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Saying Goodbye to Icons in the Bastille Neighborhood
Living in a small neighborhood of the Bastille, the hardest phrases to hear over the last year have been: "We're closing and retiring" and "They have sold the shop for their retirement": Holmes, the stationery store, and now à la Petite Fabrique, the chocolate factory. Holmes was transformed into an upscale Italian restaurant and word is that Alain Ducasse is buying the Petite Fabrique.... The neighborhood in the area of Hugo's Les Miserables and the French Revolution has gone upscale.
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Champs Elysées Christmas Market No More
Two events will effect somebody this latter part of 2017. Planning on the Champs-Elysées Christmas market? Stuck in traffic? It's like a soap opera or a custody fight in a divorce. Whose side will you be on? Every year Christmas markets attract 30 million people visitors in France. Fifteen million of those visit one or more of the 250 chalets along the Champs-Elysées for the Paris Christmas market. If you are stuck in traffic this week, the carnival operators are conducting an "escargot" (snail) slowing down and blocking traffic with their semi trucks on the expressways. They want to set up their chalets on the Champs-Elysées.
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David Downie’s Parisian Love Affair with Food
"A Taste of Paris, A History of the Parisian Love Affair with Food" is a fun book in David's style. David combines history, travelogue and a personal quest. David's quest this time: "What is it about the history of Paris that has made it a food lover's paradise?" You can follow his Paris food seduction from 53 BC to the present. Bringing Paris food history alive, David presents lots of written culinary activity between the 1300s and 1792 (end of the Ancien Régime) with all the King Louis's, their chefs and the chefs’ cookbooks. David takes us back to the barbarian Parisiis squatting, eating with no tableware and demonstrates how the…
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For the Paris Police Dial 17
When an emergency arises in Paris or you want to report a problem to the police, dial "17". Today a security guard at the Banque de France helped me after an incident at the BNP Paribas Beaumarchais, Bastille. After speaking with the police on the guard's phone, I noticed the number on his screen "17". I will never forget that number and used it about an hour later. By coincidence the same three teenagers who hassled me earlier at the ATM inside the BNP Paribas were leaving the line one metro train the same time as I walked off. I dialed "17".
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Lulu Dans Ma Rue On Vacation-Update Success
From our balconettes (Parisian wrought iron window fences), we are enjoying our carrots - getting fatter every day, fresh cherry tomatoes, and wild strawberries; the plants are blooming. BUT who will water them while we are on vacation? Lulu Anna. The city of Paris (Mairie de Paris) has a service called Lulu dans ma rue (Lulu on my street). Need a helping hand taking things to the cellar (cave)? Ironing? Water your plants?
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Foire de Paris 2017-Successful Treasure Hunt
Each year it seems I have a list of items to look for at the Foire de Paris (Paris Home Show) until May 8. This year was no different. I list of treasures to hunt for. Every year nine out of ten of the 500,000 visitors buys something from one of the 1,700 stands. One third of the visitors have a home improvement project in mind when they walk through the entry gates. This year my list included: A new shopping basket because my handles pulled away from the threads. Found it in the Madagascar
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Children and Teens, Events and Trade Shows, Food, Drink & Health, Life in Paris & France, Museum exhibitions
Salon du Chocolat Junior is New Addition
On Sunday evening, the opportunity arose to visit the last opening hours of the Salon du Chocolat. The show continues through November 1 in Pavilion 5, Porte de Versailles and is a five-day event that began the 27th of November. My goal this year: See what is happening at the Salon du Chocolat Junior on the main level. For the first time in 2016, the Salon du Chocolat Junior, gives young chocophiles the chance to sign up for pastry classes, Choco-Tours of the salon wearing cooking toques, workshops, visit the beauty boutique with delicious chocolate treatments, enjoy cultural heritage and entertainment activities with African cocoa-producing countries and watch the production…
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Learning French-Babes to Adults
Learning French comes in a variety of ways. From interactive toys to online lessons to French theatre with English surtitles to language speed speaking to traditional one-on-one lessons or studying abroad. The list keeps growing to fit your convenience. Some ideas from the past for young ages like the P’tit nours bears have given way to Snow & Stella, Lily Lapin, a friend of Pierre Lapin’s, and the very popular ChiChi Love, the showstar Chihuahua. Two large toy stores in Paris stock and innumerable quantity of French and bi-lingual toys and animals. Adults over 15 need not worry because fun is in store for you! Frantastique, a humorous online learning…
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RER C Renovating – Reroute Your Journey
Between Gare d’Austerlitz and Javel, RER C resumes normal activity August 27. You will only see a diagram of the stations affected at the bottom of the stairs to the platform. Plan on buses or other metro lines to circumvent this summer riddle. Posters are plastered all over the metros and RER about RER A with only a mention that something is going on with RER C. Even at Gare d’Austerlitz the information is limited. With digging, I was able to find maintenance information about the other RER works scheduled. Use Google Translate to read the page. I was heading to the Eiffel Tower (Tour Eiffel) area, for example. I…
