Velo !

I waited some time to take this one! The red sign says "Vélo", which is short for Vélocipède, the first name given to bicycles in French. Of course, when I saw this sign, I immediately thought to myself "It would be cool if a bike would go by when I take the photo..." So I waited! And here you go!

Open Air Movie Theater

We don't have drive-in theaters in Paris but, during summer, we have "Le cinéma en plein air de la Villette" (open air movie theater of La Villette). For only 2 € - plus 5 € if you rent a lounge chair and a blanket! - you can see good old classics (mostly American and French). It's very nice to go there with friends and have a picnic before the movie starts (around 10:30 when it gets really dark, for obvious reasons... Check the complete program (in French) here.

Léon Gaumont

In Paris, you always visit the same cemetaries: Père Lachaise, Montpartnasse and Montmartre. But there are many more... such as Le Cimetière de Belleville, a little cemetary where I found the grave of Léon Gaumont, a famous French guy who got involved in the cinema business at the beginning of the 20th century. His company (La Gaumont! ) produced as early as 1910 the first "news" that people could watch in movie theaters. They still had them when I was a little boy (yes I'm showing my age!!). Later he got into the movie business, of course.

Highest Point in Paris

What is the highest point in Paris? Montmartre? La montagne Sainte Geneviève? None of those... It's 40 rue du Télégraphe, in the 20th arrondissement (148,48 m - 162.4 yards). Montmartre is only second (130 m - 142 yards). The interesting part is that this "summit" is precisely located in La rue du Télégraphe, because that is where the first telegraph was used by its inventor, Claude Chappe. I could not believe it was already 2 centuries ago, in 1791, between Paris and Lille (north of France)!

(Almost) all about Eve...

I found this stunning statue in Le Square de la butte du Chapeau rouge, a park located in the 19th arrondissement from where you can enjoy a nice view of Paris. This statue is part of a monument (a "water chest of drawers" as they call it) that was made by sculptor Raymond Courvégnés in 1938. And the lady is Eve, the first woman. The things you learn on PDP... LOL!

Paris is growing!

You're looking at one of the largest real estate programs in Paris at the moment. It always fascinates me to see that even in 2008, in one of the smallest capitals of the world (Yes, Paris area is small) you can still find 500 acres (200 hectares) available. In 2010 what you're looking at will be turned into offices, housing, industrial facilities and public equipment! All this in the 19th arrondissement, that is inside Paris.