Morning stroll

[mossie]

Leaving the hotel I walked up rue de Meaux until it ran into Av Jean Juares. Here is this marvellous shop, which we would call a greengrocers.



I continued up to rue de l'Ourcq to check on the state of the street art.



From there it is a short step to the Canal de l'Ourcq, where even the lorries can attract the graffiti artists



and Snoopy had ended it all, Barbie having rejected him



and from there to the strange Pont Levant de Crimee, where the rue de Crimee crosses the canal.



Crossing the pedestrian bridge I took this shot of La Rotunde at the far end of the Bassin de la Villette



and continued by walking round St Christophers Inn which is one of an international chain of “backpackers Hostels”. Presumably the extensive use of parcel tape is to stop the old converted warehouse from collapsing.



Walking on beside the bassin I asked this lady for a shot of her and her chocolate poodle



And then came upon this strange houseboat. Note that madam has her own private rubbish tip and a stairway to heaven



I then headed off up rue Riquet for the metro to get to Galeries Lafayette which is an essential stop on my visits to Paris.

[Deleted]

Poor Snoopy! but great little stroll in the 19th.

[htmb]

A nice stroll indeed, mossy.

[htmb]

I've never been to Galleries Lafayette. I should add that to my "places to visit next time" list.

[mossie]

Galeries LaFayette is definitely one for the ladies but the architecture and the view from the cafe or the roof, make it worth a visit.

[htmb]

Ah, lovely pictures, Mossie. I'm not much of a shopper, which is probably why I haven't been there, but I've always been interested in stopping by for the views.

[lagatta]

I've never been there, but the roof view would be worthwhile. Presume one could have just coffee or tea at the café?

[Deleted]

Both Galeries Lafayette and Printemps have rooftop terraces that anybody can visit -- or sit and have a coffee.

[bjd]

I particularly like the 3rd photo with the reflection of the truck in the water.

I don't like shopping either, but have often been to Galleries Lafayette.

[lagatta]

There are certain things I do shop for in Paris: books, art supplies and sundry odds and ends - some small housewares that are not very expensive nor heavy and hard to carry, and that either don't exist here or exist here at a grossly inflated price. But such shops never seem to have views.

[nycgirl]

Thanks for taking us along on your stroll. You have a good eye, I really like the Snoopy shot.

I love that walk on the Canal de l'Ourcq. Your photos bring back good memories.

I really enjoyed the Galeries Lafayette, but I missed out on the terrace view. I think it was closed (the sign blocking my way was in French, but I got the idea). Next time.

[auntieannie]

love your photos, Mossie! (The Rotunda, the backpackers, poor Snoopy!)

[bixaorellana]

Ahh, Mossie, you really "get" the anyport concept and serve it up so brilliantly! The next time someone is confused about how to make an interesting thread for anyport, I'm showing them this jewel.

Despite the near-despair caused by Snoopy's desperate act, I pulled myself together enough to thoroughly enjoy the rest of the thread. What is that trompe-l'œil (<-- French! I used French in a Paris thread!) business suspended from the bridge below La Rotunde? It's a very clever effect. It does pale beside all the other great, quirky things you found, though.

Isn't Galeries Lafayette one of the oldest shopping malls in the world?

[mossie]

Thanks for the compliment Bixa, I'm just a happy snapper really, but one has to love the subject.
The troupe l'oeil is not. The bridge is cutting the rotunda and that is just the lower portion. The water in the bassin was so calm I just had to take the shot.

[Deleted]

Oct 14, 2012 2:04:00 GMT bixaorellana said:

Isn't Galeries Lafayette one of the oldest shopping malls in the world?

Galeries Lafayette is just a department store and actually the most recent of the "big four" -- Le Bon Marché opened in 1852, Au Printemps opened in 1865, La Samaritaine opened in 1870, and Galeries Lafayette opened in 1893.

La Samaritaine closed a few years ago for dubious technical reasons, but some version of it is due to reappear in a few years.

[mossie]

Bixa, I think you are thinking of the Passages, particularly these
www.aviewoncities.com/paris/passages.htm

[Deleted]

Yes, the confusion is easy because some of the passages are called "galeries" and others are called "passages."

[mich64]

I love the title of your thread and your photos mossie! I have been to Galleries La Fayette but did not go to the top floor, something I will do next time. I was mesmerized by the purses and jewelry on the main floor and did make it much further.

[lola]

Really nice, mossie. I really like the canal and rooftop shots.

As someone who'd rather stand on the roof than shop at Gal Lafayette, must conclude that I'm no lady.

[htmb]

I suppose I'm not either

[patricklondon]

Mossie, you have a discerning eye! I once had a home exchange for a couple of weeks just off the Rue de Meaux and walked around the Bassin a lot (interested to see, a few months later, that the area was also used as a setting for some extremely gruesome parts of a French TV thriller they showed in the UK).

[lugg]

Fabulous Mossie , thank you. I enjoyed taking this virtual stroll with you.
I especially like the photo of the lady and her dogs with their similar hair ;D

[Deleted]

I'm sure they go to the same grooming salon.

[lagatta]

Trajan's Market is a much older shopping mall. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trajan%27s_Market Evidently it also contained administrative offices, but it certainly had vendors on different levels selling goods. Slaves, anyone?

[bixaorellana]

Oct 14, 2012 14:46:10 GMT mossie said:

Bixa, I think you are thinking of the Passages, particularly these
www.aviewoncities.com/paris/passages.htm

Oct 14, 2012 15:08:06 GMT kerouac2 said:

Yes, the confusion is easy because some of the passages are called "galeries" and others are called "passages."

You all are generous to a fault. Really, I was just plain wrong. It worked out nicely, though, as it was great learning about that other stuff, not to mention visiting this thread again.

As far as La Rotunde ~~ my œil was well & truly tromped. ;D

[tod2]

I read this delightful walk for the first time (as I missed it somehow)and feel it needs a second revival with a small addition of some Russian architecture a short hop away from where your hotel is Mossie and the park Buttes Chaumont.

The address is 93 Rue De Crimee ( for those not staying in the area....Metro Laumiere).
There is a path where an old vine creeps up the walls. This path leads to a small colourful house decorated with a fresco of Saint Serge de Radoge`ne.
When you see it, turn right and walk past some apartments and a dilapidated wooden construction that was formerly a Protestant dispensary (and now a workshop), until you see at the top of the steps, Saint-Serge Church with it's amazing wooden porch.

This building dates back to 1861 and had an active protestant congregation of Prussian immigrants until 1914 when it became Orthodox. The property belonged to the Germans, then was requisitioned after WWI, and sold by auction. In 1924 the Orthodox Church announced plans to buy it on July 18th, Saint-Serge's Day according to the Julian calendar.
The inflow of Russian immigrants fleeing the October Revolution had made it necessary to open a new religious center.
Between 1925 and 1927, Dimitri S. Stelletsky supervised the decoration work. The wooden porch and the outside stairway were added in 1925. Some representations of the defenders of the Orthodox faith before Russia was converted can be seen on the walls alongside the stairs leading into the church on the first floor.

The interior is splendid. Scenes from the Old Testament can be seen on the walls of the narthex: Noah's Ark, The Burning Bush, and the three adolescent boys in the blazing fire. Pictures of twelve saints symbolizing Orthodox feast days are painted at the far end, Christ in majesty is represented, surrounded by the animal symbols of the Evangelists.

So there you have it! Something different to go an seek out when next in the 19th Arrondisement, Paris.

preview.tinyurl.com/okhzy7y

[tod2]

Mossie, I took it for granted that you had not been to Saint-Serge Church but thought after I posted the information, you probably have!