove my scooter today. And on the way back home I stopped because I thought this restaurant under renovation was photo worthy. Then when I pulled the trigger I realized a typical "Parisienne" was in the picture!  Well, what can I say, I simply love this photo ;-) 

Green wall

I love green walls, especially when they grow in the least expected place. Hence this one, that I found in the 2nd arrondissement, one of the most urban arrondissements in Paris. It's composed of  7600 plants and was made by Patrick Blanc, a botanist that invented - or at least developed - vertical gardens (green walls). Check his cool website!

A dry day!

Hurrah, we managed to see the sun for almost a whole day yesterday! It felt nice, so I went out near the Montorgueil area and too this photo at rue Réaumur, a typical street of the 2nd arrondissement. Nothing much to add, I just like the light in this photo ;-)

The two week Eclair feast!

Only in France can you organize a whole event around a piece of pastry! For yes, ladies and gentlemen today the Quinzaine des éclairs (two week eclairs "feast") officially starts and will last until March 24. Principal: go to one of the boulangeries or patisseries that take part in the event (there is a map here) and taste one of this year's recipe (peach/raspberries, hard caramel/vanilla and apple/almonds). Of course it's all a big promotional event to drag customers into boulangeries, but still, I may give it a try (only because I feel my arm is being twisted!!). FYI, I took this photo at L'atelier de l'éclair, a new concept store I already told you about.

Cafe chairs...

I had a long/busy/bad day! and only realized at 11 pm that tomorrow (today) was March 1st and that I had nothing for the CityDailyPhoto blogger's theme day... So I rushed out of my house and took a photo of a café chair. Alas I did not like it, so I went back, walked a little further and found this one - which is rather a combination of a bench and chairs, but I'm sure you'll forgive me! I took it at rue Saint Marc in the 2nd, and I think the café was called Le Balto. You want to see what café chairs look like throughout the world? Well, check out for yourself!

Eclairs to die for...

If you already came to France you probably had the occasion to eat an "Eclair", that is a sort of long puff generally filled with chocolate of coffee custard. Now there is - much - more to them... At the Atelier de l'Eclair, a new pastry shop located at rue Bachaumont in the second arrondissement where I had the occasion to see many kinds, including salted butter, vanilla, lemon... and, even more unexpected, savory ones (cheese, ham, salmon and even foie gras!). If you come here, I really advice that you give it a try (the place is very nice too). You may also order them on the Internet, but I'm not sure about that, for to be good, éclairs must be really fresh.

Casino de Paris costumes auction sales

Call me lucky, because I am! Yesterday (Friday) I attended the exhibition of the Casino de Paris costumes that is currently held at the stunning Elephant Paname center for the arts (look at the ceiling!) in view of this weekend (Saturday and Sunday) auction sales. Mistinguett, Jane Avril, Joséphine Baker, Line Renaud... and all the fabulous dancers that performed at Le Casino de Paris wore one of those costumes and/or accessories at some stage (and on stage!). Of course I could not help but taking a zillion photos (and videos), so that you can have a much more comprehensive view of this exhibit. Check it out here. And if you're interested, well, hurry, as it will only last 2 days!

2012 American elections

Unless you live under a rock these days, it's impossible not to be aware that during the night a new American President is going to be elected. I won't bother taking side of course as I'm not American and don't live in the US... But I have a lot of American visitors on PDP! So I thought of "celebrating" this evening with a photo of  the Harry's bar, which is undoubtedly the most famous American bar in Paris (read its history here). During election times, they organize a vote among American expats and the result is posted on the window (see the process on my 2008 post!). As you can see here, Obama would win by 214 to 148, but this straw vote has already been wrong twice... See you tomorrow morning (for me) with the real results!

Place des victoires

I know you're going to say I'm a little obsessed with Place des Victoires, but like I said it several times here, it's probably my favorite square in Paris! I often photographed it at daylight, but this time let me offer you a night view - and without the scaffolding that they removed recently. Reminder: this square was inaugurated in March 1686 and it owes its beauty to a local bill that made it compulsory to build symmetrical buildings around it. And of course, the guy on his horse is... Louis the XIVth. And just FYI, The blue sky is not fake!

The one week forest!

This week, by pure chance, I passed by the Palais Royal square and saw that a whole forest had prung up over night! Nothing miraculous, it's just a temporary forest made of 15,000 trees (of which 350 are at least 10 feet high!) that were planted to raise the awareness of Parisians about trees and forests some of the exhibit representatives say that they doubt that Parisians can name 10 different kinds of trees!). But the real agenda is more likely to promote the various trade associations and government agencies specialized in the wood industrie! Anyway, it's a pretty cool initiative.