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Post by Deleted on Jun 14, 2013 20:04:08 GMT
The Parc de la Villette is the largest park in the city of Paris and probably one of the least well known to people who do not live in the northeast quadrant of the city. The park is 550,000 square meters, compared to 247,000 for the Buttes Chaumont, 243,000 for the Champ de Mars next to the Eiffel Tower, or 224,000 for the extremely famous Luxembourg gardens. The other famous reference would be the Tuileries, which cover 280,000m². It is a relatively recent park, dating from 1979, but perhaps the most noteworthy element is the fact that it was the first park in Paris that was created by a modern designer instead of just traditional gardeners. Architect Bernard Tschumi created the park with 26 folies (more on that soon) and 12 thematic gardens and prairies. Integrated into the park are vestiges of old Paris such as the municipal abbatoir and related elements -- veterinary pavilion, cattle market... And there are also new buildings such at the Museum of Science and Industry, which was actually an abandoned shell that had just been built as the "new" cattle market when the decision was made to move all such things to the suburbs. It is a huge building, 3 times larger than the Pompidou Center. And there is also the Zénith, built out of canvas as a temporary rock venue, but which became permanent and also such a success that it became a franchise, and there are now 18 Zéniths around France. The one in Paris is one of the smallest ones -- a capacity of only 6,400 whereas the the Zénith Europe in Strasbourg has 12,100 seats. Anyway, back to the Parc de la Villette. I took the tramway to the Porte de la Villette stop next to the museum with the intention of visiting just the park. I wisely chose a Tuesday to go there, when the museum is closed, or it would have sucked me in because I haven't been there for years and I would really like to return.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 14, 2013 20:14:45 GMT
Many people will find it strange that one of the folies is a Quick hamburger fast food establishment. I'm sure they paid a bundle for that and McDonald's never forgave them, because it has outposts at every corner of the park for revenge.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 14, 2013 20:24:47 GMT
The museum actually occupies less than half of this huge building. A shopping mall and a Pathé cineplex are currently being added to fill the rest of the space.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 15, 2013 4:33:00 GMT
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Post by bixaorellana on Jun 16, 2013 4:18:19 GMT
What a nifty place! This thread is so pretty, with all that red and green. That touch with the photo of the poppies is perfect -- the cherry on top.
Would a folie be the same thing as a folly in the sense of those fake ruins and other structures once built for grand gardens? Also, "mineral" .......... because it's dense and gray?
I love all the photos, but the long straight shots are particularly satisfying -- a nod to classic French garden design on the largest scale possible.
I suppose on a nice weekend, the place must be overrun, if it's possible to overrun someplace that big.
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Post by bjd on Jun 16, 2013 5:49:23 GMT
"minéral" as opposed to "végétal"
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Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2013 5:58:14 GMT
Yes, a folie is basically a "pleasure pavilion."
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Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2013 6:07:03 GMT
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Post by htmb on Jun 16, 2013 10:00:37 GMT
Kerouac, I'm enjoying looking at your photos as this area was included in one of my first few posts on AnyPort. I was fun strolling around the park. I later walked down the Canals back to the Seine area where I was staying. I will be ready to get back to exploring this area a bit more.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2013 10:41:36 GMT
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Post by fumobici on Jun 16, 2013 15:19:08 GMT
Fantastic thus far. I'll bet not a whole bunch of tourists make it to this park.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2013 17:59:28 GMT
Okay, back to Japanese artist Tadashi Kawamata's summer project. It actually began in April when the solid inner core was built. Once that was in place, it became possible to nail on just about any addition that you want -- under supervision. There are visits inside the tower, which has two platforms. Frankly, I have not yet been able to figure out why this would be considered interesting, but what is interesting is to watch the tower grow, slowly but surely.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2013 18:12:55 GMT
The Parc de la Villette is one of the only ones that is open 24 hours a day. However, between 01:00 and 06:00 you can only cross it briskly and not linger. The security forces are watching you at all times.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2013 19:10:07 GMT
As I'm sure you could tell, I had requested that the park be evacuated of nearly all visitors while I was taking pictures. However, I returned there specifically to show you what the park looks like when it is actually being used -- in this particular case, at 6 p.m. on a relatively nice Sunday evening.
