Let's Explore
Check list to see and do Destinations Tours, Guides, Walks & Wheels Museums Sightseeing Famous Graves sightseeing destinations in Paris, around Paris, outside France, within France
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Springtime Silence in Paris for 55 Days
It is time to turn the page on Chapter 2020. Who would have guessed that one would feel a bit nostalgic for the Paris Springtime in 2020!? All of the ups and downs and changes during the Springtime in Paris lockdown from total confinement to mostly open for summer and back to partially open; having to differentiate between what is essential (food) and non-essential (books) and back to semi-partial of partial and curfews. Aiiieee!! A Nostalgic Period? One Parisian confinement period stands out among all the rest of 2020. Between March 15 and May 11, 2020 Paris went silent.
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Blue Velvet Christmas in Paris
Three Paris monuments are wearing Blue Velvet this year. La Ville de Paris theme this year is “Paris Scintille” (Paris sparkles). Until January 3, Paris sparkles with white drops of light dripping down the façade of the Hôtel de Ville (City hall) and the Luxor Obelisk on Place de la Concorde. The Bastille Colonne de Juillet (July column) has no white drops but was my first dramatic glimpse of the blue velvet. What You Will See The Hôtel de Ville plaza is an illuminated, enchanted, fairy-tale forest with two free merry-go-rounds, including a double-decker. There are wood chalet kiosks with various treats. One kiosk is selling spiced wine, pretzels, waffles,…
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Paris: Shopping for Essentials – Who decides?
Thinking about the holiday shopping ahead? France is working through a vocabulary issue: what is considered essential shopping and what is non-essential? On the morning breakfast show, Télématin, Gabriel Atal, a government spokesperson, said it was unfortunate the government chose the legal form of the word, essential. In other words, deciding what is or is not essential is very controversial. Small businesses are hurting in November Monoprix, a mini-department store (grocery, household, parapharmacy, clothing, toiletries, etc.) was fully open during the first 55-day lockdown. This time, to be in solidarity with the small business, certain departments are cordoned off: books for example. However, magazines are sold because the magazine kiosks and…
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Paris: Marais and the Louvre Concerts Virtually
Feeling like a walk through the Marais, visiting famous Paris restaurants or listening to a concert at the Louvre while staying cozy at home with a glass of French wine? If so, then save these dates: Louvre Concerts November 10 and 12; The Jewish Marais November 18; Famous Parisian Restaurants December 3.
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Le Jardin du Luxembourg: Live or Virtual Visit
Feeling like taking a walk through a garden today? I have a recommendation. On a sunny mid-October morning, I visited the Luxembourg Gardens live and virtually while testing a guided tour application. Gary Kraut's Luxembourg Gardens tour began at the kiosk on one side of the Sénat and ended on the other side. The GPS and phone camera helped me stay on the path and Gary’s easy-to- follow instructions and his map guided me physically. Simultaneously following the tour and taking photographs, I needed that GPS, 15-second rewind and camera to get me easily back on track.
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Man Ray: Fashion Photographer
Before there was Helmut Newton or Richard Avedon, there was Man Ray. From a fashion perspective and as fashion photographer, Musée du Luxembourg explores the body of Man Ray's fashion work. In the display cases, this exhibit follows his Parisian fashion trail with gowns featured in the Harper’s Bazaar magazine. I highly recommend downloading the Musée du Luxembourg audio guide to explore the exhibit virtually. Even after the exhibit closes, the audioguide remains active. Some images from my visit are below the videos. You begin with his early surrealist works and move quickly into his work with, photographer, Lee Miller...keep reading
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Bright Colors: Paris Evening Lights
A week after seeing a part of Paris in black and white, it was time to focus on bright colors. Along the way, I recalled other ways to view the evening light in reflections and patterns. I was one of seven photographers who followed a spontaneous route from the Metro Temple along Rue de Turbigo, off and on Rue du Temple, toward Arts et Métiers (museum), rue du Renard (fox) down to l'Hotel de Ville and the Pont d'Arcole. On the bridge....
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Paris Evening, Walking in Black and White
Paris has an aura when the lights dim on a moist evening. With a group of photographers on an evening shoot, the black and white theme had four criteria: reflection, near and far, silhouette and/or en marche (walking, movement). An image could have any or all of these criteria. We began at Place Igor-Stravinsky and walked through the first, second and third districts/arrondissements... click on the title to read more and see the images
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The Temporary Grand Palais
On the radio one day I heard that the Grand Palais was moving to a new location. I went to Place Joffre across from the Ecole Militaire and the Champ-de-Mars--Nothing. Shortly after, I heard on the radio work had begun. I jumped on bus 86 and headed for the Eiffel Tower, missed my stop but saw this looming wood structure jutting out above the trees. The first frames secured on delivery trucks were being pieced together. A few weeks later, I returned to the construction site to check on progress. The Grand Palais Ephémère (temporary) is a wooden dual-framed structure is well underway in its new location with a spectacular…
