Karma Kameleon

Keep cool! I came across this cameleon (I'm not actually certain he's a cameleon to be honest...) on the Quai de la Megisserie, a place by the river where they sell plants, flowers and... pets. You find more puppies and pussies kittens than giant green cameleons there ;) but they do sell small crocodiles, reptilians and all these creatures that we call NAC (for Nouveaux animaux de compagnie - new types of pets). I'm sure hey would be better off in their homeland than in a cage in Paris, but that is another story. Anyway, do visit this place if you happen to be in Paris, the set is gorgeous.

Controversy over Terrace heaters

"Would it make sense to heat your house and leave the windows open?" recently claimed 3 Green members of parliament (well "Députés" in French) who are currently trying to pass a law that would prohibit the use of terrace heaters in France. Needless to say that restaurants and cafés do not really share the same opinion; they argue that since the smoking ban it's the only way for them to keep smokers within their reach! Both parties use figures (CO2, watts, gas...) that do not match, of course. A very French debate... BTW, I took this photo rue du Pont Louis-Philippe, at the restaurant chez Julien, very nicely decorated.

Pont Marie at night

Is there anything more beautiful than the bridges over the Seine? This one is Le Pont Marie and I took this photo yesterday evening from Le Pont Louis-Philippe right when a Bateau Mouche was passing underneath it (you can see the additional light coming from the boat). Le Pont Marie (named after its architect, Christophe Marie) is very old ; it was built between 1614 and 1635 and at that time several houses could be found on it. A huge flood destroyed 2 arches in 1658 and several houses - and inhabitants! - were taken away by the river... They decided not to rebuild the houses when they fixed the bridge...

More after our commercial break!

If you like commercials - I'm talking good commercials - the place to be tonight and tomorrow is... Paris! Why, Because you could attend the 28th Nuit des Publivores (The night of the Ad eaters!), a 5,5 hour long "commercial break" that takes place in one of the most famous movie Theaters in Paris: Le Grand Rex. This show, created by Jean-Marie Boursicot in 1981, is now so famous that it even takes place in many cities around the world (not in the US yet...). I attended one, in the 80's, and I must say, it was a lot of fun : partly because I love creative commercials and partly because the fun was also in the audience ;)

Dolly goes to Paris...

I'm home sick at the moment (nothing serious, don't worry) so it's difficult for me to take photos any further than around the corner of my house! And today I really regretted it as I could have taken this extraordinary scene: a sheep roundup on the Champ de Mars, by the Eiffel Tower! Explanation: about 700 several sheep breeders thought it was the best way to attract the medias attention on their low incomes. It worked! It was in the news everywhere... I had to cheat a little bit (this is a photo I took at the Salon de l'Agriculture some time ago) to report the event, but I'm sure you'll forgive me ;) And if you want to see the real thing, have a look at this photo by François Lafite.

A museum for fun

A lot of big cities have their wax museum and Paris makes no exception, of course. Ours is called Le Musée Grévin (after the name of the artist who made the first wax sculptures around 1880 - the museum was inaugurated in 1882) and it's located 10 Boulevard Montmartre, in the former "in" area of Paris. There are about 300 wax characters in there; most of them are French centric (Brigitte Bardot, Charles Aznavour, Michel Drucker (a TV guy) and... of course, Nicolas Sarkozy - since July 2006) but a lot are internationnaly famous (Céline Dion, Jimmy Hendrix, Zinédine Zidane, Tony Blair, Ray Charles...). Kids love this museum and there are big lines on rainy days!

Le Sentier

Here is a very typical and historical area of Paris I never told you about. It's called Le Sentier (after the name of one of the major streets that runs through it) and it's the heart of the French clothing wholesale. It's a place where a lot of immigrants started their company - and sometimes made their wealth: originally mostly Jews (from North Africa), but now more and more Chinese and Pakistani. It's also a place known for its illegal workshops (constantly chased by the Police though) and illegal day workers hired to carry loads of garments and fabric from one place to another on these little red and blue trolleys that you can see in the photo. And, last but not least, in my opinion, it's the next up and coming area of Paris...