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Post by mich64 on Jun 16, 2013 23:18:41 GMT
Really enjoyable. If I lived in Paris, I would visit often. The outdoor movie would be a fun thing to do. Have you ever experienced it?
Your night time photos show that you see the red theme was thought of for all hours of the park.
While studying the unique Japanese art work, I could not help thinking that I hope no one thinks to light a match to it.
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Post by bjd on Jun 17, 2013 7:17:12 GMT
And to think that French parks used to have signs about not walking on the grass. Parks were rarely that big either.
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Post by woody77 on Jun 23, 2013 16:40:36 GMT
Many (most?) of the parks do have signs saying not to walk on the grass. Those that do allow it seem to be pretty well mobbed on nice days.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 23, 2013 17:28:25 GMT
The formal gardens (Luxembourg, Tuileries, Monceau...) have a lot of off limits grass, but the parks designed for pleasure have allowed people on the grass for at least the last 20 years. However, from November 1st to March 31st or so, it is requested not to walk on the grass during its "winter resting period" -- there are signs indicating "pelouse au repos" in such cases.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 21, 2013 20:04:28 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Aug 1, 2013 5:46:03 GMT
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Post by bjd on Aug 1, 2013 6:56:54 GMT
When do those photos date from?
I remember deciding to go for a walk along the Canal St Martin about 15 years ago and rapidly being disgusted by the broken glass and dog shit everywhere. We turned around and never went back.
Though I think that by then they had already done work further along towards La Villette.
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Post by mossie on Aug 1, 2013 7:05:40 GMT
Thanks for these old views Kerouac, place de Stalingrad has certainly changed beyond recognition, as has the Villette.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 1, 2013 14:11:42 GMT
When do those photos date from? I remember deciding to go for a walk along the Canal St Martin about 15 years ago and rapidly being disgusted by the broken glass and dog shit everywhere. We turned around and never went back. These photos are from 1977. Canal Saint Martin still has maintenance problems along the banks. The Bassin de la Villette and the walkways of the Canal de l'Ourcq in the 19th arrondissement are impeccable, though.
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Post by woody77 on Aug 1, 2013 18:06:07 GMT
I just did the boat tour today, and wow have things changed.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 1, 2013 18:07:19 GMT
Did you take pictures?
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Post by woody77 on Aug 3, 2013 22:15:06 GMT
100s. Still sifting through them. I did get some great ones in the tunnel (and many useless ones). I was surprised at the number of Space Invaders I was able to see on the trip. I have a bit of a soft spot for well-executed street art.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 12, 2014 10:57:16 GMT
The giant philharmonic hall continues to rise behind the Cité de la Musique.
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Post by lagatta on Apr 13, 2014 15:53:34 GMT
I'm so jealous of your vegetation. Paris is usually a bit ahead of Montréal, but not that much. We only have a few early spring flowers and buds after a horrific winter, and the Paris vegetation looks very lush for not quite mid-April. I spent several days at La Villette as a volunteer interpreter for the European Social Forum in 2003. I've never eaten better at such an event; la Fédération paysanne provided the food and stands were run by producers from everywhere in France. We had a generous allotment of food tickets, which could also be used for wine Only the vegans (inevitably from northern European countries) were unhappy. There were vegetarian offerings, but I think all involved cheese. I sampled some excellent Alsatian whites from a small vintner. I was there before for a picnic a couple of years earlier, under the giant buried bicycle, but haven't been there since. One of my friends lives very close to La Villette now (he did live in the 19th before, but closer to Buttes Chaumont). A while back Kerouac (I believe) had some photos of a small Jewish shopping area, very close to La Villette. I walked into a nearby supermarket, and at least half of it was kosher. I was actually going to a supper hosted by a friend who happened to be Jewish, but who was utterly secular and would think it a silly waste of money to spend more for kosher wine and cheese.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 4, 2015 17:26:22 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Sept 4, 2015 17:29:18 GMT
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