Rue Mouffetard -- Pastry ReflectionsWalking down Rue Mouffetard we saw this line of pastries reflected in the counterLe Moule à Gâteau111, rue Mouffetard5ième arr. See the other "Weekend Reflections" at James' Newtown Area Photo.…
Repetto, pour tout le mondeRepetto,known the world over for its ballet shoes, also makes les chaussures for women of all ages, men, and children.…
Afternoon play -- Square du TempleMary, Marie, Virginia and I wandered through the Marais en juin and found ourselves in Square du Temple. The scenes in the photos show carefree children at play with parents, grandparents, nannies but there is a plaque which was erected in 2007 showing the names and ages of 85 children from the area…
Pere Lachaise -- Un beau visageThe ironwork on this vault is one of a thousand faces in Pere Lachaise. Beautiful cemetaries are a joy to photograph for the architecture, the art and craftsmanship, the history. No one is going anywhere and every now and then you find un beau visage like this.…
Ladurée -- le petit déjeunerIn June just a few doors from our hotel on Rue Jacob was Ladurée. The room adjacent to the usual sales room was set for le petit déjeuner. It looked lovely and elegant with its crisp linens, roses, and china. Did we enjoy a leisurely breakfast at Ladurée? Non, we just grabbed a variety of macarons a…
Église Saint Germain des PrésReportedly the oldest church in Paris (founded in 542), the courtyard of Église Saint Germain des Prés on the north side displays some of the recovered architecture from this church which was destroyed many times over the centuries. In the foreground on the right is a Picasso sculpture of Dora Maar …
Macarons on Ile Saint LouisThis is a simple display of macarons with a hand-lettered sign to offer the day's flavors. Some of the larger pâtisseries produce machine-made perfectly uniform macarons, and only an expert or a researcher would know. But, when you see macarons of varying sizes, you know that they were individually …
Rue Mouffetard -- Une pièce de théâtreIn June while walking Rue Mouffetard, I was sitting on the curb (don't ask) and watched this scene on the opposite corner. Monsieur was sanding and scraping the brightly colored wall with its farmer and character vegetables. Madame, dressed warmly in her "summer coat" on this Sunday afternoon, appro…
Cour d'Honneur -- Les InvalidesYou do not have to be a fan of France's military history to appreciate the beautiful patina on the cannons in Cour d'Honneur. Some of them date from the reign of François 1er, 1515-1567.I have heard that decorators and gardeners go to extreme measures to get the green patina that the centuries have …
La librairie et le patronI loved the stacks and stacks of books that the owner of this petite librairie attended so carefully. A gentle little scene you think?Not so quick. He turned and scowled at Virginia right after I had taken my photos. She probably has the grumpy shot. I must get a silencer on that shutter.…
Beyond -- To Córdoba, SpainThe Catedral de Córdoba was formerly the Great Mosque of Córdoba, or the Mezquita. It has long been on my list of places to visit (and photograph). With its 856 columns of jasper, onyx, marble, and granite it did not disappoint! Although the temperature was almost 100F when we visited on September 1…
Zoom-Zoom IIBleu clair, bleu, noir, et rouge -- Alons-y!After walking the streets of Paris all morning and a lovely dejeuner with mes amies Virginia and Marie, it was tempting to select a color and GO!Tomorrow, with your approval, I will take you "Beyond" -- just for the day. Okay?…
Église Saint-SéverinThe graceful arches in the ambulatory of Église Saint-Séverin are emphasized by the ambient light of the mid-afternoon sun.I am fascinated by the architecture of this church and there is much to see both inside out out. …
Tournez vous vers le cielAlways look up -- Otherwise you will miss beauties like this!Au coin duBoulevard Beaumarchais et de la Rue Saint-Claude3ième arrondissement…
Pâtisserie Gérard Mulot -- Miam-miam!The pâtisseries of Paris provide a sugar feast for the eyes and Gérard Mulot in le 6ième arr. has a history of delicious offerings, both savory and sweet. The day in June when Marie and I walked past the pâtisserie on Rue de Seine, there was a line of anticipating customers that snaked out the door…
