La Vie Cachée (Hidden Life) Photo Exhibition Opens in Paris
Paris is a city of sights, whether indoors at the Louvre or the Musée d'Orsay, or outdoors at the Place du Tertre in Montmartre or the flea market at Porte de Vanves. This exhibition shows glimpses of sights -- life -- that are hidden, often right out in the open. It is an exhibition not to be missed. It will be running from 11 - 30 May 2009 at La Capitale Galerie, rue du Roule, 18, in the 1st Arrondissement of Paris (Métro: Pont Neuf, Louvre/Rivoli, or Les Halles), Monday thru' Saturday from 11h00 until 13h00, and from 14h00 until 19h30.
Peggy is an American from Virginia who has lived in Paris for over 15 years. Besides having a wonderful view of color, a sprightly idea of the engaging image, and an American's view of the best of Paris, she also happens to be my best friend in France. She represents to me all the best to be found in the City of Light. During our last visit to Paris, we even had a small hand in helping Peggy select some of the photos for the show. We hope you will take time from your Paris wanderings to enjoy this exhibition. --jcf
Bread, Wine, and Cheese in Paris
One of the great pleasures of having a rental apartment in Paris, instead of staying in a hotel, is being able to sample various wines and cheeses from your local wine shop and cheese monger. You can sample to your heart’s content, without the unhappy mark-up imposed if you go to a restaurant or bistro.In the neighborhood around Square Carpeaux, there are a number of excellent cheese mongers, including Fromagerie Quatrehomme (9, rue du Poteau), Fromagerie Duhesme (at the open-air pedestrian market at rue Duhesme), L’auvergnat (a little deli with slightly idiosyncratic hours, just around the corner, at rue Marcadet and rue Eugène Carrière).
As for wine, one of the nicest specialists is Cavavin, 12, rue du Poteau. There’s not much English spoken, but they are friendly and try to be helpful. For many wines, well, it’s available even at mom and pop stores. Even at these humbler stores, you will fine the gamut, from many of the finer wines to plonk that will take the varnish off a table top. Some very nice, everyday table wines can be found at remarkably low prices, even at the supermarket.
You can always take your wine to the cheese shop and ask which cheese would best compliment the wine. Or vice versa! Most of these stores will lend you their opinions, if you ask politely. (Remember: many of these shops are kind of busy, and you’re probably not yet a regular, so be a little patient.)
Finally, about bread. The bread and pastry shop Delmontel (57, rue Damrémont) is about 3 small blocks from the apartment. It won the award for Paris’ best baguette in 2007 and 2008. Rumor has it that Delmontel includes the Palace d’Élysées as one of its regular customers. The deserts at Delmontel are also a marvel! If the line is too long at Delmontel, there are many, manyboulangeries in the neighborhood.
France has a controlled price for a regular baguette (called “pain normal”). It is €0,80. You can ask for a half baguette (“demi-baguette”), and they will cut one in half for you. If you go to SOME bread shops and ask for “une baguette, s’il vous plâit,” they may give you a baguette of unbleached flour, or whole grain, or pain paysan, or some other type. The price of these other baguettes is NOT regulated,, so you’ll be charged €1,00 or 1,20 or 1,30. So if you want the €0,80 baguette, make sure you ask for “pain normal.”
Bon appétit! --jcf
Getting Sick in Paris
In the arrivals hall at Charles de Gaulle Airport, I valiantly trying not to be embarassingly ill. I managed to get myself into a taxi, went to the apartment, got inside, and was quite sick. I called S.O.S. Médecins and they sent a doctor to to make the house call.
Amazingly, there are still doctors who make housecalls; at least, in France, there are. The service is called “S.O.S. Médicins.” The phone number is in the phone book. There is also a parallel service called “S.O.S. Dentiste.”
When he arrived, the doctor spoke little English, but with my dictionary and a bit of sign language, we understood each other, he made a diagnosis, and he prescribed some decongestants, nasal spray, and antibiotics. I asked him about finding a pharmacy open on New Year’s Day. He said that under French law, there must be at least one pharmacy open in each arrondissement during a holiday.
The doctor did not have to, but he said he knew where the pharmacy was for the neighborhood and offered to give me a ride. The pharmacist was efficient and fast. She had my medications ready in 5 minutes.
A week later, I had to go back to the pharmacy for refills. I walked in, and the same woman was behind the counter. She remembered me! She asked how I was feeling: was I doing better? I was not falling down anymore, was I? We chatted a little bit. She was even kind enough to remark, “Oh, well, you look much better now. You know: I thought your French was pretty good for someone who was so sick that day! And your French is now a little better, too!”
If you're not feeling well and need a doctor, call S.O.S. Médicins! The number in Paris is (01) 47.07.77.77.
--jcf
Cat Mummies in the Louvre
Any visitor to Paris wants to visit the Louvre, and those who rent our studio apartment in Montmartre are no exception. The Louvre is -- leaving aside all of Paris’ other delights -- reason enough to visit the City of Light. Many will tell you how enormous (60,000 m² = 645,800 ft²
the Louvre is, or how it is not possible to appreciate the more than 35,000 works in one day, or how you should wear comfortable shoes when you’re trekking about this magnificent museum. We agree with all of this.There is one bit of VERY GOOD advice repeated by those in the know: focus on one or two collections at a time. If you have the time, read a little about the Near Eastern collection, or the Greek or Roman antiquities, or the Italian and Spanish paintings, or the French and Northern Schools, and then go visit just those collections. You’ll get more out of it: walk less, rush less, and enjoy more.