WWI Truce Celebration

Today is a holiday in France. We celebrate the end of World War I which ended precisely November 11, 1918 at eleven o'clock. This truce (armistice) was signed by Marechal Foch in a train carriage specially fitted for this occasion (this same carriage was also used in 1940 by Hitler to sign the rendition of France). For the first time there will not be any Poilus (that is what we call the soldiers who fought this war) at the ceremony as, like reported previously on PDP, the last French witness of this war died last Mars at the age of 110.

Le Palace's new life

Le Palace was a mythical place when I was young. It was the equivalent to what Studio 54 was in New York in the 80's 70's: the club to be! It was closed in 1983 after its owner died and did not really reopened until a few days ago, after it's been turned into a theater again (see more of its history here). I'm also happy to post this photo today because it brings me back to when I started PDP with my little Sony compact camera: I posted a photo of Le Palace on April 8, 2005 ending the caption with "Nobody knows what the Palace is going to become." Now I know! Time flies and PDP has already a history!

Sunday Tea Time

It's cold, gray, a little rainy... It's the perfect moment to have a little tea. Like this nicely dressed lady that I photographed at a terrace near Beaubourg (she probably had a macaron or two, wrapped in this ugly white paper on the table!) The French tradition of tea is not as strong as in England or China, but the market is apparently increasing (2 ou 3 French people drink tea against 1 out of 3 ten years ago). It is still considered as an "elite" beverage, and more feminine than masculine. There are several nice Salon de Thé in Paris ; the most famous ones are probably Mariage Frère (a tea specialist) and Angelina (an upper class hang out). If you're interested, here is a little selection of other cosy addresses (in French).

The sound of... musicals

A few years ago if you wanted to see a musical in Europe you had to go to London, period. Things have changed! Now you can see a lot of interesting productions in one of our many theaters. That's precisely what I did last night when I went to Mogador to see Le Roi Lion (The Lion King). I must say, I'm not a big fan of these shows, but this one really made me change my opinion. The costumes are stunning - I'm talking stunning! - the scenery is breathtaking and the French adaptation is really well made. Nice way to start my weekend ;) Here is a little clip.

Glass Hail!

It's the coolest effect I've ever seen in a shop window! This stunning scene belongs to the Galeries Lafayette, one of the largest department stores in Paris, and it's part of their Christmas decorations that started at the beginning of the month. Like several of you noticed, Paris is not the most decorated city in the world for Christmas (far from that!), but some of the decorations are really outstanding. I really look up to the people who are creative enough to come up with ideas like this.

Water of Paris

From what I understood from yesterday's comments, everyone seems happy after the US elections! I thought of celebrating the event with a little glass of a typical Paris beverage: water! As a matter of fact, the Paris town hall has been promoting tap water for several years now, and they even just opened a water museum in the 16th arrondissement where I photographed these 3 really cool pitchers (designed by Pierre Charpin). The whole purpose of this PR campaign is actually to let Parisians know that their tap water is just as good as bottled water, that it's much more environmentally friendly than bottled water and that it is about 300 times less expensive than bottled water! More here - in French - if you're interested.

Straw Vote at the Harry's Bar

It's a tradition that has almost never ceased since 1924: the "straw vote" at the famous Harry's Bar... The principle is simple: any American citizen (who can show an American passport) and who is older than 18 can participate in the vote. The results are posted in front of the bar (and on the Web site) every week leading up to the election until the very final moment (I took this photo at 7 pm on November 4th Paris time). The interesting part is that ever since 1924, the straw vote at Harry's Bar was wrong only twice: in 1976 (Ford/Carter) and in 2004 (Bush II/Kerry). At the time I'm posting this photo, I still don't know if they were wrong a third time...

French Obamania

During my stay in the US last week, I often got the question "and what do you think about the US elections in France?" I kept saying that there was very little discussion among the French, whether they traditionally support the right or the left wing, about 80% of them would vote for Obama if they were Americans. Last evening (Monday) there was even a small demonstration on the Trocadero esplanade in favor of him (yes Suzy, the little blue ray above the head of the woman in the middle belongs to the Eiffel Tower!). Will he finally be elected? We'll soon find out ;)

Cynical, but beautiful

I know, this looks like a very basic message - kinda like "aren't we treating men like consumable goods nowadays?" but I loved the graphics. It's not really a graffiti but a printed paper glued to a vent pipe, that I photographed in the Beaubourg area. The garbage can is typical of Paris (with its transparent plastic bag to avoid bombings - that is, to avoid that terrorists hide a bomb in it). It's not exactly the best photo I could choose to start the week, but it really caught my eyes. BTW, I have no idea who did that, so if anyone knows...

