Showing posts with label Paris. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Paris. Show all posts
Friday, 13 January 2012
Spot the difference
Pete's 85 year old uncle enjoys painting watercolours (and he's very good at it too) and for Christmas 2010, he gave us this original painting of a square in Paris. At Christmas we tracked it down and I took a close(ish) picture to show him.
Labels:
Paris
Wednesday, 28 December 2011
30 second movie #6
Here is the latest 30 Second Movie...
This is further to my previous posting about our trip to Paris. At lunch, we had a great meal. As we finished our main course, an older man started playing the accordian. A few minutes later, another man joined in. Then an old lady started singing and a couple danced between courses! We ordered more wine. A guitarist turned up, followed by a flute player and another accordion player!
I filmed a little (in HD!) of this unexpected entertainment to share with you:
This is further to my previous posting about our trip to Paris. At lunch, we had a great meal. As we finished our main course, an older man started playing the accordian. A few minutes later, another man joined in. Then an old lady started singing and a couple danced between courses! We ordered more wine. A guitarist turned up, followed by a flute player and another accordion player!
I filmed a little (in HD!) of this unexpected entertainment to share with you:
Labels:
30 second movie,
France,
Paris
Tuesday, 27 December 2011
Dans Paris
I am back after 4 days in Paris which was a gift from me to Pete - an early birthday present for his 40th.
We got up at 4am(!) on Christmas Eve to get to the airport, arriving at the hotel near to the Eiffel Tower late morning. We started exploring - there was plenty going on including Christmas markets.
On Christmas day we had a leisurely breakfast and began a slow walk through the quiet city. A few cafes were open and even a few shops. We walked for a couple of hours and after a beer or two, had lunch on Rue Mouffetard. It was a fun, crazy and memorable long lunch - I will explain more on the next blog posting.
We then went to the cinema to see the average but watchable New Years Eve (Zac Efron has a small part). Its surprising, but there are so many cinemas in Paris - far more than London. Afterwards we walked up the Champs Élysées enjoying the market along with several thousand other people! It was packed and the traffic at a standstill. Absolutely nothing like Christmas in England!
On Boxing Day, it was warm with blue skies and we rented bikes and cycled miles and miles. It's a great way to see any city as you take back streets and experience so much. We cycled along the canal and went into the cafe on Rue Le Pic (the one where they filmed Amelie). The staff there looked like models! We cycled all day and were knackered at the end of it. At dinner, there was an annoying 50something American guy who talked loudly so that everyone could hear, disturbing all in the small restaurant and who looked a complete twat with curly hair down to his waist and big bushy moustache - he looked like the Lion from the Wizard Of Oz!
Today we have taken it easy with a walk around the cool area called Passy and lunch near the Pompidou. As I type, we are on our way home.
For those who don't know Paris, it still surprises me how much graffiti there is, homeless people and a lot of aggressive beggars, especially groups of Romanian women hassling you.
Anyway, to sum up... we ate a lot, we walked a lot, we had fun! Here are a few Instagram Pictures to being going on with:
We got up at 4am(!) on Christmas Eve to get to the airport, arriving at the hotel near to the Eiffel Tower late morning. We started exploring - there was plenty going on including Christmas markets.
On Christmas day we had a leisurely breakfast and began a slow walk through the quiet city. A few cafes were open and even a few shops. We walked for a couple of hours and after a beer or two, had lunch on Rue Mouffetard. It was a fun, crazy and memorable long lunch - I will explain more on the next blog posting.
We then went to the cinema to see the average but watchable New Years Eve (Zac Efron has a small part). Its surprising, but there are so many cinemas in Paris - far more than London. Afterwards we walked up the Champs Élysées enjoying the market along with several thousand other people! It was packed and the traffic at a standstill. Absolutely nothing like Christmas in England!
On Boxing Day, it was warm with blue skies and we rented bikes and cycled miles and miles. It's a great way to see any city as you take back streets and experience so much. We cycled along the canal and went into the cafe on Rue Le Pic (the one where they filmed Amelie). The staff there looked like models! We cycled all day and were knackered at the end of it. At dinner, there was an annoying 50something American guy who talked loudly so that everyone could hear, disturbing all in the small restaurant and who looked a complete twat with curly hair down to his waist and big bushy moustache - he looked like the Lion from the Wizard Of Oz!
