Le Cirque d'Hiver

I'm a real circus junky so when Irv and Iris recommended we go to "Le Cirque d'Hiver" I didn't miss a beat and reserved seats - front row and center - even though we weren't planning on kidnapping a little kid off the street to bring along! On the appointed day, there we were amidst a zillion kids (it's holiday week here), parents and sundry other folk.

This is the winter home of the European travelling circus. It's an opulent permanent "tent" complete with a full orchestra, clever announcers and showgirls who entertained the audience as the runners prepared for the next act. It's a one ring circus a little like our own "Big Apple Circus" in NYC.

We had a lot of fun watching the snowy tigers perform not more then 3 feet from our seats! There were the usual 'jongleurs', 'trapezistes, 'chevaux' (dancing horses) and of course, the clowns. We enjoyed everything. Chris was thrilled to be able to understand some of the jokes. We especially enjoyed a 'ventriloque' who made you think a live dog was talking and the juggler who worked with 6 white balls that he bounced on the floor so fast it looked like they were attached to strings. There were also two amazing Chinese 'equilabristes' who twisted their bodies into unbelievable shapes while they balanced on each other and twirled parasols and cloth disks from every part of their bodies. At one point one girl was bent over backwards on the floor on one foot and hand while spinning disks from the others. The other girl was standing on her hand on her hip while twirling disks from her other three extremeties. It was remarkable!

At right is a Toulouse-Lautrec painting of the Cirque from the 1880's.

The whole experience was magic--when the lights dimmed every kid had twirling light-wands that made the room sparkle (Paul wouldn't let me get one).

Le Cirque d'Hiver
110 rue Amelot
Paris 11

Toulouse-Lautrec Painting of Cirque d'hiver

Parking - Un Sport de Payee

Anyone visiting Paris will be amazed by the skill and expertise with which residents park in this city. There's no space too small or inaccessible for the determined. Parking is a creative activity where the sport seems to be in how many vehicles can fit on any given street. Here there seems to be pride in squeezing a car into a spot that requires 'kissing' the bumpers of the car in front or in back of you. Drivers sometimes require several minutes to maneuver into position holding up traffic on the narrow streets. It's surprising how patient people are, perhaps they identify with those parking! For anyone spotting a space, it's not unthinkable to witness them drive diagonally through traffic to secure the coveted spot! Pedestrians beware! It's no wonder that many sidewalks are lined with stanchions or poles to avoid assertive drivers pulling right up onto the sidewalks. Mind you, this doesn't seem to inhibit those with scooters or motorbikes. It is not uncommon to have to scramble to get out of the way of someone on a scooter on the sidewalk! Please look at the picture at the right. The flower pots are at the edge of the sidewalk. The yellow truck is driving in the road. The cars are parked on the sidewalk. The scooter is driving on the sidewalk. The woman with the baby carriage is trying to not get hit.

Believe it or not, they have traffic police in Paris who are supposed to give tickets for illegal parking. But we can not figure out when they ticket and why. We think these may be the same guys that issue tickets to those who fail to stoop and scoop! We have seen a car booted but we expect this is for extreme cases where a car has been left for a very long time blocking the road.

Our worst dinner in Paris - Chez Omar

This is a "couscous" restaurant". One of the best-rated in Paris. Zagats loves it (see comments below). We were sitting between two tables of Brits who recommended the Couscous "Royale" for two and the Legumes (vegetarian). We should have known better. The Royale was sort of a "mixed grill of all the meats they serve. The vegetables were primarily carrots, chickpeas, zucchini and celery.


It was the worst meal we have had in Paris in years. The meat tasted like it had been boiled with the fat providing the only flavor. The only exception were two lambchops that had been grilled and were tasty. The six lamb sausages were so salty we couldn't them. The vegetables, not having any fat, were boiled beyond any taste or texture.

We did have fresh strawberries for dessert that were good.

