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.

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!!!)

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 Now you can find lots of trendy restaurants around it and the ugly building has been replaced by a new glass one, designed by famous architect Ricardo Bofill.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.

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.

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 ;)

L'incroyable Restaurant

It's been a while since I've posted a food photo ;) This one is fresh from last night (Saturday), I took it at L'Incroyable (the Unbelievable), a restaurant located 26 rue de Richelieu in the 1st arrondissement where I was invited to a birthday dinner. What is hard to believe in this restaurant is the kind of mixture they dare doing: coca cola vinaigrette, foie gras bonbons (candies), fish and Chorizo... Portions are a little small for my taste, but the menu is reasonably priced and the flavors are truly unbelievable!

Les Halles

This scene may look like a painting, but it's a sculpture made by Raymond Mason, a sculptor of British origins who settled down in Paris in 1946. It's called "Le départ des fruits et légumes du cœur de Paris, le 28 février 1969" (the leaving of fruit and vegetables from the heart of Paris on February 28,1969). This "heart" he is refering to, is Les Halles, the central market of Paris that was installed in the center of Paris in... 1135! When it became too small, in the early 70's they transfered it to Rungis, in the suburbs of Paris. But the name Les Halles, still remains. BTW, you'll never believe it, but I did not find this sculpture in a museum, but in the Saint Eustache church nearby!

Really Just Married!

Between June and September you find a lot of newly weds in the streets of Paris. They are generally followed by a photographer trying to catch their best profile ;) These two were no exception - and I was not the "official" photographer (as a matter of fact I often receive emails from people who plan to get married in Paris and want to be photographed!). FYI, there were 266,500 marriages in 2007, a pretty stable rate within the last 10 years (with the exception of 2000 of course...)

Oooops!

Who said only dogs drop things on the ground in Paris, humans do too LOL! I hope this ice cream did not belong to a child whose mother said "It serves you right, I told you to pay attention. No, I'm not going to buy you a new one!" That's all for today. Not a very typical Paris photo - except for the pavement of course, which is part of the jardins du Palais Royal! - but a one that seems to say: "It's the end of the summer!".

Sunbathing in Paris

I may not be taking any vacation this year, but I still get to lay in the sun right in the middle of Paris (presently near Le Louvre). It's not that bad actually, considering how the city is almost empty and all I hear around me are people talking in everything but French. I feel like I'm a foreigner in my own country! Nice feeling actually. Here is my postcard to you. Wish you ALL were here! ;)

Restaurant "Le Saut du Loup"

Gee! Like some of you mentioned it, it has been 3 days in a row that I posted a photo expressing movement, I think it's time for a still one! I passed by this restaurant - Le saut du Loup - at night the other day and here is what I saw first at the entrance (of course my photo is a little darker than what it looked like in reality!). Le Saut du Loup is a very pleasant restaurant/bar especially in the summertime because you can have lunch or dinner outside, in the Louvre gardens - that is on the other side of the rue de Rivoli, where I took this photo (which reminded me of an old one I took in 2006.

Summer night on the Pont des Arts

The Pont des Arts - or Passerelle des Arts - is one of the rare pedestrian bridges in Paris. It was built between 1802 and 1804 and people had to pay a toll to cross it! In 1970 it had to be closed after being hit by a barge (péniche) on the Seine! It reopened in 1984 and never ceased to be a big success since then. At the moment, for instance, it's packed with young people (mostly tourists!) picnicking, drinking, smoking... while enjoying the stunning view on the Seine. The dome in the background, belongs to the Institut de France, the "knwoledgeable people parliament" as they call themselves on their web site (only in French, of course!).

Smiling since 1506

Is she the most admired woman of all times? Well, if you consider the number of people who were willing to kill in order to take a photo of her portrait at the Louvre today (look closely at the reflexion!), I think the answer is definitely yes! And the craze did not start yesterday... But since 1506, as soon as Leonardo da Vinci completed the painting, then later at Versailles, where king Louis the XIVth installed it and, of course later, at the Louvre where it's been sitting since 1804 (with a little interruption due to a theft, between August 21, 1911 and December 10, 1913!). Anyway, even if Monalisa's smile is in every guidebooks and schoolbooks of the planet, seeing it for real is still very moving...

