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.

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).

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.

Close encounter of a weird type!

Did I happen to witness an astronauts convention by coincidence? Did France suffer a Nuclear accident that only I was aware of?! All wrong, these weird little white men are simply harvesting honey from the Luxembourg gardens beehives... For yes, as some of you already know, we still have beehives in the middle of Paris (there and in the Georges Brassens park) that are used by the members of a society that was founded in 1856. By the way, if you're around the area on September 20 and 21, you'll have the opportunity of buying this honey ;)

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!".

La chèvre et le chou

No, it's not usual to come across a goat and a cabbage in the middle of Paris ! I simply spotted this cute little scene in front of a restaurant in the 15th arrondissement (235 bis rue Saint Charles more precisely) called La chèvre et le chou (the goat and the cabbage). The funny part - well, if you're interested in improving your French - is that this name is also a pretty common expression that we use when we're in a situation where we have to please two opposite parties. I believe the translation in English would be "To have one's cake and eat it too".

Encounter of the 4th kind!

It was 11:42 pm, I was walking down the street after having dinner outside with some good friends and I really had no clue of what "the PDP photo of the day" was going to be! Then suddenly, in front of Le BHV department store, I came across this strange seen! I have no clue what all this was for... Probably a photo shoot for an ad like the one I caught in January 2006. But it was really fun - and unexpected.

Let's dance with the firemen

Every year it's the same, but how could I possibly miss Le bal des pompiers (the firemen ball), one of the most traditionnal events around Bastille Day (le 14 juillet in French), our national celebration. For years now, on the eve of Bastille day, most fire stations throughout France offer a ball to whoever wants to join and dance; that is if you're patient enough to wait at least 30 minutes to get into the station! I don't really know why, these balls are extremely popular. More French tradition tomorrow...

Renewal time

It's early July, France is soon to be closed! French people often go on vacation between July 14 and August 15 (not all necessarily for a whole month though) so it seems like a prefect time to renew shops and outlets. The BNP bank has had a pretty clever idea to hide the work they do in many of their branches; cool screens. I found this one on the Boulevard de Sebastopol and also Boulevard Saint Germain, but I'm sure they can be found in many other places.

Cool encounter

I already said it several times, PDP allowed me to meet dozens of nice people - often from very far away. But last night, I met someone who lives in Paris: Robin Maltete, the son of... René Maltete a French photographer who used to be friend with Doisneau and many other artists of that time. Do check some of his photos in the web album his son Robin made, I'm sure, you will love its humor. Robin contacted me after he saw the white dinner party photo on PDP; we started exchanging emails, then he invited me to his place, where I photographed his - lastest - camera (Robin is also a photographer). Not a very usual one; it uses an 8 x 10 inch film and has none of the sophisticated features you can find on modern digital models!

Eat for food!

A picnic in the sun, right on the esplanade of the new National library (la bibliothèque nationale de France), may sound nice enough but if I tell you that on top of that the food was provided by a bunch of famous chefs and that the entrance fee was only 5 euros you will probably understand why this unusual picnic - organized by Alexandre Cammas and Emmanuel Rubin, two restaurant critics and founders of Le fooding movement - attracted so many people. And all this for a good cause: all the money goes to Action contre la faim (action against hunger).

Buy a little piece of Paris' history...

Today, let me take you inside a palace: Le Royal Monceau! It's not the most luxurious hotel that we have in Paris (yet?!) but the reason why I'm posting about it now, is that today (Thursday) all its furniture (including paintings, chandeliers, silverware, bathrobes...) will be auctioned by the famous French auction house Cornette de Saint Cyr. And guess who went there especially for you to take photos?! It was fun actually, even if it was really crowded (I had no idea so many people would be interested in the place). FYI, the Royal Monceau will be closed for more than a year after this, enough to let famous designer Philippe Starck turn it into the next hypest place to stay in Paris ;)

Le dïner en blanc 2008

I'm just back from Le diner en blanc (the White dinner party) where I had a lot of fun. Unlike last year, where I only took photos, this time I also participated. What a thrill! I received my instructions from my contact (there is no central organizer - at least nobody knows him/her - but only contacts of contacts...). I was supposed to join my group at 9 pm on Place Saint Philippe du Roule. Around 9:15 pm, someone - who obviously knew where the dinner was going to take place - took the group to... the Champs Elysées. Within the blink of an eye the whole lower part of the avenue was covered in tables, chairs, candles... and people dressed in white. Fascinating. Around 10 pm a band started to play music and at 11 pm sharp everyone lit sparkling sticks. Beautiful. Magical moment - even if the weather was a little chilly. Check here for more shots.