I can't imagine where Zagats got its ratings. I can only believe tourists were drawn by the large portions at reasonable prices.

Chez Omar
47, rue de Bretagne

Paris 11, France

01 42 72 36 26

For “couscous at its most trendy”, check out this “casual” “fashion-industry favorite” in the 11th, where plates are “piled high” with “pleasant” Moroccan morsels, the “jovial” owner makes “you feel like a local on your first” visit and the “waiters never stop joking around”; the place is usually “packed” and they “don’t take reservations”, but “don’t be turned off by the line that often extends out the door” – it’s “worth the wait.”

French Lessons

During our stay this year, I decided to spend some time in the classroom working on my French. Each morning I spend an hour and a half with a a teacher and a group of three. The groups have changed some over the time I've been here. The cuurent teacher, Arnaud is young, patient and a force to be reckoned with--she does NOT like to hear an English word being spoken. At first, I felt I was making steady progress. It's now the end of my fourth week, and I feel I've 'hit the wall' so to speak. Nothing that comes out of my mouth seems correct; I mix up my verbs and pronouns, and have a thing about using 'sur' when I should be using 'dans'! It's enough to make me want to 'jette mes papiers dans la rue'! One of the daily exercises is to listen to a tape and report on what was said, I'm hopeless!--I hear a completely different story then anyone else. And Paul tells me that this is how I am in English--can you believe he said that???? The other students, currently a young 23 year old from London and an equally young person from Hong Kong are, I seem to be doing better then me. I try not to be too hard on myself; they are both taking two classes a day; and Vickie is living with a French family. BUT! Je ne parle pas bien! Or at least not as 'bien' as I would like. The group teases me about my "Franglais". When I can't think of the word in French, I substitute English! It's always worked for me when speaking German to my mother! I've got one more week and then it will be time to 'retourne aux l'Etats-Unis'. I'm hoping not lose what I've learned before we return next year, so let me know if you speak French and would like to 'parler'.

A bientot,

Christina

L'Orangerie reopens after six years

We were fortunate to be in Paris when the l'Orangerie Museum finally opened after six years of renovations. The name refers to the original purpose of the building to store the Tuileries Garden citrus trees during the winter.



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The collection of Impressionist paintings of art dealer Paul Guillaime has been moved to the basement to open up the top floor to allow natural light to bathe the Monet Water Lillies. It includes impressionist works from Cézanne, Renoir, Picasso, Soutine, Derain and Henri Rousseau and others. We were particluarly interested because we had recently seen an exhibit, at the Met in NY, of the collection of another dealer in Impressionist works, Ambroise Vollard. The quality of the collections and the complex relationships they had with the artists they represented were faschinating. Both started with relatively little money but accumulated large fortunes and incredible art collections - to the envy of their clients.




On the ground floor, two large oval rooms are devoted to the fabulous Water Lilies by Claude Monet. Each room contains eight canvases that surround the oval room with a vision of the famous waterlilies at his home in Giverny. A major part of the renovation was the removal of the second floor of the museum which had been added in the 1960's and blocked the natural light that Monet had cherished. Because of the large size of the paintings (painted for these rooms), they could not be moved and were left in place during the six years of renovations. The curator was quoted as saying:

"The most important thing for us was the restoration of natural light,
which was so fundamental to Monet. The study of light is the basis of the
Impressionist movement, so we wanted to restore that as the essence of this
building, which was once described as the Sistine Chapel of Impressionism".


Musee l'Orangerie
Place de la Concorde

Our new Paris home (for six weeks!)

One of our most important tasks each year before we leave Paris is to decide on our apartment for the next year. This is a major task as the number of neighborhoods, apartments and price ranges is enormous. Each year we get a little better, and a little bit more discriminating, in where we stay. The first year we picked the apartment after meeting someone at Monet's house in Givernais. That apartment, in the Rue du Tresor in the Marais, was wonderful and we still see Irv and Iris when we are back in Paris. Our first apartment and neighborhood will always be a special place for us.

