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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 11, 2015 21:32:13 GMT
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Post by nycgirl on Jul 12, 2015 0:50:37 GMT
Yay, how exciting! Good for you for doing on-the-spot reporting. I don't know how you and htmb do it. I saw St. Eustache from the outside, but I am one of those tourists that hurried by. It looks lovely. The statue of the bald guy is very expressive and I love that last shot of the stained glass. How nice that you have friends to show you around. What neighborhood are you staying in? Looking forward to more!
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Post by mich64 on Jul 12, 2015 2:38:40 GMT
Fantastic Bixa! I have never been inside this church either, the architecture is magnificent!
How many days will you be in Paris?
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Post by anshjain97 on Jul 12, 2015 3:01:55 GMT
The church is fabulous. Looking forward to more- great pictures.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 12, 2015 4:08:47 GMT
Wow, these are amazing. I'm glad you were able to find someone to show you around!
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Post by htmb on Jul 12, 2015 5:54:37 GMT
And so nice you were able to find a place to stay!
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Post by mossie on Jul 12, 2015 7:43:26 GMT
Thanks for the interior views of St Eustache, the stairway to heaven, sorry pulpit, is the most exquisite wood carving.
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Post by tod2 on Jul 12, 2015 9:49:46 GMT
Yes Mossie, isn't it fantastic - along with all the photos Bixa! I don't recall having visited the interior so that could be on my list for September. It is said the church is still unfinished - the original church having been dedicated to Saint-Agnes then in 16th century knocked down to make way for the church dedicated to Saint Eustache as we know it today. There is a small door with a shield indicating the entrance to the Saint-Agnes crypt - the shield shows a fish biting it's tail, a reminder that a man once made a fortune in the fish trade, his name was Jean Allais and the leader of the mystery play actors - and a creditor of Philip Augustus who when embarking on the third crusade with Richard I of England, Jean Allais became rich after requesting compensation in the form of one denier per basket of fish sold at Les Halles. Feeling a little guilty he had a chapel built for the merchants, dedicated to St.Agnes.
It all sounds a bit fishy to me....
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Post by lagatta on Jul 12, 2015 16:36:54 GMT
Wonderful, Bixa! There are so many churches in Paris that many of them go untouristed. And while Mexico is as officially secular as France, church attendance there is a tiny fraction of what you show in Oaxaca (city and state). I think you have good weather too. It can be rainy and cool in Paris, even in the summer. I like the bald guy too. He looks like many a contemporary bloke you might meet in a bar or café, telling a story. Or saying: "Who, ME?" Confused a bit at first, as St-Eustache is in les Halles, nowhere near the Eiffel Tower. I have been inside, but I think it was 25 years ago. I see that the parish has a soup kitchen (a full meal, not just soup) which is important as there are a lot of itinerants in the area. www.saint-eustache.org/solidarites/la-soupeWhile sadly, the historic central Paris market, Les Halles, was demolished (I thought, and still think, that it should have been restored and kept as a local market, though obviously it had become inadequate as the central market for greater Paris) there is a street market nearby www.unjourdeplusaparis.com/en/paris-balades/balade-quartier-de-montorgueil-les-halles goparis.about.com/od/shopping/a/Food-Markets-In-The-2nd-Arrondissement-Of-Paris.htm This market street tends to be expensive, but there are two small supermarkets that should have normal prices goparis.about.com/od/parisgourmetfoodshops/ss/street-markets-in-Paris.htm#step3 There is also a large Monoprix (general goods shop and supermarket) a bit north of there: fr.yelp.ca/map/monoprix-paris-72 according to yelp it is open until 10 p.m. That is the first neighbourhood where I stayed in Paris, a long time ago.
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Post by breeze on Jul 12, 2015 21:37:24 GMT
I must say, this is exciting! Bixa, htmb, and kerouac--three great photographers now in Paris. I look forward to a feast of photos. Htmb has been keeping me entertained for the past few weeks and it's about to get even better.
Onlymark, Mossie, get on your bikes. You could be there in a few days. Who else is nearby?
Yes, I also want to know how long you (bixa) and htmb will be there. Will you have time to get out to/back to the countryside?
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Post by tod2 on Jul 13, 2015 11:54:06 GMT
Lagatta - I got the drift that the initial meeting place was at St.Eustache but did a drive past the Eiffel Tower on their way to the apartment before the meet up.
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Post by htmb on Jul 13, 2015 12:49:35 GMT
Having just come off three flights and a long travel time, