Les Galeries Lafayette & l'Arc de triomphe

Bonjour tous!
It's been cool and rainy this weekend, and I'm starting to have homework for my classes, so I didn't get out as much as I have past weekends--in fact, I stayed in all day today doing work, except this morning when I did my laundry--but yesterday afternoon I decided to do a bit of indoor sightseeing, as it were, so I headed to Les Galeries Lafayette!  For those of you unfamiliar with it, this is one of Paris's most famous and prestigious grands magasins (department stores, literally "big stores").  People come from around the world to shop there (particularly Americans and Japanese--they even have a special Japanese welcome desk there) and I heard more English (British and American) than French while I was there!  So that was a strange experience.  I, of course was not there to buy--Prada, Yves St. Laurent, Gucci are tempting, but un petit peu out of my price range--but to window shop.  Think: fur, and lots of it.  But the trends there also seem to indicate even more frills and ruffles in our future, as well as accessories in bold, funky colors (lots of purple, yellow, orange).  There were a few rather less pricey brands as well (like Levi's), but it was all very posh.  The building is equally as interesting as the fashions: it covers nine floors, from the basement up, or ten, if you count the rooftop as a floor, which maybe you should because you're allowed to go out on the rooftop for a lovely view of the city.  Furthermore, there's this very famous stained-glass dome in the middle of the building which is quite lovely to look at.

The dome was too big to fit into one shot from the ground floor!

a few of the several stories supporting the dome

views from the top: the Paris National Opera (Palais Garnier)

Somehow, I never get tired of la tour Eiffel!!

That's Sacré-Coeur in the background--the view in real life was better.

After I'd had my fill of window shopping, I decided to head towards the Arc de triomphe end of le boulevard des Champs Êlysées.  (La place de la concorde is at the other end, but it's a long boulevard, and it was drizzly, so I decided to leave that end for another time.)  The arc is a monument to the French army, started by Napoleon (I) and finished by King Louis-Philippe, and it's quite stunning!  You can go up inside it and out onto the top, so of course I did, after a rousing climb of 284 steps.  (But it's free for students, so that was good.)  You get a great view of the Champs Élysées from there, as well as the whole rest of Paris!  And after all that climbing, the drizzle and the breeze were quite refreshing!  Perhaps the views weren't as stunning as they would be on a sunny day, but I didn't have to wait in line and it wasn't crowded at all--two major benefits to going on a gray Saturday afternoon!

L'Arc de triomphe seen from the middle of Les Champs Élysées

closer up...

You usually translate this as "Do not enter."

Jamais!

Le boulevard des Champs Élysées seen from the top of the Arc de triomphe.

I'm not sure quite what this is, but it was on display inside the top of the Arc.

more outdoor fun

Bonjour!
So last Sunday, as the heat and sun continued (they finally gave in this week to rain and cooler temps), I decided to continue my outdoor explorations of the parks and waterways of Paris!  First I walked to a more southern part of Canal St.-Martin, only a few blocks away from my home in the 10th arrondissement, and I followed it north until I came to its end at the Bassin de la Villette, which I had visited the previous weekend.

one of many bridges across the Canal St-Martin

longer view of the Canal St-Martin

I liked the colors of the stores in the background, and the color of the bridge--it's a little hard to tell here, but it was bright turquoise!

Yet another lock along the canal; they really fascinate me!

From there, it was a quick Métro ride over to the Parc de la Villette, in the 19th arrondissement, which I had read about in a travel guide, and which is noted for its futuristic-inspired design.  It was definitely an interesting place to wander around!  There were lots of people there, playing soccer, picnicking, and just lounging in shady spaces.  I think the photos will show it better than I can describe it, because it was really quite different, aesthetically, from any other parks I've been to, in Paris or elsewhere.

fountain at the southern entrance to the park

There were these big red structures all over the place...

You could climb up into some... so I did! 

a view of part of the park, near the Science Museum (big silver dome in the background)

Not far from the above view, I came upon this little garden...

with all these curvy-trunked trees and dahlias!

There were nets to catch the leaves; it reminded me of "Black Cloud" from Nuit Blanche.

It was a really neat little space, very self-contained...

...kind of separate from the rest of the park.

It reminded me of Dr. Seuss!

I love dahlias!!!  They're my favorite flower.

The Canal de l'Ourcq runs through the park.

detail of the exterior of the park's science museum

There was also this big craft--aircraft? watercraft?--outside the museum.

Then I walked back south towards home, with the intent of stopping at another park that I'd read about on the way, the Parc des Buttes Chaumont, which is an unusually hilly area.  I was fairly tired by then, so I didn't see as much of this park as I did of the first, but I did enjoy sitting for a while on a shady bench by the little lake and writing some postcards.  It was a lovely afternoon!

island in the center of the pond in Parc des Buttes Chaumont

The rock formations were really interesting...  I couldn't tell if they were natural or sculpted.

Montmartre!