But, each year as we go back, we try to find something a little bit different and/or in a different neighbourhood. Chris spends hours at the computer scouting possibilities. By now, this will be our fifth year, we have pretty well determined our priorities;

• A "Parisian" apartment in a nice neighborhood in proximity to a nice Cafe, Boulangerie and Tabac (for the newspaper) - we want to be in a place that is clearly Parisian in feel
• A comfortable bed - queen or king size
• A shower - the French like tubs
• High speed internet access - a must for me
• Comfortable chairs where you can read - really important when you don't watch TV
• A central neighborhood - we like to walk everywhere
• Fully equipped kitchen, DW, Clothes washer - Chris must be able to cook and wash our clothes.

These are probably not surprising. What may be more surprising is what is not a priority for us,

• An elevator - frequently really old, but desirable; buildings cannot esthetically be fitted for elevators. Parisians accept this. Often elevators are so small that our bodies touch on all sides--definitely not something Christina goes in willingly!
• A second bedroom. Nice, but not required. However, the last two apartments have had two bedrooms and bathrooms.

Not surprisingly, everything is available, it just costs more. So, rather than getting cheaper as we get more experienced, it gets more expensive. Chris spends some time almost everyday, on-line looking for apartments and arranging for us to visit them. This year we visited six apartments before agreeing on one that seems to be very special. It's a 17th century "Hotel Particulare" (not sure what this means exactly, but it's old and special). It's on the banks of the Seine facing the city.

All Parisian apartments have big doors on the street side. If your lucky, it will have nice courtyard (rather than parking and recycling bins). This aparment has an attractive courtyard but not one that's usable.

One of the things we're most excited about is it has a lovely little library off the living room where you can work or read. The panelling is original and aparently installed by the same craftsman that did the White House! Not having seen that room, I'm not sure whether that's a recommendation - but it looks beautiful.

Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner...

Life in Paris has been a little different this year because each morning I go off for a French lesson leaving Paul sleeping in bed. In past years, our usual routine was for one of us to fetch the newspaper and morning ‘baguette’ while the other made coffee. Breakfast can be the pricey at a nice Café, so we like to do it ourselves. Compare the cost of an entire French bread (no more then 1.05 E.) with 17.50 E. for 2 cups of coffee and a baguette with butter and jam at a Café.

Here on the Island, a great spot for breakfast or a light meal any time of the day, is “Le Flore de L’Ile” located at the top of the street overlooking the Pont de Tournelle and the back of Notre Dame. It’s a wonderful place to watch people; and it seems to be a favorite kissing corner! The menu offers everything from a near perfect omelet, the French favorite, Berthillon ice cream and a great cup of tea or coffee. The food is fresh and served by friendly staff who bring your coffee with delicious dark chocolate kisses.

Le Flore en l'Ile

42, quai d'Orléans

Paris 2, France 75004

01 43 29 88 27

If you’ve had breakfast (especially at 10 o’clock) you really only need a little snack in the afternoon to tide you over to dinner. We love the comfort of a wine bar where you can sample a variety of vintages, share a plate of cheese and/or Charcuterie (sliced smoked meats) and soak up the atmosphere. We’ve been to several, but especially like a casual place called “Juveniles”. This tiny little spot has less then a dozen tables for 2 with wine crates stacked along the walls. Wines are available by the glass with selections from France, Australia and even California Zinfandels. They don’t serve any French cheeses, but the selection is good, the salads fresh and you can share tapas style meals that include sausages and smoked meats. We’ve found the food to be good, the prices reasonable and you can even carry off a bottle of wine. It’s the perfect way to end an afternoon.

