Misc. Bits & Pieces

This is an oddball collection of mostly unrelated pix.  These are shots I like but didn't fit in with what I was writing at the time.  Or they came from Susanne's camera after I published the post.

Here is a Citroen 2CV which stands for "deux chevaux", two horses, referring to the number of cylinders. It was France's answer to the Volkswagen and to me, reflects more of French quirkiness than emulating the VW's German engineering.  It was cheap, slow & very uncomfortable.  The front seats were lawn chairs, very practical for going to a picnic.  The sign says this sliding canvas-top model is for sale, built in 1980 (I didn't know they built them that late) & has 80,000 km (50,000 mi) which is very low because either the owner(s) wanted to keep it as pristine as possible or because they couldn't stand to actually drive the darned thing.

Deep philosophical question of the day.











During our wanderings heading someplace (forgot where), we stepped into the courtyard of the National Archives building.  More confirmation that no one builds public buildings like the French.  For email subscribers, click on Steve's Travel Blog above to view in your browser.

More cafe people.

Another Mlle. Noire.





























We stepped into a small church, yes even though the photo seems to indicate differently, on the scale of other churches, this one is small.  And judging from the brickwork inside & out, not very old.  But quite beautiful nevertheless.

Walking up to the front & looking back, we see the requisite pipe organ.

A closeup of the window seen in the first photo.

Susanne took this shot of a mosaic pattern on the church floor that is repeated throughout.

A clever way to exploit smallness in both car & parking space, assuming you're willing to risk a door bashing, accidental or otherwise.

 

"L'amour est mort."  What a depressing thought!

We caught a 10PM Eiffel Tower light show when it sparkles for five minutes only.  We just missed it when the kids were here.  Please forgive the first five seconds or so when I cut off the top.  I tried to edit it out, but the software saved the new clip to a format incompatible with this blog editor.

Here's what it looks like the other 55 minutes of the hour.

Courtyard of National Archives complex.

Moving day in Paris & other European cities.  Old buildings >> narrow winding staircases + the big things of modern life = the above.  "Demenagements" = "Relocations".

A modern looking Vietnamese restaurant.  Don't know about the food.

There are multiple levels of police.  Starting with the parking police, roaming the city & writing tickets.  There is a mid-level, they have cuffs & nightsticks but no weapons.

At the top level, there are these ladies, full fledged cops with sidearms.  The genders are integrated in Paris.  That had to be slow in coming.

Some of the Metro entrances are very ornate evoking the late 19th century when it first opened.

Cops on motor scooters.  In Paris traffic, maneuverability trumps speed.

This year's Nonsense English Award goes to this store name.  What on earth does a sportswear clothing store have to do with "Superdry"?  I understand that in the mid-20th century clothing was referred to as "dry goods" but that was then.

More "Just Pics"

OK, blog fatigue is beginning to set in.  I try to stay a few posts ahead...I published one a few hours ago (while you guys were asleep) & I have another one finished & will probably publish tomorrow.

So there won't be too many more coming.  Also, I like to do a trip eval. after we return, few pics if any.

Here are some from our sojourn to the Left Bank yesterday.  We bussed to St. Germain des Pres, then leisurely walked back to the apartment at Metro Chemin Vert, about 2.2 mi.

Back to photos.  The temp that day was very comfortable but it was cloudy again, draining the color from everything.

Here is an interesting intersection where a number of old buildings from different architectural periods seem to be holding a meeting.

An interesting contrast.  A Starbucks on the right & up the hill an observatory.

They grow 'em resilient & self-reliant in Paris.  This lady is rolling her own with a filter, no less.  One can speculate as to the tobacco mixture.

I wanted to get a shot of the children's playground when I realized this little boy was right in front of me.  I hurriedly took it.

What is he thinking?

1.)  "I'm bored, bored, bored."

2.)  "Why does this tourist have a camera in my face?"

Any other ideas????

Here's the playground...kiddies playing, moms/nannies watching.

From a few days ago...a street demonstration.  It was small & orderly, but very noisy as usual. This one is protesting the long time & heavy paperwork required by the government to be come legal.  Sound familiar?







Here's a shot from the back.  Note the police car on the far left.  The cops are always ever present at these demonstrations.

We're going to miss the Techno Parade this year, saw it last year.  It's very, very large, exceedingly noisy & has an innocent intent...just be loud & goofy.   Not only are the cops out in force along  the parade route but immediately following the end of the parade is the City of Paris street cleanup crew, kinda like mom sweeping up after.

Here's a LINK to the English website.

Because Pont de Sully is the bridge we cross either by bus or on foot to get to/from the Left Bank, there's always this shot of the back of Notre Dame.  Last year we had low sun, this year not.

Take the same shot & tighten up on the cathedral & the Bateau Mouche.  Susanne had a much better shot of this.

Just to show you what I mean, here's the pic from last year.  Taken from a closer bridge, slightly different angle, but with sun.

















Toyota's answer  to  the Smart Car.  This puppy is small.

Take an outdoor art fair, turn it into a gallery opening, toss in Paris & here is what you have

FOOD!!!!!!

A couple of Mlle. Noires taken from across the street.

And then there's this lady, Noire except for the shoes.

Lots of crazy colored sneakers being sported by both genders this trip.

Susanne spotted these funky stockings thru a cafe window.

The invasion of the Yanks.  It seems burgers are on all the menus these days.  And they're not cheap.  The one we tried was quite good, though.

I remember back in the '70's when the Europeans first tried serving burgers.  They equated high quality with low fat content.  Those burgers were so dry.  Everyone knows now that burgers must have 15% - 20% fat to be deliciously juicy.




Anyone who's been to Paris knows this sight & sound.

It's Saturday night, this lady is getting ready to boogie.

An all too common sight...happens all over not just in Paris. At times this guy was talking on one mobile while texting on another.   It's Saturday night & his date is none too pleased. Why she didn't just get up and leave is beyond me.

The chair is hiding her crossed arms. After awhile he became conscious of me so the photo opportunity was over.

Susanne's Pics

Susanne has been clicking & photo-processing away.  And now it's time to see her work.  So again, lots of her pix, no comments.  All I'm deciding is how large the photo should be & whether it'll be left, right or center.

If you would like to comment to Susanne on these photos, please do.  If you know her email, send it directly.  If not, email me at stevemaricopa(at)gmail.com & use "For Susanne" as the Subj.  I do not give out women's email addresses on the internet.