However, without bashing on about all the famous works of art, which most guidebooks will do far better than I can, I wanted to make a small comment about the Egyptian Collection. The Department of Egyptian Antiquities presents vestiges from the civilizations that developed in the Nile Valley from the late prehistoric era (c. 4000 BC) to the Christian period (4th century AD). It is humbling to see the civilizations that developed while most of the rest of the world “was still plowing up the earth with the assbone of a giraffe.” (Thank you, Shirley Valentine!)
Finally, big softie that I am, I am quite moved and saddened to see the many, many mummies of cats who were sacrificed to the Egyptian gods. There is some contemporary controversy whether these poor little animals were really considered and treated as little gods, whether they were mummified after they died, or whether they were sacrificed. There is even some controversy about whether some of the “cat” mummies were, in fact, puppies who were sacrificed when a cat was not available!
In what ever way these questions are resolved, this is an impressive collection, not to be missed!
--jcf
Paris Antiques & Art Fairs
| Below are
a list of art, antiques and collectibles events in Paris for April, May and June 2009 |
 Grand Marche d'Art Contemporain 28 April - 03 May 2009 Place de la Bastille Entrance: 8€ 450 artists Antiquités Brocantes Place de la Bastille 7-17 May 2009 Entrance: 8€ Antiquités & Art Actuel 03-13 April 2009 Parc Monceau Entrance: Free Antiquités & Art Actuel 29 May - 07 June 2009 Ecole Miltaire Entrance: Free  |
Coffee for the confused
Well an espresso may not be too everyone's tastes so here are a few options
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Espresso: some comments for my god-son
| My 16-year old god-son, Scott recently spent three weeks in our studio in Paris; he had never been outside the USA before, and the trip was a gift from me. He enjoyed Paris but -- regardless of what I think of a 16- year teen's need for caffeine -- decided he would try his first espresso in a café not far from the apartment. |
 | Anyone who has ever been faced with the seemingly endless options and variations on a coffee boutique's menu knows the problem: what do you choose? Why is it so complicated ? How's it going to taste? Do I really want all those choices? Scott decided wisely -- to do as most of the French do: espresso. He went into a café (in France it costs |
less at the counter than at a table), and with his schoolbook French, ordered a simple espresso: "Un express, s'il vous plait." A couple of things surprised him. "Its so strong!" "What!? €1.50, and its less than 4 ounces!" Espresso tastes stonger than the usual coffee served up in American restaurants. By comparison, your standard drip or brewed coffee at Howard Johnson or IHOP will taste like water with a brown crayon dissolved into it. However, for those of you who know Starbucks, Coffee Bean, Peet's, and other more upscale coffee 'boutiques', you will that a 'Cafe Americano' is merely one shot of espresso diluted with water. The other thing Scott notieced is that the espresso was rather sweet. In the USA, when he has had coffee -- again, what on earth does a 16-year old need with a coffee boost? -- he has put lots of cream and sugar in it. In France, before he took a sip of his espresso, I told him to just try it straight. His face lit up. "Its kinda sweet. Its not bitter!" Coffee -- good coffee, that is -- is made with good beans. And good beans have a natural sweetness to them that should not be very bitter at all. As for the cost, €1.50 at this writing is about US$1.85. That's about par for an espresso at many boutique coffee shops in the US. To be sure, there are some very high-rent cafés in Paris; last year, I was charged €7.00 for a double espresso at a café in the very toney area near Casimir Perrier Park. Most neighborhood cafés are of course, more reasonable. So enjoy the cafés in Paris. |
Airport Arrival
Getting cheaply to Central Paris from one of Paris’ three commercial airports is fairly easy. |
| Roissy-Charles de Gaulle International Airport and Orly Airport are just outside the central Paris’ northern and southern city limits, respectively. Look for the sign that says “RER - Paris par Train” (regional commuter trains). A ticket into Paris, will cost you less than €9,00. If you are going to also connect to the Métro (subway), be sure to purchase a ticket that allows you to transfer to the subway (un billet avec correspondance au Métro). |
| You can buy the ticket at the RER ticket office or from the green machines in the RER station. The RER train to take is Line B, which stops at Gare du Nord, Châtelet-Les Halles, and St-Michel-Notre Dame Métro stations. You can catch the subway to your destination from those stations. Travel time: 20-35 minutes, depending on whether you catch a local or express train. Other Options Taxis. Depending on where you are staying, a taxi might be of reasonable cost if you’re coming from Roissy-Charles de Gaulle or from Orly, especially if you are several. From Beauvais, a taxi would be horribly expensive. You should expect to pay €40 from the north of Paris to Charles De Gaulle Airport.Bus |  |
RATP The last two bus routes are by far the most economical way of getting to and from the airport, but dont forget you get what you pay for; frequent stops, longer journey time and not recommended late at night.To and from Beauvais Airport The Paris gateway for many of Europe’s budget air carriers. For €22,00, you can catch a bus by the kiosk just outside the terminal. This bus will take you to If you to the Hotel Concorde-La Fayette at Porte Maillot. Look for the Paris Congress Center, and you’ll find the Métro and the RER trains. Travel time to Porte Maillot: about 90 minutes. |
Welcome
| Welcome to our blog. Blog with a Paris view
-- where we attempt to distill some of the spirit of Paris for wouldbe
travellers to the City of Lights. Paris may be one of the most
beautiful cities in the world and yet its also one of the
most expensive. Does that make it inaccessible for most of us? Not
necessarily - there are ways to get the most out of Paris on a budget,
although it may take a little planning. |