Juvéniles

47, rue de Richelieu

Paris 1, France

01 42 97 46 49

Our favorite new dinner spot is Le Reminet, located within walking distance of our apartment. They require reservations and it’s buzzing each night. The service is slow even for French standards, but once you settle in with a bottle of wine it’s worth the wait. On our first visit, starters included roasted quail served on a bed of mixed greens (delicious) and a carrot soup which was tasty but not as good as the quail. For the main course, Paul opted for Perdreau (partridge, he’s very fowl lately!) which again was also roasted and served with turnip and a triangle of rosti potatoes that he had to fight me for! My fish fillet (mystery fish colcosse?) was beautifully prepared served with a light creamy sauce along side a creamy risotto and sautéed fennel. As usual, we skipped dessert but saw some incredible chocolate things, soufflés and poached figs that looked wonderful. They offered some interesting “vin do moment” and we enjoyed a nice Cote de Rhone.

Réminet

3, rue des Grands-Degrés

Paris 5, France

01 44 07 04 24

Some new restaurants and an old favorite

Juvéniles
47, rue de Richelieu
Paris 1, France
01 42 97 46 49

Réminet
3, rue des Grands-Degrés
Paris 5, France
01 44 07 04 24

Flore en l'Ile (Le)
42, quai d'Orléans
Paris 2, France 75004
01 43 29 88 27

What's wrong (or right) with this picture

Christina and I have often written about how much we enjoy walking in Paris. This year, Chris brought a pedometer and she's averaging almost 5 miles a day. That sounds like a lot (it is) but what you may not realize is that half of that distance is because we often get lost going somewhere. For those used to a simple grid system, the 'snail' grid of Paris can be a nightmare.

If you look at the map of NYC on the left, you notice that the streets are neat and orderly. They basically follow a commonsense grid with Avenues going North and South and Streets going East and West. Normally, the streets start at one river and end at the other. The avenues continue to a logical end (water or a Park). There are exceptions in lower Manhattan but this is the general rule. The outer boroughs follow different rules but there are still rules.

The map at the right represents Paris. Streets are not in a grid, but converge in lovely squares with Cafes and parks. Only a few key streets traverse the city, usually following an arc rather than a straight line. Street names are assigned to commemorate people or events.

This might still be manageable if it wasn't that they've been doing this for 700 hundred years. As a result, in the Centre Ville area, streets change names every chance they get. It's rare for a local street to keep its name for more than a few blocks. And, unlike New York, where these commemorative names exist mostly as decorative signs under the "real" street sign, these names are the only names used. There are literally thousands of street names. The 'Plan de Paris' has a 148 PAGES. That's approximately 6,000 names! for a boy from NYC that's culture shock!

For two people as "directionally-challenged" as Christina and I, it's a nightmare. We each have a map (really a book - the "pocket version has 96 pages!). Even with a map we frequently get lost. One of the hardest lessons to learn is that, because the streets are at odd angles to each other, you can't "go around the corner". It may take you 500 meters away from where you were (1/3 of a mile) with no easy way back. We've noticed in recent years that even the cab drivers have GPS! As difficult as it is, after four years, we're getting to know our way around the neighbourhoods--at least the ones where we've stayed. Christina manages to get back and forth to school and the market without any problems (at least none that she's sharing with me)!

Jazz in Paris

Chris and I love going to Cabarets in New York and when we're travelling. We enjoy the relative intimacy of being close to performers who like to have a 'conversation' with the audience. It's always been frustrating to us that, outside of New York there are often more bars and clubs with live entertainment . Sure, the big name performers (e.g. Eartha Kitt, Andrea Marcovicci, Michael Feinstein, John Pizzarelli) all come to the famous NY cabarets (Oak Room, Cafe Carlyle, the new Dizzy's Club Coca Cola). But, while we enjoy going to them, we are envious of the more informal (and seriously less expensive) venues we experience elsewhere.