The right time

As I'm currently trying to recover from my jet lag (It always takes me ages!) I don't think I've ever showed you an interesting piece of art by sculptor Arman called "L'heure de tous" that has been installed in front of the Gare Saint Lazare in 1985 (which explains the little pigeon "offerings" that you can see on it...). The clocks don't actually work, they are just for the purpose of the sculpture. Incidentally, today is also the day Americans switch to give up DST (Daylight Saving Time) and return to normal time, so if you're from the US, everything should be back to normal with Europe and PDP in particular! Have a great Sunday.

Theme Day : Books

Those who have been to Paris probably have come across the Bouquinistes, these typical book sellers who don't really have a bookshop but a "box" along the Seine embankment. There are currently 217 of them along the Seine, running no less than 900 boxes - that makes a total of roughly 300 000 old and new books, postcards, photos... The first ones appeared during the 16th century and they managed to survive until now, even though there has been several attempts to eradicated them (either for political reasons or economical ones). I took this photo in one of these boxes thinking it would be perfect for our theme day. On a different note, may I also wish a scary Halloween to all my American visitors!

Click here to view thumbnails for all participants to the theme day.

Street art

Have giants taken over Paris while I was away?! No, it's only a few pieces of the work that sculptor Rabarama from Italy is currently showing in the 5th arrondissement on the occasion of La Fiac, the international modern art fair that takes place every year in Paris.I came across one of them on Place du Pantheon while I was struggling with the current terrible winter weather that I reconnected with, today ;)

Back to old Europe!

Everything comes to an end and even if I had a wonderful time in the US, it's now time to go back to my hometown. If everything goes well, I'll be in the plane to Paris when you see this photo! It shows the horse of the main Hermès shop at rue du Faubourg Saint Honoré. I just like the angle of this photo and the shadows it makes on the gray sky. Of all the French brands, I think Hermès is my favorite one: it's expensive but the quality is really there and the good taste too (now I talk like my mother!!!)

NYC PDP Party

Sorry I'm late posting, but you know why. I'm just back from... the NYC PDP party. As for last year in San Francisco and at the Paris gatherings, it's always a pleasure to meet people "for real". We gathered at Pipa (a recommendation of Alexa's), a tapas restaurant very nicely decorated. I had the opportunity to meet very interesting people, with different background and experience. From right to left: Alexa, Doug, Lori, Ming, Mame, Deborah, Elisabeth, Aliya, Charles.
Not to forget Vince, who kindly popped in a few minutes to tell me nice things about PDP ;) and Jessie who came in late and does not show on the photo. I was also touched to receive a call from Jeff (in Mineapolis) and a text message from Thib in Paris for the occasion. I may find it hard to post a daily photo of Paris sometimes, but all this is really rewarding ;)

Cyclist Marché Saint Honoré

I took this photo on the Place du Marché Saint Honoré, in the 1st arrondissement, a place that used to be totally spoiled by an old, ugly fire station located right in the middle. Now you can find lots of trendy restaurants around it and the ugly building has been replaced by a new glass one, designed by famous architect Ricardo Bofill. Under this new building there is a large covered through way that kids use to ride "acrobatic bicycles". Last call for NYC PDP gathering: address, time and all details to be found here.

Dôme des Invalides

It's a classic, but it's always nice to see. I also took this photo from the rue Boissy d'Anglas, like the one 2 days ago. It's Le Dôme des Invalides, that I showed several times here, but not from this angle. You don't see much of that kind of architecture in New York, where I just arrived a couple of hours ago ;) But I love skyscrapers too! If you want to join the NYC PDP party on Tuesday 28, around 5:30/6:00 pm. Stay tuned..

New York upon Seine!

