Wandering Wednesdays

Did you know that in French, one walks in a street, and not on one? I think that's quite poetic. To be in a street suggests that the road, the buildings, the trees, the people, are surrounding and enveloping you. You're not just present in a place, but part of it.



If you couldn't tell by the large title image, I'm starting a recurring series called Wandering Wednesdays. I can't say that I'll have pictures of miscellaneous Parisian street scenes every single week on Wednesdays, or that I'll literally be doing the wandering specifically on Wednesdays, but it made for a good title, so I'm sticking with it! And when I do have some lovely pictures to post, I'll post them on Wednesdays!

Okay - I think I've repeated the word "Wednesday" far too many times by now! Enjoy these pictures, most of which were taken between Invalides and Pont de L'Alma, also known as the 7th arrondissement. An exception in the first two, which were taken at the Grand Palais and on Pont Alexandre III. I've also included probably my favorite French song by Miss Bardot for your listening pleasure














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Springtime in Monet's Garden

Being a girl who took started French lessons in high school and studied Art in college, I've always had a soft spot in my heart for Impressionism, or any artwork during that time period actually. Degas' cropped Ballerina scenes, Van Gogh's vibrating and tortuous genre scenes, and Monet's expansive waterlily canvases. It's all so fascinating, the history behind these artistic revolutions; and what makes it even more fascinating, more so than seeing the canvases in a museum, is seeing the source of inspiration itself. I had the privilege of seeing Claude Monet's private gardens last Saturday, as well as his home.


The village is called Giverny, and it's about 45 minutes to an hour outside of Paris. Gravelly roads, wooden shutters, and rolling green hills - it was something out of a fairy tale. I really didn't know what to expect from the garden, but I knew there would be a waterlily pond. Boy, were my expectations blown out of the water: Rows upon rows of brightly-colored tulips, poppies, daffodils, forget-me-nots, and pansies, just bopping their heads lightly in the breeze. The intense sunshine enhanced their colour to a fluorescent hue; I had to squint so much my eyes started watering a little bit! Even my camera had a difficult time capturing the brightness of the scene.



I've truly never seen anything like it. I had such a fun time zooming in on these flowers, exploring the floral forest with the lens. It's been a long time since I've enjoyed photographing something as much as this. I tried to narrow it down so this post wouldn't be super long, but it was hard!


























The chickens here had hilarious hairstyles!!



The lily pond was just as amazing, although I imagine it's even better during summertime, when the waterlilies bloom. I could easily see how Monet was inspired to paint his famous waterlily paintings here. The still water reflected not only the light, filtered through weeping willow branches, but also the flowers and plants placed on the banks, variations in green with random bits of red. The colours and abstractions that resulted on the water's surface were amazing.





After idling away a decent span of time among the flowers, we went on an exploratory walk in the surrounding village. We spotted some people sitting high upon a hilltop, wondering how on earth they had hiked up that high. Well - with a bit of poking around, we were able to find a grassy walking trail, put on our explorer caps, and hiked up. Even though this part wasn't necessarily the most beautiful, It felt very special to me. One of my favourite paintings by Monet is the one of a woman, standing on a grassy hill, the breeze blowing her skirt. Although I was not carrying a parasol or wearing a fantastic full skirt, I truly felt like the scene I found myself in had the same feeling as a Monet painting. And how could I complain about this view? If I had a large blanket, this would have been a fantastic time for a picnic.





Once we reluctantly left Giverny and arrived back at the Vernon train station, we discoverd that the next train back into Paris would arrive in TWO hours! So we walked slowly around the town, admiring the half-timbered buildings that seemed so much older than the tall concrete buildings of Paris. Here are a couple snaps from our train-waiting period:





I think what struck me most about this trip was the feeling of adventure it gave me. It's been quite a while since I've felt that spark of passion, freedom, and novelty. Even Paris, although amazing, can become predictable over time; Giverny was something I've never, ever done before, and I loved that feeling. I can't wait to get that travel-high again some time soon! Tell me about a time that you felt that spark of adventure in the comments below!

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Promenade Plantée & Rue Crèmieux

The weather has been treating us SO well lately, so a buddy and I decided to soak it all in last Thursday. We started the day with a long lunch at Holy Belly, a somewhat-newly opened café/restaurant that prides itself on using fresh, seasonal ingredients, and boasting a monthly-rotating menu, a small selection of microbrews, and a pinball machine. I'm working on a more in-depth review of this restaurant for another website, so I'll leave it at this for now: It's yummy and I highly recommend.

