ABC Wednesday—Q = "quai"

. . . de la Tournelle, that is.  Can you
imagine a more romantic place to stroll—
or a more fantastic view?

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

{I'm scheduling this to post, but I might not be able
to link back to ABC Wednesday.  At the
moment I'm on a ship off the coast of Argentina,
and may or may not have any Internet.}

les mains du captif

These belong to one of Martin Desjardins'
Four Captives (this one is Holland),
who've been in chains since 1715.
Find them in the Cour Marly et Puget,
in the Louvre.

[Linking back to ABC Wednesday:
H is for "hands."]

un bon dessert

This is un "merveilleux," my fave dessert
at my fave Paris restaurant.  The
restaurant is Circonstances, and this
concoction of silky crème Chantilly, crunchy
bits of meringue, and sweet/salty caramel
is indeed marvelous. 

[Linking back to ABC Wednesday,
where the letter this week is D.]

ABC Wednesday—U is for "Utrillo"

Maurice Utrillo would find Paris much
changed since he painted this
scene of the Consulat d'Auvergne
restaurant 79 years ago.

But he'll still find Le Consulat right
there at 18 rue Norvins in Montmartre
(though he might not recognize the
clientele or the prices).

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

à la gare

ABC Wednesday—L is for "gare de Lyon"

This photo could almost have been taken any 
time since the terminal was built for the
World Exposition of 1900.  Granted, that's a 
fairly sleek-looking train on the left (I believe it's 
a TGV). On the other hand, I don't see 
anyone with a suitcase on wheels.

[To see more ABC shots, go here.]

ABC Mercredi

ABC Wednesday—Y is for "young at heart"

Every Sunday, a group of people gathers in
front of the Saint-Médard church to
play and sing old French songs and to dance.
Spectators and passers-by are welcome
to join in and on this Sunday in September, my
favorite dancers were this chic—and so
obviously French—couple.  (And each time
a dance ended, he kissed her.)

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

Le Louvre: Pei's pyramid

And we're up to the letter L for ABC Wednesday.
I did "Louvre"  last time too.  But that was indoors 
and this is out, that was daytime and this is late at night, 
that was then and this is now . . . (besides, I've 
been playing along with this meme for a long time!).

[To see more ABC shots, go here.]

All alone at the Louvre

If you've ever been to the Louvre and seen the 

Venus de Milo, then you have some idea of 

how long I stood here before I was able 

to capture her all on her own. 

(Even so—and somewhat ironically—I did have 

to use Photoshop to delete one errant arm.)

[It's ABC Wednesday. To see more posts
that feature the letter L, go here.
And as always, I'm Dreaming of France.]

ABC Wednesday—Y is for "yummy"

I had some delicious food in newly discovered (for me)
restaurants when I was in Paris.  But our best meal of the day
was often this one—collected on the way back to the apartment
 and enjoyed with a glass (or two) of wine as we
rehashed the high points of the day and planned the next.

Okay, this stuff is beyond yummy, but
for me it was mostly a "visual" feast.

[To see more ABC posts, go here.
And, of course, I'm Dreaming of France.]

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.]