last glimpses of Monet

Saint-Christophe

Église Saint-Christophe de Créteil from George on Vimeo.

Sainte-Christophe, an intimate, beautiful church built in the 12th and 13th Centuries. One of the oldest pieces of architecture in the region around Paris...loved it!:-)

"Fave" Classic books on Paris

One of the advantages of traveling is catching up on reading - and especially on subjects you love but don;t get round to do so while in the 'rat race". So, I took the time away to read old books on Paris and these were my favourite classic titles:

Thomas Okey - The Story of Paris: insightful book set in early 20th Century Paris.



Paris: with Pen and Pencil, David W Bartlett: amazing depiction of a very old ("when Louis Napoleon was president of the Republic" and when Napolen III was emperor of France), by a Londoner. Fantastic sketches of the city!



The Paris Sketch book by William Makepeace Thackeray - another fantastic collection of sketches and an interesting insight into 19th Century Europe and France. Loved this!




This one was not quite exactly and solely about Paris, per se but inextricably linked to the city: Matilda Betham-Edwards' "East of Paris"




And the reading list for coming weeks will include:
"Paris as it was and as it is" by Francis W Blangdon
"A street in PAris and its inhabitant" by Honore de Balzac
"The Three Cities Trilogy: Paris" by Emile Zola

A warm welcome back to Paris - Chez Gladines Restaurant

After an absence from Paris, and getting to take in some sun in a much warmer part of the world, it's good to be back in Paris. And what better way to return to PAris' wintry climate than a hearty, warm meal at really good prices? Chez Gladines a t30 Rue des Cinq Diamants in the 13th arrondissement. The place is always well patronized - code for "it is always packed - so be prepared to wait if you go out in a large group". The prices are arguably the lowest you will find anywhere - and all transactions here are strictly cash (no bank cards accepted). Indeed, at the amounts that they charge for meals, large wads of cash are not necessary.

Bearing all of these factors in mind, I went out for a 26 euro dinner for two people, including wine - which was the most filling, heart and body warming meal I've had in a while. And a fantastic, down-to-earth way to return to the city!

Catching up on the Classics: Books on Paris (1)

This week my university studies have taken me far from Paris - all the way to West Africa.

And while the programme is demanding and the schedule is a bit tight - we had a respectably long flight here and have honorable slots of personal time - so what better to do than (of course apart from skype-ing family) read books that I've always wanted to read.

Of late I've had an itch to read 'classic books' - well, it's not quite an involuntary impulse to read old books but rather than that I finally gained access to Amazon.com's list of classic books published before 1923 that are now free of copyright and can be dowlnaded onto a kindle or ipad for free.

Naturally, I went wild on amazon and downloaded every classic that I've always wanted to read and never quite got round to getting hold off.

Among them is a stash of classics on Paris that I've been asolutely unable to stop reading - and a favourite thus far has been Thomas Okey's "The Story of Paris". Writtein the early 20th Century, the book is a fascinating insight into an old Paris that does not exist in the same state as it was a hundred years ago - it paints a picture of a city that emodies all of the historical positive and negative stereotypes that many of us would hold of the city> My personal favourite of his stereotypes is really that of being a s city of light in the sense of intellectual enlightenement. And here he writes one of hundreds of statements that prove just how deeply smitten with love for Paris Okey really was. He write how "There is something in the crisp, luiminous air of Paris that quickens the intelligence and stimulates the senses." If that isn't a love struck Paris-o-holic then I am not sure what is and even more, whether this luminous, wit quickening air is still as potent as it was a hundred years ago, is open to debate!

What I know is that this book, free on amazon if you own a kindle or an e-reader supported by Amazon is a great time travel experience back to an old version of that beautiful dame, Paris.

iPad + Apple Store,Opera Garnier = Customer Satisfaction

The Apple Store at Opera Garnier has to have some of the best service you will find anywhere in Paris. Well, in my limited experience. My views may not be representative of every customer that has ever sought the services of the Apple store here. Nonetheless, today I finally got round to purchasing an IPad - which is very well worth the investment I must add!

And, similar to a previous time that I had to go into the Apple store with a problem with my notebook - the staff went an extra 10 miles to be helpful, the service was impeccably fantastic and well, the product that you walk out with only compounds the joys of being loyal to Apple as I am :-)

Not only did I walk out of the store with a very handy tablet for my studies - the experience of buying the iPad was second to none.

Yes, the store looks busy at first glance but the service personnel is forthcoming, helpful and courteous. As the year kicks off, it's great to have a piece of Apple hardware, if only to enjoy the great service and experience at Apple's store around the Opera Garnier.

Eiffel Tower Sunset Video @ World's Greatest Attractions

Visit the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France at Sunset