Today we have taken it easy with a walk around the cool area called Passy and lunch near the Pompidou. As I type, we are on our way home.
For those who don't know Paris, it still surprises me how much graffiti there is, homeless people and a lot of aggressive beggars, especially groups of Romanian women hassling you.
Anyway, to sum up... we ate a lot, we walked a lot, we had fun! Here are a few Instagram Pictures to being going on with:
Monday, 19 January 2009
Paris weekend including Le President and his wife
It has been an exhausting, but also an entertaining and surprising weekend…
On Thursday I wrote and pre-posted the next instalment of “100 facts about me” and then Pete and I got the train to London. We stayed in a hotel on Thursday night (sitting in the bar watching the amazing images of the Airbus floating down the Hudson). Early on Friday morning we boarded the Eurostar to Paris. We have been to Paris a dozen or more times, so we decided to try and do some new things - we mostly achieved this aim.
The Eurostar was a freebie, due to the points we had collected on a loyalty card. The hotel was also a freebie! We had booked the Holiday Inn in Opera and had used Priority points that Pete and I had accumulated by staying in many hotels in our past jobs. It’s always nice to get a freebie, though this was tainted by the £35 parking ticket I received on Thursday!
The hotel kindly upgraded us for no apparent reason and the room was huge! The major downside was that the soundproofing was non-existent and we could hear the conversation of the people in the next room quite clearly at 2am. And they weren’t even shouting.
On Friday we mainly walked and took in the city atmosphere, getting lost here and there. We wanted to see the Picasso exhibition, but the queues were huge - despite it being open 24 hours a day! We had a great meal in the evening in the Montmartre area going to our favourite bar Le Progres.
On Saturday we went to the Pompidou centre. This is a truly great
museum of modern art (and a stunning building). Surprisingly, I had never been round it properly in all my visits to Paris! We spent a couple of hours in there seeing some weird and wonderful things including some examples of an artform I know nothing about: Futurism. I know when Pete has had enough of a museum when he speeds up and looks at fewer and fewer exhibits. The end of his attention span was the sign to go and get food… So we crossed the river and went to a restaurant on Rue Mouffetard for a late lunch. This road is a narrow long winding road that has some lovely shops and restaurants – and it’s rarely mentioned in guide books… which is a crime! If you ever in Paris, check this road out.
In the evening we attended a concert by Julien Clerc at a theatre. He usually plays the arenas, so this was an intimate venue in comparison. Julien is a singer-songwriter who has been around for decades and his albums still debut at the top of the charts. I first came across his work in the late 1980’s and have been a fan since. I can’t really think of an British or American equivalent singer-songwriter who has lasted so long. He is often classed as a "singer for the ladies", but I think that’s rather unfair. Yes, he does release the odd mushy ballad and occasional cheesy pop tune, but on every album I own, there are a few tracks that any songwriter would be proud of. The show itself was excellent.
BUT… the surprising part of the evening was just before Julien came on to the stage. Pete and I were chatting and then realised that there was a collective intake of breath in the auditorium and everyone in the audience was looking to the back of the theatre. We turned round to see President Sarkosy and his wife Carla Bruni about 8 rows behind us!
The audience was stunned and the camera flashes were blinding! The French President kindly smiled and waved to the selfish people taking photos without asking - he is more like royalty in France. I chose not to spoil their night out by taking a photo, other than from afar that were so blurry, it could be anyone (it was dark OK!).
A few songs into Julien's set and Carla appears on stage to sing a duet! There’s a clip on You Tube here. As a gay guy, even I think she’s a stunner! Pete went to the toilet during one of the four encores and he reported Police and secret service men were everywhere.
On Sunday morning, we did another first and went to the massive Père Lachaise Cemetery. Now, you are thinking that visiting a cemetery is strange, but the place is remarkable - the graves are mostly small Gothic buildings. We tried to find the place where Edith Piaf was buried, but failed. However, we did worship at the grave of Jim Morrison that is a tiny grave stuck behind a much larger monument to some forgotten non-rock god.
