Parisian Staircase

Sometimes old building staircases are not exactly in mint condition, but they still have this unique flavor that only old Paris edifice have. This one belongs to one of the oldest buildings in the 10th arrondissement and it is typical of the 18th century buildings. Fortunately, the apartment of the friend I visited there is brand new (not the friend, the apartment!). Have a great Sunday.

Le Bistrot du sommelier in Paris

Yesterday, I had the pleasure to have lunch at Le Bistrot du sommelier, a restaurant located in the 8th arrondissement, where they have a little private lounge where you can have a little privacy. The food is stunning and so is the wine for the owner of the place is one the best sommeliers (wine expert) in the world. He is also a MOF (Meilleur ouvrier de France), which is a prestigious award, granted to workers and artisans who excel in their art.

Paris rooftops

Yesterday evening I was invited to a farewell party of a friend who's going to work in Berlin. For the occasion he borrowed the offices of friends of his who are lucky enough to have a large terrace on the rooftop of a Paris building. The view was as stunning as was the company...

Big naked man

This is something I'll probably miss when when I move out of Paris, but the thing is that, often, when you walk down a street here, you come across a piece of art (and I'm not talking about the buildings!). Whether it's permanent like the many statues I already showed you or temporary like this one. It was made by Chinese artist Hong Biao Shen who studied until 2007 at Panthéon-Sorbonne university after his Fine arts studies in Beijing. It is now on display at rue Soufflot near the Pantheon, but it's not meant to stay there. Students think it should and they started a petition to "keep the big naked man"! Watch the story in this beautiful video.

Sunblock!

I showed you the outside of L'Institut du Monde Arabe, a Paris building (mostly a museum) dedicated to the Arab world, several times, but I never showed you the inside, and especially the clever windows that open or shut automatically like a camera lense (or a human eye!) according to the outside light. Here you go then... A shot that I took on the last floor (Parisians will know that I did not take it yesterday as it rained almost all day!).

Commemoration of Paris Liberation

Sorry the photo is not really good, and though the show was absolutely fantastic. The show? Yes, to commemorate the 70th anniversary of Paris Liberation from the Nazi, the town hall ordered a splendid light show projected on... the Hotel de Ville. Really impressive, even though the heavy rain kinda spoiled it a bit. Paris was liberated on August 25, by the allied troops with the help of the French resistance fighters. A late aunt that passed away a few years ago told me that it was a very happy day, but also pretty dangerous as there were many snipers everywhere. 

Paris, the green...

Paris is less green than London or Berlin, or course, but it's much smaller and still managed to save some green spots from the concrete invasion! Hence these trees that I photographed yesterday afternoon in Les Tuileries gardens. Don't they seem to belong to a forest? Have a great rentrée everyone...

Botanical garden

The Paris botanical garden is one of my favorite gardens in Paris. It's large (28 hectares), never too crowded, offers a lot of shade when it's too hot, and has a lot to offer in terms of plants (including two giant green houses) and animal life. In one of its ends there is a museum (sheltered in the building that you can see in the background) with lots of interesting stuff (including the French Mineralogy Museum, where I was lucky enough to photograph the French Crown jewels once).

Turning old into new...

You might find it hard to believe, but this building, up until 2002 was... a factory called L'atelier des cendres - the ashes workshop - (you can still see the name above the door). This company used to recycle the "ashes" of jewelers as a way to collect what was left of gold and silver. It was totally renovated in 2013 by Uniqlo, the Japanese clothes manufacturer who kept most of the old features (including the stunning chimney and the beautiful staircase). It's definitely worth a visit if you happen to be in Le Marais.

Art against poverty

If you don't speak French it's unlikely that you will be able to understand the play on words in this graffito: "Dans quel monde Vuitton?" sounds like "Dans quel monde vit-on ?  (In what kind of world do we live?). You can also see the Louis Vuitton monogram (LV) on the bucket in which the child is sitting. As you guessed the aim of this clever piece of art is to condemn poverty and the difference between the ones that can buy Vuitton suitcases and the ones that can't. Apparently this artist even belongs to a group called "Art against Poverty" (it's written in the vertical graffito). Beyond the political message, I thought the piece of art was pretty good.

