Summer Solstice, Paris Style...

In case you hadn't noticed, I really love this place! Not just for its always fascinating history, the monuments, the size of the city. Nor just for the great neighborhood we live in. Or the great bus routes that run right by our front door, not to mention metro access, literally next door. Or the food, the wine, the cheeses! Even though, yes, the city and the country have problems, just like every place in the world, nonetheless one of the things I love most about being here, and admire greatly, is the "institutional" support for the arts and culture, that makes life just a bit more pleasant for everyone.

You have to pay to go to a lot of museums here, like the Musée d'Orsay, for instance, where the current Manet exhibition is packing in the audiences by the thousands.  But what happens when the Musée d’Orsay closes their impressionist gallery for renovation? Well, the paintings can be lent to other establishments while work is going on! And, voilà, a new exhibition, Paris at the Time of the Impressionists makes its welcome appearance at the Hôtel de Ville (City Hall). But, unlike the Musée d'Orsay, admission at the Hôtel de Ville is free! And with two large exhibition spaces, we've also thoroughly enjoyed exhibitions there about the history of the Paris Commune in the 1870s and, currently, one on role of the literary world during the Occupation of France during WWII.

Right now, the area in front of the Hôtel de Ville has been transformed into "un jardin éphémère". For just three or four weeks, sparkling green lawns have been installed, surrounded by rows and rows of trees, providing a beautiful early summer retreat from the hustle and bustle and noise of the city.

I can wander through this temporary "forest", identifying the trees, or I can sit on a bench and watch the world pass by, and give a little vote of thanks to Mayor Delanoë for making this part of Paris a prettier place.

It's not always city government that provides these niceties for the populace, though. This past week, underwritten by various corporations, cinemas have been offering movie admissions at their theatres for just 3 euros, instead of the usual 11 euros and up. Alas, the dearth of good movies kept us from taking advantage of this offer!

I guess the bottom line here is that people in France pay a lot of taxes, but the revenue doesn't all go to making sure the transportation works and that you get good medical care (both of which are true).  A fair amount also goes to improving the quality of life for citizens, be it free admission to museums, an ephemeral garden in the city centre, the Paris Plage that goes up each July and August along the banks of the River Seine, etc. etc.

 All of this largesse struck me most forcibly this past June 21st, summer solstice. No witches or coven rituals here, but an extraordinary outpouring of music that filled the streets of Paris and cities throughout the country, continuing way into the wee small hours of the night.

In Paris, under the direction of city hall and le ministère de la culture et de la communication, official musical events were offered at major sites, such as at the Louvre, where Neeme Järvi conducted l'Orchestre de Paris, or at the Musée d'Orsay, where Kurt Masur directed the Orchestre National de France.

But it wasn't just classical offerings. Jazz, World Music, Pop, Rock, Electro, Blues, Folk: if it was music, you could hear it that night!

In our 2nd arrondissement, we spent a lovely afternoon hour in an auditorium at the Passage Colbert, listening to young pianists perform Chopin, Liszt, Rachmaninov, Scriabine and Brahms.

Outside, near the Mairie, stages were being set up, mixing boards configured, ready for a staggeringly loud rock concert later in the evening...



...when the little square was jam-packed with happy music lovers

As well as the "big" musical offerings, I just loved some of the "local" concerts that were springing up on almost every street.

 On the rue Bachaumont, around the corner from our flat, a group of young flautists played their hearts out for almost 45 minutes, their teacher sitting on the ground in front of them, conducting, and the proud parents, and passers-by, completely charmed by the scene, and by the music!

And right outside my butcher on rue Montorgeuil, a young lad belted out Jimi Hendrix songs, whilst his buddies looked on, and one of them fiddled with the pre-amp to keep the volume UP!

Meanwhile, over at St. Sulpice, on the Left Bank, these three young people had the musicians all to themselves, for a while.

As night began to fall, Matthew and I went out again, and found a group of musicians performing French folk songs behind the venerable Église St. Eustache, with the audience (lyrics in hand) happily singing along.

Elsewhere, musicians took their places on street corners, and outside cafés, where diners cheered them on....

...and this couple gave a great swing dance demo. My feet were tapping!