The Eurostar was a freebie, due to the points we had collected on a loyalty card. The hotel was also a freebie! We had booked the Holiday Inn in Opera and had used Priority points that Pete and I had accumulated by staying in many hotels in our past jobs. It’s always nice to get a freebie, though this was tainted by the £35 parking ticket I received on Thursday!
The hotel kindly upgraded us for no apparent reason and the room was huge! The major downside was that the soundproofing was non-existent and we could hear the conversation of the people in the next room quite clearly at 2am. And they weren’t even shouting.
On Friday we mainly walked and took in the city atmosphere, getting lost here and there. We wanted to see the Picasso exhibition, but the queues were huge - despite it being open 24 hours a day! We had a great meal in the evening in the Montmartre area going to our favourite bar Le Progres.
On Saturday we went to the Pompidou centre. This is a truly great
museum of modern art (and a stunning building). Surprisingly, I had never been round it properly in all my visits to Paris! We spent a couple of hours in there seeing some weird and wonderful things including some examples of an artform I know nothing about: Futurism. I know when Pete has had enough of a museum when he speeds up and looks at fewer and fewer exhibits. The end of his attention span was the sign to go and get food… So we crossed the river and went to a restaurant on Rue Mouffetard for a late lunch. This road is a narrow long winding road that has some lovely shops and restaurants – and it’s rarely mentioned in guide books… which is a crime! If you ever in Paris, check this road out.In the evening we attended a concert by Julien Clerc at a theatre. He usually plays the arenas, so this was an intimate venue in comparison. Julien is a singer-songwriter who has been around for decades and his albums still debut at the top of the charts. I first came across his work in the late 1980’s and have been a fan since. I can’t really think of an British or American equivalent singer-songwriter who has lasted so long. He is often classed as a "singer for the ladies", but I think that’s rather unfair. Yes, he does release the odd mushy ballad and occasional cheesy pop tune, but on every album I own, there are a few tracks that any songwriter would be proud of. The show itself was excellent.
BUT… the surprising part of the evening was just before Julien came on to the stage. Pete and I were chatting and then realised that there was a collective intake of breath in the auditorium and everyone in the audience was looking to the back of the theatre. We turned round to see President Sarkosy and his wife Carla Bruni about 8 rows behind us!
The audience was stunned and the camera flashes were blinding! The French President kindly smiled and waved to the selfish people taking photos without asking - he is more like royalty in France. I chose not to spoil their night out by taking a photo, other than from afar that were so blurry, it could be anyone (it was dark OK!).A few songs into Julien's set and Carla appears on stage to sing a duet! There’s a clip on You Tube here. As a gay guy, even I think she’s a stunner! Pete went to the toilet during one of the four encores and he reported Police and secret service men were everywhere.
On Sunday morning, we did another first and went to the massive Père Lachaise Cemetery. Now, you are thinking that visiting a cemetery is strange, but the place is remarkable - the graves are mostly small Gothic buildings. We tried to find the place where Edith Piaf was buried, but failed. However, we did worship at the grave of Jim Morrison that is a tiny grave stuck behind a much larger monument to some forgotten non-rock god.
A heavy lunch meant an uncomfortable walk to the station. I was also exhauste
d by this point. I didn’t take my best camera as I have tons of pictures of Paris, but I did take my new compact and took a few snaps. The picture of the graffiti is a favourite… I don’t know why!
On the Eurostar home there was this posh girl, aged about 19/20 who was obviously from a good background. But, as with many young people, she had no intellect! Talking to her friend she said “did you know that the name Gabrel is the French equivalent to the English name George”.
This is not a lone example of the “youth of today”. Are we raising a nation of dimwits, who know nothing more than what the school textbooks tell them and know little about the world around them?!!?
It’s a bit like that loud person of celebrity Big Brother (Tina Scouse-woman) who honestly thought that Churchill, Rousevelt and Stalin had negotiated with Hitler at various meetings at the end of World War 2!!!
God help us.
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