Selfie, part II

Here is another photo I took at the Pont des Arts and this time not to show the amount of locks attached to it. The minute I saw these four girls taking a selfie, I knew it would make a cool shot. I did not manage to grab the exact angle I wanted, but I had to be quick and discrete (they are not professional models!). 

Front de Seine

I had dinner in the 15th arrondissement yesterday evening and I passed by the Pont Mirabeau. I stopped 2 minutes to take this photo. A nice mix between the old and the new!

Another sky view of Paris

There are many high points and roof tops from where you can admire Paris. Recently I showed you the one of Galeries Lafayette or Printemps, today here is the one from the rooftop of L'Institut du Monde Arabe. It's located on the Eastern part of Paris, where there are slightly less monuments to see, but you can still enjoy a nice view on the Ile Saint Louis and on the back of Notre Dame (in the background in this photo). The entrance is free and if you feel like having a drink, there is, of course, a little Lebanese café/restaurant at your disposal...

Street art

I like the way street artists now glue paper on Paris walls instead of painting them with spray paint. It allows passers by to discover new artists without damaging the walls, nor costing money to tax payers (for the city has to clean these walls eventually, no matter what). I really love this one, shame that it's not signed. UPDATE: thanks to the help of a few good visitors ;-) I know now that this image was used for the cover of a record by FKA Twigs (London).

Live barefoot, really?!

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, in summer, you also find people walking barefoot in Paris! Well, there was one yesterday anyway.... Judging from the soles of his feet, I would not recommend it too much, but you know what they say: "this is a free country..."! Have a great Sunday everyone. Are you ready to go back to school?! I'm not...

Paris Plage, last call

I don't know if you remember last year's post where I took this close up. Well, the same guy was here this year, only this time I took the photo from above (from the street level). This sand sculptor is really good I must say and he has a lot of success (even though there are probably much less passers by this year because of the poor weather). Anyway, it's Paris Plage's last weekend, pretty soon it'll be time to pack this sand and let the cars back into their realm!

Poor Pont des arts !

I went to Le Pont des arts yesterday because it's a lot in the news at the moment. The thing is that because of the tourist season there are so many "love locks" on the bridge that the panels are collapsing more than usual. To prevent people from adding more locks, the Paris town hall hopes to get the lovers to take selfies and post them on the social networks (and the Paris site Love Without Locks). They also put stickers on the pavement at the entrance of the bridge. Will it work? I doubt it, especially since there are about 10 people selling locks on and around the bridge!

Caged Conciergerie

This stunning building is called La Conciergerie, a building that used to be part of the Palais de la Cité where the French kings used to live. It is also famous for having been a prison, especially during the French revolution; it's were Marie-Antoinette was kept prisoner until they decided to execute her (it's even possible to visit her cell and many other things if you wish - not before October 8 though). I thought it was ironic that because of the fence they installed to protect Paris Plage, this former prison was currently "caged". It also makes a cool photo ;-)

Paris sunset classic

I know it's a very classic view, the kind of photo you could find on a postcard, but once in a while there is nothing wrong with that ;-) I took this photo 2 days ago, while I was walking down the Seine banks.

Farewell Monsieur Berthillon

Everything (and everyone) must come to an end, and the sad news came today that Raymond Berthillon, the founder of the famous Ile Saint Louis ice cream place passed away on Saturday, at the age of 90. If you've been to Paris, you've probably stood in line at least once in front of his landmark store - or in one of his approximately 150 Paris area resale shops. To maintain the quality of his ice cream and sherbets, Mr. Berthillon always refused to industrialize the production and would only offer seasonal flavors (depending on which fruit he would find at the market!). And of course, like any self-respecting Frenchman, he would close every August so that his employees would enjoy a month's vacation! So the next time you enjoy a Berthillon ice cream, remember to think of the man who started it all. More on Wikipedia.