Sex in the city!

Sex on PDP today? Not really, but nudity! Explanation: this weekend we celebrated "Le Vélo" (bicycle) throughout France and in Paris of course (since the creation of Velib', it is extremely popular to ride a bicycle here). This gave an idea to a few protester associations who teamed up with nudist associations and organized a ride through Paris with no clothes on to protest against the invasion of cars, scooters, motorbikes... in Paris. One thing is sure, they managed to get medias' attention; there were more journalists and cameras there than actual demonstrators! More photos on the making of, of course ;).

Weird Grave

I found this incredible grave in the Cimetière Montparnasse. At first I could not really believe my eyes... But yes, this guy had his grave turned into a sort of bed where he and his wife are dressed in their day outfits and look like they are gently talking. I investigated a bit more and found out that it belongs to Charles Pigeon, the inventor of a famous non-exploding gas/oil lamp (patented in1884). He probably had a lot of money then (enough to have this grave built anyway!)

Windows on the world

Intriguing isn't it? That is what I thought when I saw these odd "Men in black" wandering on the Passerelle Simone de Beauvoir (a new bridge over the Seine, inaugurated in 2006) with these wooden frames. Then I spoke to Avi Wanono, the instigator of this event. He is a student at L'Ensad, a school that teaches decorative arts in Paris and this was a project he made for his studies. It's called "Les Voyeurs" (subtitle: Spectacular events) - in French voyeur does not necessarily mean the same thing as in English - and the idea is to get passers by to "have a better look at the urban space". Pretty creative eh?! (See more photo in this little slide show)Congratulations to Avi but also to Adrien, Benoît, Eliel, Fabien, Gaspard, Florent, Jean-Baptiste, Johnathan, Noam, Smail, Victor and Yacine!

Celebrate your neighbors!

Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce you to... my favorite neighbor! Her name is Thérèse, she lives 2 floors above from me and she is an engraver - She actually took over Bing-Guis, the family business that was founded in April 1870. The reason why I'm showing her to you today (despite the fact that she is a lovely lady, of course!) is that yestersday (Tuesday) was the neighbors' day in France. Principle? Talk to your neighbors! Or even organize a big dinner party and get everyone in your building to join in. Believe me, in a big city like Paris, where you hardly know if the guy next door is still alive, it's a pretty big achievement...

La Boudeuse

I can hear you from here... "He surely did not take this photo in Paris!" Well, all wrong, I really took it in Paris, by the quai de Bercy, more precisely. This boat ship, called La Boudeuse, is one of the rare 3 masts travelling the seven seas under French pavillion. Its goal is to "meet with the Water people around the world" (that is, people who can only be approached by waterways). How cool is that?! Of course in Paris, you don't find many people that can only be approached by waterways(!), but you can meet lots Parisians willing to pay a little to visit this beautiful boat ship, which is far better to finance future expeditions ;)

Festival de l'Oh 2008

Cool photo isn't it? I took it yesterday at the Festival de l'Oh ("Oh" is pronounced the same way as "eau" which means water in French). As you can guess, this festival is pretty water-centric: What kind of fish live in the Seine? How many canals around Paris? "...to drink or not to drink tap water?", etc. And to make it more fun, they also have several shows, like this one performed on a Péniche (a flat boat made for rivers) by circus artists. Pretty cool, even if it rained a bit!

Raider of the lost island...

A few days ago, I noticed this old map of Paris in a shop window. It says "Nouveau plan de la ville de Paris, capitale du royaume de France" (new map of Paris, France's kingdom capital) but it's probably 600 years old, as it mentions l'Isle Louvier (after the name of its owner, Mr Louvier!), an island that was then next to île Saint Louis . Don't look for it if you come to Paris, this island does not exist anymore, as it has been "attached" to the right bank in 1847. I had never heard of this story until today. Thank you PDP ;)