Happy New Year!

Seasons Greetings from our favorite city, where we arrived just a couple of days before Christmas to mild, damp weather and a city in full holiday swing. Long museum lines (the Louvre had a line that stretched clear around the courtyard and beyond!), stores jammed with last minute shoppers, and the streets, buses and metro filled with people, scurrying here and there. The popular "grande roule" (the big wheel), that stands at the bottom of the Champs Élysées by the Place de la Concorde, attracts thousands of visitors and residents alike,  and every neighborhood somehow manages to deck itself out in festive splendor.

On our very own rue Montorgeuil, merchants organized sparkly street lights to augment their individual displays of holiday goodies. This being, basically, a "food" street, it's hard not to begin salivating as soon as you step into it!

Our first evening we took a stroll to see the local sights, and had only gone a few steps when we almost tripped over the dozens of boxes of Panettone spilling out from the Italian Deli's doorway and onto the pavement.

A little further down we passed the U-Marché and smacked our lips at its trays of shrimp, langoustines and bottles of champagne.

Our jaws really dropped, though, when we came to the window of Maison Collett! Our eyes could barely take in this amazing array of Bûches de Noël,  the traditional Christmas Eve dessert.  We resisted the temptation, however, because we'd received an excellent bottle of Sauternes from a friend and, with a substantial slab of our favorite butcher's homemade foie, we thoroughly indulged ourselves!

A feature of Paris at this time of year are the many Christmas markets that set up shop from mid-December on. Some of these offer regional foods and wines, others focus more on arts and crafts. On the Left Bank, on the Boulevard St. Germain, this row of stalls pretty much offered a bit of everything...

...from cosy hats on an extensive display of mannequin heads...

...bright, colorful stacking Russian dolls...

...charming wooden toys and decorations...

...to this jolly fellow, who seemed to be offering all of the above, as well as tasty-looking cakes and cookies.

Another "must see" stop during the holiday season are the famous windows of Au Printemps and Galeries Lafayette, the "grands magazins" that form the heart of the shopping hub on the Boulevard Hausmann. Every year, each store selects a theme and, under some corporate sponsorship or other, transform their windows into a moving, musical extravaganza. A couple of years ago, I remember the theme was Alice in Wonderland, with predictable displays of rabbit holes and tea parties.

This year, Maison Chanel has glitzed up Au Printemps‘ windows with a theme of a world tour.  Each of the 11 windows has been transformed into a diverse city from Tokyo to Los Angeles to Venice. Karl Lagerfeld himself is featured in some, including this group of hip, silver-haired gentlemen making music against the backdrop of Parisian icons.

In front of each window display, a raised walkway allows children of all ages to get a good close look at it all...and then turn around so Papa can take their photo.

Between the musical marionnettes, the fashion windows of Au Printemps offer a glittering selection of haute couture items. This being Au Printemps, it was a good thing we were only window shopping!

Meanwhile, Galeries Lafayette is offering a ‘Rock ‘n’ Mode’ Christmas theme. Mini puppets, “kouklistars”, are shown rocking the day away in cocktail outfits though not before having their hair blow-dried and styled in sequins.

Other windows show the “kouklistars” waving to the fans within the window, and the fans looking on from the outside viewing stands.

Needless to say, all other displays tend to pale in comparison to these glittering windows,  but I was surprised -- and amazed -- that the usually dreadful nightmare of an underground shopping mall, known as Le Forum des Halles, hung these beautiful, almost transparent giant balloon ornaments in the main square. For a moment it made you forget the million little ant-people scurrying around beneath.

Along with all the commercial aspects of Christmas, Paris does not neglect the spiritual side. Christmas Masses are celebrated in all the churches, with special recitals preceding or following the services.  In past years, I have made the pilgrimage to Notre-Dame Cathedral, but this year we discovered a beautiful early 17th century basilica in our own neighborhood. Built by Louis XIII, its name, Notre-Dame des Victoires,  was his expression of gratitude for what he believed was Mary's help in his battles and in consolidating his kingdom.

Today, it is known as a "Marian Sanctuary" and a place of pilgrimage. The walls of the basilica are covered with ex voto messages of thanks carved in marble, giving the whole interior a white glow.  Side chapels are filled with candles, left by today's pilgrims. We attended Vespers on Christmas Day afternoon, followed by a recital on the basilica's impressive organ.

On a slightly more secular note, a couple of days after Christmas, the majestic Église St.-Sulpice, over in the 6th arrondissement, presented Mozart's Requiem in D minor. The large choir, chamber orchestra and soloists gave full measure to this work to a packed, enthusiastic audience. Among the encore pieces was César Franck's Panis Angelicus (Bread of Angels), a beautiful haunting melody, whose words date back to the 13th century.

With 2012 officially here, there remain just a few more days of "Christmas" before Twelfth Night (January 6), when all the decorations come down, and Paris gears up for the next big event:  the winter sales!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

À bientôt!