Next, we chose to search out the enigmatic Rue Crèmieux. I had seen Instagram photos of this mysterious pedestrian street, most often not location-tagged, so I had only a slight inkling of where it might be located. This road is like a legend that I've always wanted to track down but which never crosses my mind at the right time - a small, alternate reality where color lives. Okay, I sound a bit dramatic, but it truly is uncharacteristic of Parisian architecture, and I'm happy to say I finally found it! These are just a few of the facades that captured my special attention with their color combinations. Sadly, the road is only 144 meters long (I looked it up)!




Just a block away from Rue Crèmieux is the Promenade Plantée, and if you're familiar at all with New York City, it's like Paris's version of the High Line. A long walkway/park constructed atop an old, abandoned railway line, raised above street level, so your view is a mix of greenery, sky, apartment building windows, and rooftops. It's a fantastic place to go for a brisk walk or jog, but there's also benches dispersed frequently to sit and have a quick picnic - like we did with a couple of éclairs bought from a nearby bakery. We walked the entire thing, starting east of Bastille and continuing the length of about three metro stops. The promenade runs parallel to Boulevard Daumesnil.





This was my first time exploring the 12th Arrondissement, and it has a different vibe than the rest of Paris. More of the buildings are modern and... let's just say it's not as fancy. But it has some cool things to offer! Hopefully I'll be able to discover some more great things about this generally overlooked arrondissement.



Up next, my amazing trip to Giverny. I'm telling you, the flower photos from Giverny are going to blow these photos away!! Okay, I'm getting excited to write my next post now!


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Visual Diary: Brassai Exhibition, Éclair de Genie, and Fleux

I started my Monday off right with a trip into Paris. Being low on money, I needed an activity that required little to no spending, and the free Brassai photography exhibition, Pour L'Amour de Paris, was what I decided on. I was under the impression that I was being clever by coming on a Monday, that perhaps the line would be shorter, but I was sorely mistaken. I waited in the cold wind for about an hour and a half. -___- If I had a snack, more comfortable shoes, warmer clothes, and a friend to keep me company, it wouldn't have been half bad, but by the time 45 minutes had passed, I was pretty irritable.

Was the show worth the wait? Yes and no. In my situation, no. However, bring necessary entertainment and supplies, and you'll be golden. Come well before closing time so you're not kicked out of the line... I witnessed the last 20 people in line getting turned away by a tough looking security guard as I was leaving :(

The show itself was interesting, Brassai had taken some of the most iconic images of Belle Epoque Paris, and there was quite a funny little film of zoo animals being projected in the back. There were many pictures of the streets at night, as well as people and performers in their habitat. It's always interesting to try and imagine the narrative and relationships that are being played out in a still photograph. My favourite image, the one I bought a postcard of, wasn't the famous Montmartre stairway, but a super dark picture of a black cat. All you can see are the decorative floor tiles, illuminated by some dim light source,and the eerily glowing eyes, floating in a black, empty space.



The sun had begun to set by the time I started walking back to the train station. I admired the golden light on the buildings and stopped to listen to the bells of Notre Dame ringing 6 o'clock.






The following day, my friend Ellen and I had boba tea on our minds, but what we ended up doing is another story. We did eventually find the boba place, tucked away into a tiny, hidden corner near Centre Pompidou, but before that, we discovered Éclair de Génie. Rumoured to be some of the best éclairs in Paris, and at 5-7 euros apiece, we decided to split a Rouge Baiser; a raspberry-chocolate flavoured baton of richness that looked like a work of glass art. The red colour was so vibrant, it was actually a bit startling at first glance.

We weren't sure where this boba tea place was, so we wandered around the area for a while, never a bad thing in Paris, until we came across a wonderland of novelty items, fancy iPhone cases, art books, and gorgeous Scandinavian design objects and furniture. The heavenly place was called Fleux, kinda like Flux, but with a French pronunciation.

The store was spread among 3 or 4 buildings, and just browsing though it all was like roaming through a super fun museum, a museum in which you can touch things, speak at a normal level, and if you have money enough, buy things. Most of it was waaaaaay out of my price range, but simply experiencing the visual feast was reward enough.










I want that bookshelf. Can I have that bookshelf? please? One day, when I'm filthy rich, I'll have it. :p


Places Mentioned:
Brassai, Pour L'Amour de Paris at l'Hotel de Ville
Fleux - 39 & 52 rue Sainte Croix de la Bretonnerie75004 PARIS
Bubbolitas - 17 Rue Quincampoix, 75004


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