Even if it looks like this photo was not taken in Paris, it was! And more precisely, at the last Mondial de l'automobile, the big automobile show that just took place in Paris. They had a section dedicated to taxis from all over the world throughout the ages and I thought this was perfect for today [Sunday], as I am heading to NYC. The PDP party will most likely take place on Tuesday 28, around 5:30/6:00 pm. Stay tuned for the location as I still need to arrange this [with Alexa!]. Also, I'd like to dedicate this post to Lynn (aka PHX-CDG) because it's thanks to her that I am here today;)

Flavor of the past

Not far from where I took yesterday's photo, there is a little passage called la Galerie Royale - off la rue Royale - that I never knew of and that I discovered while wandering in the neighborhood. It's a place I recommend if you're near rue Royale (where the famous macaron maker Ladurée is located!) and should you want to have a drink on a quiet terrace. The buildings are really beautiful (as you can see in the photo) and the passage has kept its original flavour (the rue Royale was built in 1758). PS: if you are in New York and want to meet me next week, please check this forum entry.

Chic is in the details

I always look up to the people (should I say the artists) who dress windows. They have to come up with new ideas, cope with the image the brand wants to promote and catch the passers by attention. That is exactly what happed to me when I passed by this Lanvin window display in the Boissy d'Anglas street. The whole setting was actually very creative and I do regret not to have been able to photograph it due to the light reflexion in the glass. PS: if you are in New York and want to meet me next week, please check this forum entry.

Quiet Please!

One of the side effects of the smoking ban in cafés and restaurants is that smokers feel compelled to go outside in the street to have their shoot fix. And what happens when they are outside altogether? They talk, laugh, chuckle... drop their cigarette ends on the ground and trigger much anger from the neighbors! The problem has become so important that the town hall had to react and launched a massive campaign. The photo I took shows one of the posters you can now find outside many places. It says "Outside, let's talk quietly" and the little shoeshine box on the left is, in fact, a portable ashtray that is provide for free to cafés and restaurants so that they can give them to their customers.

More Towers

More towers, yes, but no more like this! As a matter of fact, the next tower that is going to be built in Paris will have very little to do with that kind of quick and dirty 70ish cheap skyscraper - nor with the Montparnasse style tower! - but with a stunning, ambitious architectural project. It will be called "Le triangle", will be located in the 15th arrondissement and will be more like a "vertical city" (in which you'll find apartments, offices, cafés, gardens...) than anything else. It's just a project for the time being, but I really hope it will be built. Have a look at this little video, I'm sure you will agree ;)

Free us!

I could not help taking a photo when I passed this scene today on the Quai (river bank) de la Megisserie. This place is well known for being a pet and plants market where lots of unusual creatures can be found - including plastic gnomes in a cage! We, in France, have a partiality for gnomes especially the ones that people put in their gardens. There is even "national garden gnomes liberation front" (here is the american equivalent!) that regularly makes it to the headlines for having "freed" a few of them from their gardens (where the front assumes they are kept prisonners of course!) - PS: I'll post more news about the PDP meeting in NY later, as I don't know yet where and when it's going to be held.

Le Zinc!

Here is another typical Paris scene! We often call the bar that can be found in cafés, "Le zinc", after the name of the metallic chemical element (even though, and I'm sure it will be a surprise to all my French readers, I found out that no bars have ever been made out of Zinc!). The little red and white napkin under the glasses is also very French: the red and white motive (which can also be green or blue) is called "Le Vichy" because it was originally made in Vichy (in the South center of France) - It was Brigitte Bardot who made it famous when she got married in a Vichy style dress in 1959!

Back home!

I may have spent 2 days in what we call the 21st arrondissement of Paris (that is what we call Deauville because, during weekends, you find more Parisians there than locals!) it still feels good to be back home. To celebrate, let me offer you - and Suzy in particular LOL - a real cliché(!). Now I have to work on my next trip to the US (I have no idea where to organize a PDP party in the big Apple?!) and take enough Paris photos to keep you guys busy while I'm away ;)

Hair!