Paris Monsoon?!

I often get emails from people visiting Paris asking me "I'm coming in [month] what should I pack?" I never know what to reply as, in Paris, you can never tell in advance what the weather will be like. Take this early July period, for instance... In theory, it should be warm an sunny, and though we're experiencing some heavy rains. And the week to come does not look too good. Tough luck, I'm going to Brittany (Bretagne) tomorrow (Monday) to follow the Saint-Malo>Nantes stage of Le Tour de France. I'd better take my umbrella!

One more thought

I'm just back to Paris after a pretty tiring trip but I could not help going to the town hall where a lot of Parisians - and press - gathered to celebrate the release of the most famous French(/Colombian) hostage. I just saw a long interview of Ingrid on French television and I can tell you that this woman is really something; even after she's been treated like a dog (her words) for 2,321 days, she has the strength to say that she feels no hate for her abductors... Anyway I don't want to bore you with this story, especially since, like some of you mentioned it, there are still other people held by the FARC in the jungle. Let's also have a thought for the American hostages ( Marc Gonsalves, Thomas Howes and Keith Stansell) who landed in San Antonio today. They will celebrate the 4th of July in their homeland for the first time in 10 years...

Theme day: No!

Well, it's July 1st, and, as usual it's a theme day within the City Daily Photo community... Guess what, this month's theme is: "post a picture of a sign in your town that includes the text 'no'", like it's easy and/or photogenic?! I had to actually produce the photo(!) with a little help from 1) Aristide Maillol who sculpted these magnificent 3 nympheas, 2) Jacques Froissant, a famous French blogger who brought a piece of paper and a marker, 3) Alexis Hubeau for the art direction and... Laurence Thurion who gathered all these people - and many more - for a Champagne party (you get the picture now, right?! LOL!)

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Mass at Notre Dame

A few weeks ago, Rahul, a true Paris lover from Bombay/Mumbai, started chatting with me about France, India and... movies. He convinced me to open myself more to the Indian production and even said "I'll have you discover a few films..." And he kept his promise. Saturday evening, I got a call from, Diti, a friend of his, who happens to be visiting Paris at the moment. She said "Rahul will kill me if I don't manage to give you his gifts (2 DVDs)." Now you're probably wondering how this photo can possibly fit into this story?! Well, it's simple: Diti and I agreed to meet at Notre Dame on Sunday morning and since we kinda missed each other, I went into Notre Dame (during mass) and took this photo. Don't worry I finally managed to get my DVDs!

Palestine in Paris

Last night on my way back home I noticed some unusual traffic on the Pont des arts. I stopped and found out they're having a photo exhibit called "La Palestine à Paris". If you wander on this wonderful bridge, you can see about 150 photos about the daily life in Palestine taken by two famous Palestinian photographers: Rula Halawani and Taysir Batniji. This photo shows one of the two street lamps at the entrance of the bridge that they used to hang a street sign that says "Palestine, life, simply life". I don't know why, but something tells me this photo will have less comments than the one of yesterday ;-)

Pol Bury's fountain

It's a classic, but every time I pass by it, I can't help admiring this superb fountain, made of two sets of huge metal balls that reflect part of Le Palais Royal where it is installed (in the Cour d'Orleans, more precisely). It was made by Belgian sculptor Pol Bury, who died in 2005 at 85. I love the fuzzy couple in the background.

Thanks for a wonderful evening

It's always a bit tacky to thank everyone for coming to a party you organized, but I don't care, I really want to thank all the people who showed up yesterday evening, who brought gifts, who called (Lynn and Suzy) and all of you, who commented -a lot! I really enjoyed myself even if I did not get the chance to speak to everyone very long. That brings me to the video which is currently being uploaded... I really hope I'll manage to show it to you because it did take a lot of time to edit (gee, I'll never make a video blog!) and I really would like you to see it;) - I won't know until tomorrow when I wake up to go on Holiday for a week... Whatever the result is, there will still be photos for you here ;). PS: a big thank you to Michael, who ordered all these badges from Zazzle; He gave 33 of them last night! Update : check this, if you want to see more photos... Update 2: the video is here, but only 5 minutes ;-(