There are many more Jazz clubs in Paris than in New York. As a result, many performers in the US have performed in Paris early in their careers. There may not have gotten a lot of money, but they could appear before an audience. We wrote earlier about our evening at Les Fous des L'Ile near our apartment. But one of our longtime favorites is a little bit fancier - Le Bilboquet, near St. Germain des Pres. This small, intimate, room decorated with red velvet walls and chairs (perhaps to resemble a cat-house) draws a nightly capacity crowd. As is typical with this type of club the world over, the food is over-priced and under-delivered. But the bar is a different story. There are a number of small (really small) tables with small (really, really, small) chairs arranged around the stage. There is open seating here with no cover charge, and only a one drink minimum. The drinks are expensive (about $25) but you can stay pretty much all night (entertainment starts at 9:00). The limiting factor seems to be how long you can stand the chair! The other night we saw a black African Jazz singer with a three piece band. We were sitting about 10 feet away and really enjoyed it. More often then not, we're next to someone interesting and can share a story or two in French (Chris' is getting better) or English. This is one of our favorite places and we've gone back every year.

Being outside in Paris

Christina and I constantly talk about how Paris is an "outside" city like no other. People in Paris seem to use the out of doors as an extension of their inside living space; to meet friends, to eat, to walk, or just to sit and read the paper. The streets and parks are always crowded with people just being - at all hours of the day and into the night.

In New York, living in mid-town we walk to many places, and occasionally eat out when the weather's nice and the place attractive.

In Paris, the reverse is true, you eat outside, at Cafes and Brasseries all year long. They just turn on the heaters! Many small places extend their 'petit' indoor seating area to the out of doors to accomodate twice the numbers possible inside. Outdoor street markets can be found in many neighbourhoods on any given day of the week and there's live outdoor entertainment where ever a crowd might be found (often on selected streets which have been closed off during the weekend).

Here, there are many words to describe how you get about, from 'faire du jogging", to faire une promenade. No matter what the weather, people are out of doors, not only walking but riding their bikes, rollerblading (they close off many streets on Sunday just for this purpose), or strolling along the Boulevards, window shopping or in the many parks found throughout the city. Luxembourg Gardens is packed with families and individuals all day, 7 days a week. We often wonder 'whose minding the store' because it seems that nobody's working especially on a sunny day. Benches line Boulevards and streets and you can find comfortable, even reclining chairs in many of the larger parks. These chairs and benches are often on the periphery of the fountains, gardens and the grass. Here the 'Park Police' ensure that you don't sit on the grass except in small designated areas. Not only can you find places to sit, play or participate in a sport, a bonus is that there are an abundance of clean toilet facilities everywhere.

On Sundays, it seems that all of Paris is outdoors as they promenade up and down the street at selected spots (we don't know how they're selected). Ile Saint Louis is one of those spots. Six days a week it's loaded with tourists, but on Sunday the locals are out and take over the street and the line at the Berthillon ice cream shop often circles the block.

The bottom line is we've adapted and are outside more then in and have logged many miles so far.

BERLIN

So, here we are at the end of a long day of seeing the sights of Berlin. Why Berlin you ask?? Well, this was the only route available to get to Paris, Business Class, using air miles, so we decided to stay a couple of days. Like Paris and New York, Berlin is a great place to walk. Our hotel, the Ritz Carlton is on the Potsdamer Platz, formerly in ‘East Berlin’. East Berlin has been completely rebuilt in the last 10 years and this area, especially, is the site of new, very modern, skyscrapers. Opposite us is the fabulous Sony Center pictured above. It’s a maze of walkways, cafes, cinemas and shops.

Our arrival coincided with the Berlin Marathon which finished just down the road from our hotel. As a result, there was no car access and we had to schlep our suitcases (6 weeks of clothes!) through throngs of well-wishers to our hotel. However, right after we checked in we walked to the finish line area and rewarded ourselves with a glass of ‘Berliner Pils’ and a “wurst”. It always amazes us to watch older people complete a marathon looking less winded then we do after a 45 minute workout! They must have better trainers! It couldn’t be anything we do, or don’t do!