I'm still at the Women's Forum in Deauville until tomorrow evening and I thought this photo would be appropriate for the day ;) I took it in a hair dresser's shop close to the Edouard VII near Madeleine. That's all! Let me just wish you a nice weekend. PS: since I'm going to be in NYC on Monday 27 and Tuesday 28 someone asked me if I would organize a little gathering in Manhattan. Are there several of you interested?

Naughty Paris!

Who said only men are interested in sex? Had you been yesterday evening at the Naughty Paris guidebook launch party you would have been convinced of the contrary... The party took place at Yoba's, a chic shop dedicated to women's pleasure and the queen of the evening was Heather Stimmler-Hall (it's her in the photo!), the author of the book. To quench the guests' thirst, among the erected objects that could be found in the place, there were also a few bottles of Champagne... Funny: tomorrow I'm off to another female gathering: the Women's forum. Should I bring Heather's book with me ;)

La Parisienne !

I know that for most of you, La Parisienne probably refers to a sophisticated, elegantly dressed young woman... But the Swiss made her a cigarette! The brand was created in 1887 and owns apparently 16% of the Swiss market. Now, the funny part is that this photo was given to me by a real Parisienne, a one that PDPers know very well: Guille! Precisely I was supposed to take part in a another of these nice dinners where she and other PDP followers (Lynn, Thib, Katie...) were gathering last night, but I really needed to sleep. BTW, I'll be on vacation 2 weeks from next Monday (Boston and NYC).

Dust to dust, stones to stones, electricity to electricity!

I've been passing by this beautiful industrial building for several weeks now and I have been willing to photograph it for a long time. Last night, I did! It's called Le Losserand (because it's located rue Losserand) and it's an old sub power station built in the 20's, that has been turned into offices this year. The interesting story is that its architect, Emmanuel Saadi, embedded no less than 45 000 solar cells in it, in order to produce some electricity (about 70 80kW/h, which is not much, but better than nothing!). The other interesting part is that they kept its old original structure, its stones in particular, called Meulières and very typical of Paris.

Forza pizza!

I took this photo on my way back from the office last evening at... 10 pm! Who said the French only work 35 hours a week! Anyway, when it's late and when you have nothing in your fridge, I think there is no better alternative than a pizza ;) There are dozens of pizzerie in Paris all claiming to serve the best pizzas of course (see here for a selection). By the way, did you know that the pizza was invented about 3000 years ago by the Egyptians (it was more a flat bread at that time). Its name comes from Pinsa, which is the past participle of Pinsere (to spread in Latin). The things your learn on PDP!!

Canes

In one of the covered passages that I have, close to my home, there is one called Le Passage Jouffroy that I already mentioned here several times. It shelters many interesting places to visit (including the Musée Grévin (wax museum)) and a a stunning gallery of antique walking canes that I also already mentioned here, but a long long time ago. All the canes they have are really extraordinary (more photos here).

Le Marchand de Masques

I took this photo at the base of a stunning sculpture called Le marchand de masques (the mask seller). Created by Zacharie Astruc (1835-1907), it can be found in the Luxembourg gardens, near the entrance on the Panthéon side. The interesting part about it is that the masks were actually made to resemble famous French people (Victor Hugo, Gustave Corot, Alexandre Dumas, Hector Berlioz...), which makes discovering this artwork even more exciting.

Sunrise over Paris

We're experiencing a sort of Indian summer in Paris at the moment (sort of, because we have no actual Indian summers in France!) and it's quite nice. Here is the photo I took this morning on my way to work. I took it from the Pont des Arts, where I waited for someone to walk "into the sun" (which was hard, because people nicely kept waiting for me to take a picture before actually walking pass the objective!). When I see this, I understand why so many people are in love with Paris ;)

When the Champs Elysees turn into a tarmac...

Apparently the French Aerospace museum owns the largest collection of "flying objects" (which includes balloons from the 17th century!). Like last year, they picked a few models and exhibited them at the bottom of the Champs Elysées. Passers by can then currently see the only SPAD XIII (apparently a very rare plane built in 1917), the first helicopter - well the first "plane" that took off vertically in 1907 (called Cornu, after the name of its designer) and many other unique models. I chose to show you the European rocket - called Ariane (Astrium is the company that owns almost 30% of Arianespace, the main European rocket company).