As we wandered back home, with the sky still tinged with daylight at 11 pm!, we passed through the Place des Victoires, with its imposing statue of Louis XIV on horseback. I wondered if he and his royal court celebrated the summer solstice with musical fêtes at Versailles, and whether he would bestow his approval on the City of Paris for providing this glorious night of music for its citizens -- a gift that celebrated its 30th anniversary this year!

With our stay here suddenly rapidly coming to an end -- the fastest six months ever! -- alas, it's time, with this post, for me to close the blog for this year, and bid you all a most fond adieu. Thank you for following our various adventures, and for writing comments, and for sending me emails. Be sure and tune in for the next round in January 2012!

Au revoir!

Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more...

So begins one of the most oft-quoted of Shakespeare's many texts (Henry V, Act III, Scene i). It continues: "Or close the wall up with English dead",  and includes endless exhortations: "Stiffen the sinews, summon up the blood", before ending with a final flourish:

"Follow your spirit, and upon this charge

Cry 'God for Harry, England, and Saint George!"

The breach in question refers to a gap in the wall of the Normandy city of Harfleur at the mouth of the Seine, at one time the principal port in Normandy. During the Hundred Years War, the English soldiers, led by Henry, held Harfleur under siege from 18 August 1415 until 22 September 1415, when they attacked the city and Harfleur finally surrendered.

It was, indeed, a bloody battle, presaging the final, definitive Battle of Agincourt, both of them (for history buffs) captured vividly by Laurence Olivier and Kenneth Branagh in their respective movie versions of the play.

Today, the English and the French are at peace, and visitors to Harfleur might have a hard time picturing the grim battle that took place so many centuries ago.

The city flag continues to fly proudly throughout the town

And in the port, a tiny segment of the wall remains as a reminder, although I'm not sure that many people take note of it.

There are still plenty of old timbered houses standing, along with the impressive 15th century l'église Saint Martin, with its highly decorated spire...

...and apparently, from time to time, schoolchildren get to dress up in chainmail and re-enact the bloody battle!

But, for the most part, the history of this town -- now completely overshadowed by the sprawling port city of Le Havre -- stays within the walls of the Musée d'Harfleur, waiting for those interested in learning about the past.

Meanwhile, across the Seine estuary, the "sister" town of Honfleur was also occupied by the English during the Hundred Years War, but you would find that hard to believe as well, here in 2011. Instead, a delightful, very pretty holiday seaside town greets you, complete with harbor and sailboats, and interesting port-side buildings with cafés and restaurants on the street level.

On our visit, this last weekend, a wonderful street market was setting up by the water, that included some tempting summer sandals.

Just up from the port, overlooking the harbor, a big food market was doing brisk business, with local saucissons and onions a hot item.

This stall featured only garlic, with not too many customers at this point!

As an avid sardine lover, I spent a long time inspecting all the different ways to enjoy this lovely little fish.

Honfleur also boasts an interesting church, l'église Sainte-Catherine, built at the end of the Hundred Years War entirely from oak, stone being reserved to fortify the town itself at that time.

The interior has twin matching naves, leading one to wonder how you choose at which altar you will pray! This weekend, flags from around the world hung throughout the church in a bright, colorful display.








Back from the harbor, the narrow streets of Honfleur are lined with timbered houses and flower boxes brimming with bright geraniums, bathed in warm sunshine in this photo, although just two minutes later...

...the sun disappeared and the heavens opened with such an incredible fury everyone had to scurry for shelter. Typical Normandy weather, we were told.

The area around Honfleur and the neighboring towns of Trouville and Deauville is known as Basse-Normandie, offering spectacular, panoramic views, where you'll find many of Normandy's most celebrated products:

Tripe à la Mode...

...Pont l'Éveque cheese...

...endless varieties of Camembert!...

...and, of course, not forgetting Cider and...

...the firewater, known as Calvados!

It's also home to many charming old villages, filled with these typical Norman timbered homes that brighten up even the cloudiest day.

What caught our eye as well, as we drove around, were the peaceful sights of cattle...

...and the numerous stud farms, producing beautiful foals for major horse racing events around the world.

A future Secretariat, perhaps?!!

