Sun Worshipping at the Square de Tour Saint-Jacques
Parler Paris Nouvellettre®
Your taste of life in Paris and France
ParlerParis.com
Monday, May 4, 2009
Paris, France
Special note: Thanks to all of you who wrote in response to last Wednesday's Nouvellettre®, "In Honor of 100 Days with Monsieur O." It does my heart good to know that you are READING, whether you like or agree with what you read or not! I, of all people, certainly DO NOT EXPECT you to like or agree with everything I have to say, whether it be about a particular restaurant in Paris or a viewpoint on political or cultural issues that affect Americans living in Paris.
Naturally, a statement about a restaurant does not elicit the same emotional response as does a viewpoint about a political or cultural issue! And thank you to all of you who DISAGREE with my point of view for enlightening me that..."I do enjoy the newsletter always, but please stay out of politics."...or "Unless you are of the belief that Paris is only for folks that share your cultural and social opinions, I suggest you refrain from making them such a big part of your emails."
No, Paris is for people of all persuasions and so is this Nouvellettre®! And no, politics is NOT a "big part" of life in Paris, but it is A PART and does play a role...and in many situations, cannot be ignored! My goal is not to write a bunch of 'drivel' about life in Paris from 'perfectly rosy glasses,' but to share with you the REAL scoop, from my point of view, whether you agree with it or not.
I welcome debate. Show me where I might be WRONG, but please, don't tell me I DON'T have the 'right' to express myself. You always HAVE THE RIGHT to unsubscribe...or read and dispute anything you like!
Now...if you'd like to know about the REAL life in Paris...read on...
 View from "Le Palace des Vosges" overlooking the Hôtel de Sully  Hanging out at the Place des Vosges  Hanging out at the Square de Tour Saint-Jacques  Hanging out at the Square de Tour Saint-Jacques  The Square de Tour Saint-Jacques  |
The May Day weekend was as glorious as any May Day could have been in the City of Light. I wandered down to Place des Vosges in the bright sun and before settling on a bench in the Place, took a tour of the renovation in progress at "Le Palace des Vosges."
"Le Palace des Vosges" is the two-bedroom apartment located in the second courtyard at number 9 (next to the three-star Michelin rated restaurant Ambroisie) that our team is currently preparing for Fractional Ownership by 13 'lucky' owners. The complete renovation of the apartment is in full swing, including a complete change to the exterior windows and doors to more "atelier" style (artist studio), as approved by the "Copropriété" (homeowners association) last Wednesday.
The annual meeting was even more fascinating and torturous than any "Assemblée Générale" (annual homeowners meeting) I've ever attended, lasting almost five hours, with a cast of characters, as Martine di Matteo described as "much like a Fellini movie." Now when I walk through the courtyard, knowing many of the owners of the apartments on which they have views, I have a more profound sense of belonging to the eclectic 'cast of characters.' (Read all about it at http://www.palacedesvosges.com !)
Then, with book in hand, sunglasses on my face, found a spot on a bench in full sun in the Place -- not an easy task on such a glorious holiday. The lawns were elbow-to-elbow with Labor Day celebrators simply enjoying their free time under the blue skies and warm breezes. The Linden trees are in full leafiness now and without much debate, is one of the prettiest spots in the city. It's an advantage to live so close by and to have so many good excuses for going there.
All the parks were 'getting the business' this weekend with such beautiful weather to entice us there. The Square de Tour Saint-Jacques has undergone renovation with the reopening of the tower, now in perfect condition, its stone a glistening white. The benches in the park were taken with sun worshippers, lovers and "flâneurs" (strollers). The park used to be more a refuge for the homeless, but no longer -- so don't hesitate to stroll through it and look up the lacy tower that was hidden for years under scaffolding and canvas.
The 'skirt' around the Centre Pompidou of open-air plazas, cafés and the Igor Stravinsky fountain was awash with happy tourists and Parisians, taking in the street performers who will do anything to get attention and fill their hats with euro coins. We took in two of the special exhibitions there -- the Kandinsky and the Calder -- easy to see one after the other and both equally delightful, best to do about 6 p.m. when the lines are virtually gone. (Secret: to avoid the long lines to enter the Centre Pompidou via the security check any time of day, take the red elevator to the left of the entrance, designated for diners at "Georges," but which will take you to level 1, then you go down the hall past the main elevators to "Georges," take two rights to take the escalator to the ground level where you buy your entry ticket!...and don't tell them I told you this!)
One evening we splurged on dinner at "Les Bouquinistes," Michelin star chef Guy Savoy's restaurant on the Left Bank near Pont Neuf (the oldest bridge in Paris) under the direction of Cédric Jossot and Chef Williams Caussimon. For the price of about 75 to 100 euros per person (for dinner, as lunch is about one-third as expensive), it is as perfect a dining experience as one can have in Paris...except for one huge drawback (in my opinion). And that is that there may not be one single French person dining there. So, if you don't mind that you're surrounded by tourists, you can make your reservations online quite easily by visiting the Web site: LesBouquinistes.com -- and you'll be happy you did.
Then with very full bellies, in the cool night air, with the streets filled with families, friends and lovers, we walked all the way home along the well-lit streets of "Parisadise" -- the urban paradise we can't live without.
A la prochaine...
P.S. Mark your calendar for...
1. Parler Paris Après Midi, Tuesday, May 12th, 3 to 5 p.m. at La Pierre du Marais. Visit http://www.parlerparis.com/apresmidi.html for more information.
2. Meet Cara Black, author of "Murder in ... Paris" series Wednesday, May 6th at the American Library in Paris 7 p.m. and May 22th at Shakespeare and Company 7 p.m.
3. Hear the poetry of the students of Cecilia Woloch’s Paris Poetry Workshop Friday, May 15th at 7 p.m. at Shakespeare and Company.