Being W

If you were in Paris at the moment you could see a movie made by two French film makers Karl Zero (a nickname) and Michel Royer, dedicated to... George Bush! The main "character" in the movie is, of course, the actual U.S. President, but the voice-over is done by imitator Jim Meskimen. I haven't seen it, but the trailer gives a pretty good idea of the result... As you can imagine, the whole movie is not exactly in favor of Bush. Take a close look at the poster they use to promote the film (that you can see above in the photo, or better here, in the making of); it's an adaptation of a famous painting by Ingres.

The world according to Le Monde

Le Monde is one of the leading French national newspapers even though its certified circulation only amounts to 316 851 copies (it amounted to 800 000 copies in 1968!). Its original location was rue des Italiens in the 9th arrondissement; this address was so famous that sometimes Le Monde was referred to as "the daily paper from rue des Italiens". Because of its financial problems, however, Le Monde had to move to cheaper places in Paris - and in the suburbs. Its latest location is here, where I took this photo, at Boulevard Auguste Blanqui, in the 13th arrondissement. I'm told it's a very nice building inside (designed by famous architect Christian de Portzamparc). More - in French - here.

It's not a painting!

I know it looks like a painting but it's not. It's a photo of l'Assemblée Nationale (French Parliament) dressed with the colors of the European Union that I took last evening (Monday) from the Pont de la Concorde. France happens to be leading the European Union until the end of the year (see more on this site), that is why some monuments show the colours of Europe. It was probably planned a long time ago, but ironicaly, in these times of financial crisis, it seems to be extremely appropriate to remind us Europeans, that we need to stick together more than ever!

I need your help! For an article, I'm urgently looking for (funny) stories about traders - in relation to the recent crisis. Kinda like "Now that they've lost their home, too bad they can't even sleep in their Porsche because the seats don't fully recline!". If you heard any, please mail them to eric (at) tenin.com Thank you.

I could not resist!

I have now been monitoring my food (in other words, I have been dieting!) since March now - with pretty good results, thank you very much ;) - but today I passed by the shop of Pierre Hermé and for once there was no line outside (yes, it can happen!). I could not resist buying - and eating right away - 2 macarons... I know it's bad but when you're at the doorstep of heaven (or is it hell?) how can you resist? For those of you who would have never heard of Pierre Hermé, let's just say he's one of the most talented Pastry chefs around (see more on Wikipedia and/or on his official website).

Be ware the dog!

Not far from where I took this photo, and this one as well, I was wandering around the 13th arrondissement which is often referred to as the Chinese quartier. However, amongst the vast number of Chinese restaurants, exotic food stands, and famous Tang Frères store, you still will find little "mews" or "passages" with cute city homes tucked away. This one caught my eye for several reasons...the sun on number 9 (good lotto number?), the "STOP PUB" warning and of course, the "Bad Dog" sign warning the postman that if the sign isn't enough to deter him from depositing junk mail, the dog certainly will!

Photo Shoot

I came across this unexpected photo shoot yesterday (Friday) on my way back from a meeting in the 8th arrondissement. I could have you guess where these two guys were standing but I won't play games with you ;) As you can see in this broader view, they were on top of... the Opera. I'll probably never know why they were there (probably a photo for a fashion designer or something) but I could not help but stopping my scooter and take the photo. That is all for today. I've had a tough week, I deserve a little rest! Have a good weekend too.

Paris in a wheelchair

Despite its claim to be disabled friendly, Paris is not exactly a heaven for people with reduced mobility. Scooters and motorbikes are often parked on sidewalks and block the way, the metro is not accessible to wheelchairs - very few buses are - public phones require to stand, ATMs also, etc. Much worse, socially, disabled people are not very well integrated. That is the reason why when I saw this cute little lady riding the streets of Paris in her wheelchair on a rainy day, I thought to myself, "Gee, this one has some guts!". FYI, here is an excellent guidebook for people in wheelchairs who want to move around Paris. It was made in 2003, but I'm sure not much has changed since then.

Rusty Shutters and... brand new site!

