Des ombres des arbres

I'm just back from a wonderful week in
Paris, where I met some talented—and inspiring—
expats (artists, photographers, designers)
who are living my dream of making it work in
our favorite city.  I also walked miles every day,
collecting "blog fodder" such as this beautiful
building in St. Germain des Prés.

[It's Shadow Shot Sunday. To see more, go here.
And as always, I'm Dreaming of France.]

I love my view!

I've been told that if you take a picture of
a person next to one of these stone creatures that
live atop Notre Dame, the chimera will look real and
the human will appear to be made of stone.  I've never
tested it out myself, but others I know have and guess what:
It's true.  If (or better yet, when) you go to Paris, climb 
the 387 steps of the north tower and try it out for yourself.
(Or just go up there for the awesome view!)

[It's Skywatch Friday. To see more, go here.]

What's the story?

Saturday, 8 A.M., rue St. Julien le Pauvre—
in front of the Hotel Esmeralda.  I can think
of a few scenarios to go with this image, all of 
them dramatic and most likely involving tears.
So, is this a sad tale or a happy one?

[To see more Ruby Tuesday, go here.
Catch Traveling Tuesday posts at Sandi's meme.
And find Our World Tuesday here.]

Jardin du Palais Royal

This was an early-spring day in the garden
of the Palais Royal, and the pleached
lime trees were already leafing out. The
building just visible at the end of the allée
is where Colette once lived.

[It's Shadow Shot Sunday. To see more, go here.
And of course, I'm Dreaming of France.]

Bateaux à Voiles

Here are the colorful sailboats for hire by 
the pond in the Tuileries Gardens.

I actually took these pictures on a very cold
day in February, but the boat man was doing
a brisk (sorry) business all the same.

[Orange You Glad It's Friday?  If so, go here.
And if you're Dreaming of France, visit Paulita's meme.]

Les fleurs de la reine

These bright nasturtiums were growing
at Marie-Antoinette's petit hameau . . .

where the ill-fated young queen and her
ladies-in-waiting liked to play at being
 simple farm folk (ironique, n'est-ce pas?).

[To see more Mandarin Orange, visit LorikArt.
For more Mellow Yellows, go here.
For more Macro Monday shots, go here.
And if you too are Dreaming of France, visit Paulita's meme.
And I promised to link up with Orange You Glad It's Friday.]

pied-à-terre

I have an acquaintance who is lucky (and wealthy) 
enough to own an apartment in Paris and I was lucky 
(and needy) enough to get to borrow it once, in the time 
bdc (before digital cameras). It was lovely to wake 
up to this view—through the old wavy-glass 
windows—of the local rooftops across rue Jacob. 

[To see more monochromes, visit Dragonstar's meme.] 

Les pompiers

Did you know that Paris firefighters are part of 
a French army unit?  And that the Paris fire dept.
is the 3rd largest urban fire service in the world?
When I lived here back when, my only contact
with the pompiers took place each year on the
eve of Bastille Day, when fire stations all
over the city hosted dances—and the firemen
were a good-looking crew back then too!

[Today is ABC Wednesday. To see more 
posts that feature the letter P, go here.]

Making an Impression

Things have changed at the Musée d'Orsay.
Now you're not allowed to take photos at all,
but when I shot (w/o flash, of course) this closeup of
Manet's Oeillets et Clematites Dans un Vase de Crystal
back in 2005, pas de problème.  And there was a 
guard sitting almost directly underneath this little
painting too.  I think it's the "flashers" (you know who
you are!) who have ruined it for the rest of us.  Just sayin'.

P.S.—it's worth enlarging this to truly appreciate
the beauty of Edouard Manet's brushstrokes.

[To see more Macro Monday shots, visit Lisa's Chaos.
To see more Blue Monday pics, visit Smiling Sally.
And if you are also Dreaming of France, visit Paulita's meme.]

Allô, allô, ne kitty pas, s'il vous plait

This is the corner of rue des Rosiers and rue des
Hospitalières St. Gervais (a very long name for a very short 
street).  The street art appears to be a collaboration:
I don't know who did the robotic creature in the background,
but I think I've seen his (her?) work in the 13th; Nature's Revenge is 
usually associated with the artist Ludo, but I can't see what he 
contributed here (maybe the butterflies?); the beautiful 
tigers are the work of Mosko et Associés (founded by two old 
friends, Michel Allemand and Gérard Laux, who grew up 
in the area north of Montmartre called Moskowa).

[I'm linking back to Paulita's meme, 
Dreaming of France, because I am, always—
and also to Orange You Glad It's Friday.]

Notre Dame, 8 a.m.

It's worth getting up early to have Notre Dame
(almost) to yourself, whether you want
to appreciate it in peace and quiet—
or take unpopulated pictures.

Paris in Winter

I found myself stuck one night with a friend on the
covered terrasse of the Café de Flore (poor me, I know),
when an unexpected snowstorm came up and we
were hardly dressed for this kind of weather.  Although
showers are frequent in Paris, snow is rare. There may be
a dusting, but the highest one-day snowfall ever
recorded was only a bit over a foot—and that was on
March 2, 1946 (another good day for a brandy at the Flore).