Berlin has changed overwhelmingly in the last 15 years. It was interesting to compare what we each remembered from previous visits (Paul’s last time here was 1976, mine in 1991)! When Paul was here, Berlin was a beleaguered city surrounded by East Germany. You needed a passport to visit the East and it was quite frightening to turn over your passport at “Checkpoint Charlie”. On your return, your car was searched for contraband (or people--who were routinely shot trying to escape). On one trip, Paul’s car was searched on the way in and his Hilton and Playboy magazines confiscated as forbidden propaganda. Paul was upset to see that the famous Church that had been preserved as a bombed hulk as a reminder of the war, had been repaired! It’s still called a memorial, but the roof has been closed in and the ceiling inside repaired (albeit poorly). Only the outside has been left alone. Preventing additional damage from the elements seemed like a poor excuse to drastically change a memorial like that. He thinks right-wing nationalists did it to eliminate one of the few remaining signs of the war.

Chris was here just after the wall came down. The East was a grim, rundown area with little business. Now, it’s the showplace of a proud German Republic with huge new government and private buildings. The government was moved here from Bonn, requiring a huge investment in offices and embassies. All is not perfect, however, the city still has an unemployment rate of 17% and is almost bankrupt from the social costs of supporting the social obligations of the East.

We only had one day to sightsee and took one of those split level busses around the city. One interesting thing that we saw was the new Memorial to the Jewish dead in Europe which was within walking distance of our hotel. It’s a field of hundreds of simple gray slabs of stone {looking like tombs) of varying heights (from flat to 10 feet high), arranged in rows, over rolling hills. You can walk between them but quickly lose sight of each other. It’s eerie, I had a moment of panic when Paul and I got separated—it’s not a place for little children. There are no names listed, nor is there much of a description to let you know where you are. Walking between the rows made people there very quiet. On another visit we plan to go into the underground museum that we missed this time. The ‘hop on’, ‘hop off’ bus tour allowed us to manage our whirlwind tour of the city; wandering around the Reichstag (government seat now), Checkpoint Charlie, the Brandenburg Gate, the Memorial Church and of course a stroll down the famous Ku’damm where we peeked into all the designer shops. We had a late afternoon coffee (which means cake is involved) in an outdoor café at the famous Kempinski Hotel. Here and there we saw pieces of the former ‘Wall’ and tried to imagine what it must have been like to live in a city divided.

While here, we wanted to stick to local ‘German’ food since we were heading to Paris for 6 weeks. That was easier said than done. Other than the traditional ‘wursts’ from street vendors and a Weiner Schnitzel at a pseudo-French brasserie we were unable to find any ‘better’ German restaurants – they were all French or Italian! The beer was good, the bread was better and I will miss the incredible yogurt bar at the hotel.

auf weidersein,

Christina & Paul
September 26, 2006

Ah, Bread

A day without bread, at least here in Paris is, unthinkable. The French are completely fanatical about it - Parisian’s buy bread as often as three times a day; you can’t use the term boulangerie unless the bread conforms to specific criteria and is made on the premises and the varieties of baguettes alone can boggle the mind (with every term strictly regulated e.g ancienne, traditionelle, bio). No one ever eats day-old bread, or even left-overs from breakfast. Paul is in bread ‘seventh heaven’.

Morning, noon and night, men and women, young and old, head home with long loaves of bread. There’s no bag, instead, an expertly twisted square of paper is wrapped around the middle for you to hold. There are so many types of bread Chris usually looks at what’s available and points! We’ve had some wonderful surprises. Sometimes not, but there’s always tomorrow and another shop just around the corner!

Here on the Ile Saint Louis, we have three boulangeries within a couple of blocks of the apartment. Paul’s favorite bakery, named “Paul” is a little further, but I expect we’ll find ourselves there often. While they can’t claim the boulangerie description, the bread and pastries are exceptional and we just love their sandwiches for lunch – they understand that a sandwich is about the bread, not the filling.

Paul & Christina
September 28, 2006h