In Paris a lot of shutters are made of steel and not wood. Steel is supposed to last longer, but... it can rust. Which is good for photographers, especially if someone adds some colorful graffiti to them;) On another colorful note, let me take the opportunity of today's post to finally disclose the address of the website project I've been working on for 9 months already and that I finally launched last Thursday. It's in French (although the little video at the beginning includes interviews of some Americans) so you may not be interested, but since I really worked hard to bring it to life, I thought I could afford to exceptionally share the news with you today. Please pay a visit to www.courriercadres.com ;)

Theme day : lines

Time flies... It's already the first of the month! And what happens every first of the month within the City daily Photo community? It's a theme day! This month's theme is "Lines" and since I kinda lacked imagination this time I thought of the closest lines I could photograph; the ones of... my parquet! For yes, ladies and gentlemen, you are currently looking at a bit of this typical "Point de Hongrie" parquet (Hungarian point, as we call it here) that can be found in many Parisian apartments.

As always, visit the City daily Photo Portal to view thumbnails for all participants or check each blog individually:
Albuquerque (NM), USA by Helen, American Fork (UT), USA by Annie, Arradon, France by Alice, Ashton under Lyne, UK by Pennine, Aspen (CO), USA by IamMBB, Auckland, New Zealand by Baruch, Auckland, New Zealand by Lachezar, Austin (TX), USA by LB, Avignon, France by Nathalie, Bandung, Indonesia by Bunyamin, Bandung, Indonesia by Eki Akhwan, Bandung, Indonesia by Harry Makertia, Barrow-in-Furness, UK by Enitharmon, Barton (VT), USA by Andree, Baziège, France by PaB, Belgrade, Serbia by Bibi, Belgrade, Serbia by BgdPic, Bellefonte (PA), USA by Barb-n-PA, Bicheno, Australia by Greg, Birmingham (AL), USA by VJ, Bogor, Indonesia by Gagah, Boston (MA), USA by Cluelessinboston, Boston (MA), USA by Ilse, Budapest, Hungary by Isadora, Budapest, Hungary by Zannnie and Zsolt, Budapest, Hungary by agrajag, Buenos Aires, Argentina by Karine, Canterbury, UK by Rose, Cape Town, South Africa by JSB, Cape Town, South Africa by Kerry-Anne, Cavite, Philippines by Steven Que, Château-Gontier, France by Laurent, Chateaubriant, France by Bergson, Chateaubriant, France by trieulet, Cheltenham, UK by Marley, Chennai, India by Ram N, Coral Gables (FL), USA by Jnstropic, Durban, South Africa by CrazyCow, Edwardsville (IL), USA by Mdflores, Fort Lauderdale (FL), USA by Gigi, Franschhoek, South Africa by JSB, Geneva (IL), USA by Kelly, Glasgow, Scotland by Jackie, Greenville (SC), USA by Denton, Grenoble, France by Bleeding Orange, Hamilton, New Zealand by Sakiwi, Hangzhou, China by Chanin, Helsinki, Finland by PPusa, Hobart, Australia by Greg, Honningsvag, Norway by J., Hyde, UK by Old Hyde, Hyde, UK by Gerald, Islip (NY), USA by Bettye, Jackson (MS), USA by Halcyon, Jakarta, Indonesia by Santy, Jefferson City (MO), USA by Chinamom2005, Karwar, India by Yogesh, Knoxville (TN), USA by Knoxville Girl, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia by Edwin, La Antigua, Guatemala by Rudy, Lakewood (OH), USA by mouse, Larchmont (NY), USA by Marie-Noyale, Las Vegas (NV), USA by Mo, Lisbon, Portugal by Sailor Girl, Lodz, Poland by ritalounge, London, UK by Mo, London, UK by Ham, Madrid, Spain by Tr3nta, Mainz, Germany by JB, Manila, Philippines by Heyokity, Manila, Philippines by Hilda, Manila, Philippines by Anthony, Melbourne, Australia by John, Menton, France