Reflections in le MaraisOn a walk in the Marais with Mary, Marie, Virginia and Peter we came upon this store window. It was an artistic display of tools but on reflection (no pun intended, bien sûr) I am not certain whether it was the creative expression of the store or indeed an art display. In the Marais either would b…
How did I miss this?It was not until I posted the Sunday church, Saint Denys du Saint Sacrement, and I was looking for information on Eugène Delacroix that I realized the Musée national Eugène Delacroix was in the same block as my hotel! I even stopped to photograph the beautiful building, l'Institut Catholique de Pari…
Les chanteurs américains -- Oui ou non?In June, I spied these two chanteurs who had gathered quite a crowd, or should I say young groupies, on a Friday afternoon on Rue St. Antoine. What do you think? Are they French, American, or are you willing to go out on a limb and tell me another nationality? How can you tell?I'll give you a hin…
Le Lion Bleu -- Paris doorI think that if I lived in Paris I would love to have this whimsical blue lion greeting me each day. He looks a bit thirsty to me!12, rue de Tournon I'm off on an adventure with Nanette to find some castanets -- I will still be posting daily but with fewer comments until I return.…
Flowers left on the church stepThe view of Église d'Oratoire from Rue St. Honoré is rather bleak and not at all similar to the majestic front facing Rue de Rivoli. One rainy morning before sunrise Holly and I walked past the worn green doors and noticed this fresh bouquet on the step, carefully bundled with a note. I'm off on an …
Les fleurs roseBefore summer is totally behind us, I thought the beautiful blue Paris skies in the Jardin du Luxembourg would bring you another glimpse of l'été à Paris. I'm off on an adventure with Nanette to find some castanets -- I will still be posting daily but with fewer comments until I return.…
La Mairie -- Nogent-sur-MarneJust east of Bois de Vincennes are a series of beautiful villes situated along the Marne river. If you take the RER to Nogent-sur-Marne, the Mairie is only a one block walk (west). I have already shown Le Carrousel de Nogent and today present the picturesque town hall. The city has a bi-monthly mag…
Le Carrousel de NogentIf you have been to Paris in the winter you know that most, if not all, of the carousels are closed. How about un manège enclosed with glass doors so that it can entertain les enfants during all seasons and weather. It even provides seating for les parents ou les grand-parents. En juin, I went to No…
Morning strollThis scene almost escaped me before I could "aim and shoot" and it was not until later that I could definitely say "it's a girl!" -- Do you think that this is the baby's nanny or her grandmère? Although I have never strolled an infant through the streets of Paris, it does occur to me that it must be…
Eric Kayser IIThe French know how to do it right! This pâtisserie is found in the 5ième Arr. on Rue Monge near Métro Maubert-Mutualité. When I stay in a hotel just around the corner, this is a twice-a-day stop for un café or to pick up something sweet (much smaller than these beauties).Those macarons are very red…
Un chapeau et un .....?Un chapeau et un .... je ne sais pas! I was sneaking a photo of this stylish hat at Le Bon Marché as I had done before and in reviewing my daily collection of photographs, I wondered what exactly was that to the right of my focus. Is this another hat? Surely not -- it looks like wadded up underwear …
Sacré CoeurA different angle in order to escape the thousands who sit on the steps in the summer evenings.…
Café Chairs -- Place du TetreHere in Place du Tetre are all of these empty café chairs. Where are all of the people we saw swarming this lovely square in Montmartre? Where are all of the t-shirt clad tourists? Where are all of the boom-box hip-hoppers? The costumed characters? The souvenir hawkers? Well, they were here in Plac…
Soignez votre anglais...As you ride in the Métro there are a whole series of these "improve your English" posters.This particular one urges one to "treat your English" and to "stop the massacre" of English.... avec une jolie infirmière, bien sûr!So, like a tourist I had a big grin and snapped a photo! Well, at least I was …
Repetto -- For NanetteI cannot say how many pairs of pointe shoes I stumbled over growing up, nor the number of times she extended her leg up the passageway wall in an elegant stretch. No one talks about where the hundreds of worn out pink satin shoes went or how many lambs might have been sheared to make the padded cush…
