Last year many
people expressed a disappointment about the new “ecological” Christmas illuminations
on the Champs-Elysées. Obviously, it was taken into consideration, as there
have been some modifications this year; on the trees, garlands have been added
to the “hula-hoops”.
Well, I
think most of us appreciate this modification. Here you can compare what the
illuminations looked like in 2010, before the “hula-hoops” and here what they
looked like last year.
In the middle of the avenue – at the “Rond-Point”, the illuminations are quite spectacular…
… and here
are some examples of facades along the avenue.
With these
photos, I wish especially to thank you all for your support during this 6th
year of blogging and as this – probably - will be the last post this year, to
wish you all
The 1900 Grand
Palais is one of my favourite buildings. I often posted about different events
taking place under the vast glass vault, e.g. here, here, here and here. For a
short period (December 13 – January 6), it’s now open for skating. So I went.
(Did I skate?)
Especially
during the dark hours, the lights make it look different, spectacular. There are not only changing lights, also
music.
When you
pick up your skating shoes, there is a warning about alcoholic tests, but
champagne is available. J
I already
posted about the Swedish Santa Lucia tradition in a post three years ago, so if
you wish to know something more about it you can go here. I went again, yesterday
evening, to listen to the Paris Swedish Church choir. They performed this time
at the “Cité International Unviersitaire”, some kind of a Paris University
Campus, on which I also already posted.
You should normally
be greeted in the early morning December 13 by some nice, singing, young ladies,
but to see them and listen to them the night before was quite OK.
I was
impressed by the very good singing of a number of traditional songs, including
of course the Santa Lucia song (you can listen to it here by some other
performers). A Swedish Lucia and her colleagues should obviously still be
blond.
There was a
nice crowd of students from all countries listening to them (and also some
ex-students). The traditional “glögg” (vin chaud, Glühwein, mulled wine) was
served to the audience.
Still a pre-programmed post. This time two night pictures, one taken from Pont Alexandre III, one from the flat of a friend.
... and feel free, if you wish, to
vote for my blog by clicking on the Expats Blog badge on the top of the sidebar.
You should then find my blog, and others... and you can comment and vote.
My "macular hole" eye operation seems to give some postive results, but time is needed to know the final outcome. In the meantime I prefer to take it easy with blogging and continue thus to publish some odd shots. The first one today is from Place de Trocadéro - the wall behind which you will find the Passy Cemetery. There is a "Monument aux Morts" by Paul Landowski (also known for "Christ the Redeemer" in Rio de Janeiro).
Two photos from the Père Lachaise Cemetery (which I believe have already been in a collage). The first one is the tomb of a 13 years old girl (1907-20).
... and feel free, if you wish, to
vote for my blog by clicking on the Expats Blog badge on the top of the sidebar.
You should then find my blog, and others... and you can comment and vote.
Still making some kind of pause... Here are two photos,, the first one from inside the (new) National Library...
... and a second one from inside the National Assembly.
... and feel free, if you wish, to
vote for my blog, comment, by clicking on the Expats Blog badge on the top of the sidebar.
You should then find my blog, and others... and you can vote and comment.
As already said in previous posts, I have a little problem with an eye and need an operation ... and some time to recover. In the meantime, to make it simple, I have pre-programmed some odd posts with photos, which I have not yet publsihed. Here are just two photos taken around Place de Stalingrad.
... and feel free, if you wish, to vote for my blog by clicking on the Expat Blog badge on the top of the sidebar. You should then find my blog, and others... and you can vote.
(This is a
pre-programmed post – see explanation in previous post.)
As each
year, I try to give you a glance of what the department stores, Printemps
and Galéries Lafayette, Christmas show windows look like. So, it’s time again - as usual with a tight fight between the two neighbouring “rivals”. This year Printemps
has Dior and Galéries Lafayette Louis Vuitton as basic themes. Most of the
windows are for adults, but there are of course a few for the kids. What you
can’t see from my pictures is the fact that there are la ot of movements in many windows.
If you like my blog, I would appreciate if you click on the Expat Blog badge on the top of the sidebar, look for my blog on the list and then "vote"! ... and to finsih with the Christmas decorations, a few
photos also from the interior, including the usual gigantic Christmas tree
under the Galéries Lafayette cupola:
My blog has
been noted as worthy of nomination for the Expat Blog Awards 2012. If you wish, or are kind enough, to vote for me, please click on the logo here or in the sidebar, then find my blog on the list and "vote"!
Mozart
visited Paris, accompanied by his parents and sister, as a young boy and had great
success, performed for the Royal family… When he returned in 1778 for a couple
of months, he was 22 (21 on the portrait) and had less success, although he was
offered a job as organist at Versailles which he rejected. He didn’t get the
prestigious job he was looking for. He wrote to a friend : “Paris is totally
opposed to my genius, inclinations, knowledge and sympathies…. God grant only
that I may not impair my talents by staying here.” He made however some
concerts, worked as piano teacher… and composed.
He wrote a
number of sonatas, including this one. …
… and especially
a “Paris Symphony”. After a first more private performance, it was then, and at
least twice in his presence, played by a great orchestra in what then was used
as a big concert hall in the Tuileries Castle (destroyed in the Communard
movement 1871, see previous posts). However no royalties were present. After
the first Tuileries concert June 12, 1778, he was satisfied and went for an ice-cream
in a café in the Palais Royal Gardens (see previous posts), maybe this one?.
The symphony was then played a second time August
15 and in the meantime he had rewritten the second movement, which somehow had “failed
to please”.
Also, in
the meantime his 57 year old mother who had accompanied him to Paris got
seriously ill. They stayed in the building you can see at the top of the post,
8 rue du Sentier.
He went to
pray in the nearby Notre-Dames-des-Victoires Basilica (see previous post).
His mother
died July 3 and the funeral was held at the Saint-Estache Church (see previous
post).
Mozart left
Paris for the last time during the autumn. I have a little problem with an eye and will have an operation. I will probably need a few weeks before I'm again quite "fit for fight", meaning work properly with my computer etc... In the meantime, I have prepared, pre-programmed, some posts, but I will of course hardly be able to look at other blogs, comment... Sorry!
... and in the meantime you can also listen
to Mozart's “Paris Symphony”.
My previous blog, PHO, was in operation for a year, beginning in March 2007. It contains similar posts as this one, basically talking about different well known or more secrete sites in Paris. You can reach it by clicking HERE.
Si vous cherchez quelqu'un à Paris qui ouvre des portes, normalement fermées, et qui sait tout sur l’histoire de Paris, vous pouvez contacter Marc Soléranski, conférencier national, historien, tel. 01 42 78 14 96. marc.soleranski@wanadoo.fr
If you look for someone in Paris who can open doors which normally may be closed, who knows everything about the history of Paris, you can contact Marc Soléranski, lecturer and historian, phone +33 1 42 78 14 96. marc.soleranski@wanadoo.fr
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