by Jilly, Mexico City, Mexico by Carraol, Middletown (MD), USA by Bernie, Milton, New Zealand by Milton Daily Photo, Milwaukee (WI), USA by karl, Minneapolis (MN), USA by Scott, Minneapolis (MN), USA by Mitch, Minneapolis (MN), USA by Greg, Molfetta, Italy by saretta, Monrovia (CA), USA by Keith, Monte Carlo, Monaco by Jilly, Monterrey, Mexico by rafa, Muizenberg, South Africa by Pentaxjunkie, Mumbai, India by MumbaiiteAnu, Mumbai, India by Kunalbhatia, Nelson, New Zealand by Meg and Ben, New Delhi, India by Delhi Photo Diary, New York City (NY), USA by Kitty, New York City (NY), USA by Ming the Merciless, Norwich, UK by Goddess888, Orlando (FL), USA by OrlFla, Paderborn, Germany by Soemchen, Palos Verdes (CA), USA by tash, Paris, France by Eric, Paris, France by Elsa, Pasadena (CA), USA by Can8ianben, Pasadena (CA), USA by Petrea, Pensacola (FL), USA by P J, Petoskey (MI), USA by Christie, Philadelphia (PA), USA by Andrew Foderaro, Phoenix (AZ), USA by Sharon, Pilisvörösvár, Hungary by Elise, Port Angeles (WA), USA by Jelvistar, Prague, Czech Republic by kakna, Quezon City, Philippines by ann pablo, Quincy (MA), USA by slim, Rabaul, Papua New Guinea by Jules, Ramsey, Isle of Man by babooshka, Reykjavik, Iceland by Vírgíll, Riga, Latvia by Riga Photos, Roanoke (VA), USA by Tanya, Rome, Italy by Giovanni, Rotterdam, Netherlands by Ineke, Rouen, France by Bbsato, Saarbrücken, Germany by LadyDemeter, Saigon, Vietnam by Simon, Saint Louis (MO), USA by Strangetastes, Saint Paul (MN), USA by Kate, Salt Lake City (UT), USA by Eric, San Antonio (TX), USA by Kramer, San Diego (CA), USA by Felicia, San Francisco (CA), USA by Burd Zel Krai, San Francisco (CA), USA by PFranson, Schenectady (NY), USA by Buck, Seattle (WA), USA by Kim, Seattle (WA), USA by Chuck, Selma (AL), USA by RamblingRound, Sequim (WA), USA by Eponabri, Sesimbra, Portugal by Aldeia, Setúbal, Portugal by Maria Elisa, Silver Spring (MD), USA by John, Singapore, Singapore by Zannnie, Singapore, Singapore by Keropok, Sofia, Bulgaria by Antonia, South Pasadena (CA), USA by Laurie, Stanwood (WA), USA by MaryBeth, Stayton (OR), USA by Celine, Stockholm, Sweden by Stromsjo, Sunshine Coast, Australia by bitingmidge, Sydney, Australia by Sally, Sydney, Australia by Ann, Székesfehérvár, Hungary by Teomo, Tacloban City, Philippines by agnesdv, Tamarindo, Costa Rica by David, Telluride (CO), USA by mtsrool, Terrell (TX), USA by Bstexas, Terrell (TX), USA by Jim K, Test City (MA), USA by , Torun, Poland by Glenn, Toulouse, France by Julia, Turin, Italy by Livio, Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina by Jazzy, Twin Cities (MN), USA by Slinger, Vienna, Austria by G_mirage2, Wailea (HI), USA by Kuanyin, Washington (DC), USA by D.C. Confidential, Wellington, New Zealand by Jeremyb, West Sacramento (CA), USA by Barbara, Weston (FL), USA by WestonDailyPhoto, Willits (CA), USA by Elaine, Yardley (PA), USA by Mrlynn

Some brands never die...

This is probably not the most beautiful photo I've ever posted here, but what it shows is interesting. In the background, there is a large painted wall on which you can see the remains of two typical old French ads: one for the soap Cadum and the other one for Dubonnet, a wine based aperitif. Both of these brands are very well known in France even though they are extremely old (Cadum was first launched in 1907 and Dubonnet in 1846). On top of that, both products still exist and are currently sold even though their advertising campaign is somewhat different nowadays ;). BTW I found this wall in the 13th arrondissement in rue de Tolbiac (close to number 126, obviously!)