Salut!
Last Saturday Alex and I journeyed to Montmartre, the hilly section of Paris near the northern edge of the city, in the 18th arrondissement, which is not too far from my home here in the 10th, nor is it far from the ugly but convenient Centre Clignancourt, where I have many (most?) of my classes.  (In fact, I walked to Montmartre (again) from Clignancourt later in the week, just for kicks, accompanying a new acquaintance on her way to work after class.)  Montmartre is known for its abundance of artists (starving and otherwise--the ones I saw looked quite well-fed).   Some famous past inhabitants include Picasso, van Gogh, Matisse, Dalí... the list goes on.  For anyone who has seen Amélie or Moulin Rouge (oops!  I still haven't seen M.R., but it's on my to-do list), you are familiar with Montmartre.
It is also famous for its beautiful cathedral, Sacré-Coeur, which means Sacred Heart.  (So they're not creative with cathedral names here--but the buildings are so beautiful!)  Of course since it was a Saturday, it was a zoo (or as the French say, il y avait tout le monde, literally: the whole world was there), so we didn't go inside the basilica, so after giving it due admiration (the LONG walk up to it gave us ample time to ooh and aah between gasping for breath), we wandered around the rest of Montmartre.  There was a very extensive street market/flea sale type of event going on through many of the streets--people were out with tables or blankets laden with stuff they wanted to sell--used clothes, books, toys, DVDs, and assorted other junk as well, which was all fun to look at briefly, though not photo-worthy, I thought.    

me, only part-way up the stairs to Sacré-Coeur

a closer view of this lovely basilica

the cathedral seen as the sun was setting

Eventually, we ended up at le Cimitière de Montmartre, which is still in use today and which contains many beautiful graves.

overview of part of the cemetery

It's a little hard to make out, but this grave said nothing else except what you see above: FIAT! (Yes, with the exclamation point.)  We didn't know quite what to make of this...

This stained glass is actually part of someone's personal tomb!

example of the very ornate architecture common here

a grave done in tiles--very different, very beautiful

We wandered through there for a while, admiring the architecture, before heading back towards the more commercial (touristy) part of Montmartre for a lovely dinner at an outdoor café.   (I had a salad and another crèpe au fromage, the French equivalent of grilled cheese, and Alex had fried mussels.) Then we headed back to Sacré-Coeur again for Nuit Blanche, an annual Parisian event that puts together many modern-art installments and has them open to the public for free, all night long.  I only visited a couple of the installments, partly because modern art isn't really my style, but also because I have early classes three days per week this semester, so I'm in the habit of going to bed relatively early.  (And I was tired from all the walking that afternoon!)  But I enjoyed the installations I saw.

restaurant in Montmartre where we had dinner

Nuit Blanche: art installation with candles showing the sky in 100 years

Nuit Blanche: art installation called "Black Cloud"

detail of "Black Cloud" (lots of paper butterflies)

All in all, it was a lot of fun to wander around Montmartre, which in addition to its artsy-ness is also one of the few Parisian neighborhoods not modernized in the 19th century by Baron Haussmann, so it has lots of old buildings and narrow, cobbled streets, which are fun to look at.  I'm sure I will be returning there many times over the course of my stay here!

everyday life/la vie quotidienne

Bonjour!  So I've been up to lots of fun stuff lately, but I thought I'd add a post on the everyday stuff, too.

First, classes: they haven't really started yet.  I've had a few lectures, but for each lecture there are also a few smaller discussion components, so the big lecture group is broken into smaller groups for more in-depth work--I think.  These haven't started at all yet (they start this week) so I'll give more info on those later this week or next weekend, when I've actually experienced them.  (They're called travaux dirigés, which literally translates to guided or directed work.)  I'm taking two history classes (French history of the 1800s and European of the early 1900s) and two art history classes (one about chinoiserie and allegories in French art of the 1700s, I think, and the other about European landscape paintings of the late 1700s and early 1800s).  I'm also taking two translation classes: one English to French (hard) and one French to English (easier), but those haven't started yet (they start this week).  Unfortunately, I don't have any classes actually inside the Sorbonne building itself.  Art history classes are held at 3, rue michelet and the history and translation classes will be at the Centre Clignancourt.  I've put in photos of michelet and the Sorbonne, because those buildings are pretty, but I think Clignancourt is one of the ugliest buildings I've seen lately, although it was just completed this summer, so I didn't even bother taking any photos.  (It's got this very modern sort of feel, lots of squares and lines, and this weird cement-gray and schoolbus-yellow color scheme.  Also, the toilets in the building don't have seats.  Unfortunately, this is rather common in more public restrooms in France, but it's one cultural difference that I really have trouble appreciating.  I mean, it's one thing for airport toilets or free city toilets, but don't tell me the Sorbonne can't afford toilet seats.)  Anyway, classes are just starting, but what I've had so far seems good, although if it's too much work, I might drop one of the art history classes.  I'm also taking two athletic classes: "Ju-jitsu self-defense" and "Qi-gong" (which is sort of like a yoga/tai-chi combo, I think).  Those start on Friday, so again, more on those later this week or next weekend.

The Sorbonne itself!  Sadly, I don't have classes in this building.

3, rue michelet: art history building... very near le Jardin du Luxembourg (see below)

Second, food: this seems to be everyone's favorite part! (By the way: Please feel free to leave comments on the blog; you don't have to email me or tell me on Skype or Facebook that you like the blog or something I put on it.  That's what the comment box is here for!)  Anyway, I continue to eat lots of yummy food!  On a daily basis!!  Obviously the pastries and baguettes are great, but my two favorite things are actually chèvre (goat cheese) and fromage blanc (literally, "white cheese" but it's actually more like Greek yogurt and you eat it like yogurt, with a spoon).  I like to eat the former for lunch and the latter after dinner, almost as a desert, although it's not sweet.  We really don't have anything like it in the U.S., but Greek yogurt is sort of similar, but fromage blanc is more creamy, less tangy, and not as heavy.  I didn't take a photo of the food itself (but you can see it at the link) because it's not much to look at (it looks like sour cream or plain yogurt) but I did take one of the package, so you can see that it's packaged like yogurt.  I've included some of the other yummy things I eat fairly regularly as well.

FROMAGE BLANC: YUM!

normal lunch: baguette with chèvre (the golden raspberries were a treat)

the Jardin du Luxembourg, near rue michelet, where I like to eat lunch

the French version of a chocolate chip cookie: dark chocolate, more of a bread than a cookie, far less sweet, far more delicious