Back in Honfleur, the storm clouds were gathering again. Not another siege, just more rain! Time to make for the car and take the train back to Paris St. Lazare!  We left knowing that a return visit to this very lovely part of France will be a top priority.

À bientôt!

(as always, many thanks to Matthew for these photographs!)

Porcelain Paradise

On the western side of Paris, just beyond the city limits, across the Pont de Sèvres, stands an imposing building, housing one of the most spectacular collections of china and porcelain. We'd stumbled across it a few months ago  on a Velib bicycle ride to the neighboring Parc St. Cloud, but with nowhere to park the bikes, couldn't stop. This past rainy Saturday, we went out on the metro and spent a couple of jaw-dropping hours wandering through the galleries. The two enormous vases either side of the main entrance were just the very tip of what was to come!

Our mouths fell open in the very first gallery, when we came face to face with this giant, gleaming white urn. For scale, check the figure of the man in the lower left back of the photo.

This entire gallery was devoted to enormous, stunning urns of every shape and from every era, going back to the 18th century, when the factory had its beginnings, first in 1738 at the Chateau Vincennes (where the kings of France lived for many years) and then to this site in Sèvres in 1753, where it was run under the royal monopoly of Louis XV.

Over the centuries, designs, colors and techniques produced an extraordinary array of these urns...from this 18th century example...

...to this beauty on the left, designed by Hector Guimard, whose Art Nouveau designs grace so many metro stations in Paris...

...and to this portrait of snarling tigers from the Art Deco period.

 Being from the Bay Area, we neither of us could imagine such a collection being displayed so casually. The merest thought of an earthquake set our teeth on edge! We chatted with the museum guard about this, who was most amused. No, Madame, he assured us, that is not a problem here! He began to show us his particular favorites in the room, including this ornately gilded one, made during Napoleon's time, and featuring the same giant white urn that stands in the centre of the room, here reproduced on the decorative panel in the middle. He then put his hands on the vase, and turned it slowly on its base, explaining that many of them were made with a built in turning axle in the inside of the vase, so that they could be safely turned, and all views appreciated. He even allowed me to try, checking first that no-one else was in the gallery, and whispering that it was just "entre-nous, Madame"! (I wondered, for a moment, if Napoleon's hands had turned this very vase...)

Moving into the adjacent galleries, we strolled among the displays, all of them on a somewhat more manageable scale! Even so, the thought of watering my garden with this delightful porcelain watering can, made me smile.







As we meandered through the rooms, I was struck at what an important role porcelain (and paintings and other art forms as well, of course), played in recording life at the time.

With none of the modern means of capturing images, it fell to these artisans to leave lasting examples of fashion, theatrical figures...

...military battles, such as these plates depicting Russian soldiers on the eastern front...

...even guilds, such as this printing press shop...

...and this confectioner's atelier. It was like looking at 18th century photo albums!

Instead of having their portrait painted on canvas, some of the landed gentry chose to have their likeness reproduced on tea cups, and their stately homes on fine china plates.

I particularly liked these purely decorative figures, so full of movement and joy!





 As well as all the ornamental pieces, there were, of course, dozens and dozens of examples of exquisite "utility" pieces, like this classic Sèvres serving tray.

And this fabulous tureen with lions' heads for handles.

Really, though, at the end of the day, I decided that one of the joys of these pieces, whether you are Catherine II of Russia, with your own personalised china...

...or you and me, sitting down to dinner at home -- one of the joys is that when you eat off a pretty plate, the food always tastes better!

So, I came away from the museum appreciating all that we had seen, but also being grateful for the good taste and generosity of parents and grandparents in passing on their treasures to their children. Having admired all these wonderful pieces, I will have an even greater appreciation of my own "best" china at home!


Before we left, we had a quick look at the buildings behind the museum, where Sèvres pottery is still made today. Based on the prices we saw in the gift shop, it is still a "luxury" item!

Right next to the museum, we noticed an overhead tramway system, the T-2, which runs around the the city on the outer edges.

So, we jumped on board and rode around the south-west edge of Paris, enjoying the views out of the glass doors and huge windows. We transferred somewhere in the 15th arrondissement onto the #39 bus, which took us clear across the city and dropped us at our front door!

Hooray for the beauty of Sèvres Porcelain, and for the outstanding French public transportation system!

À bientôt!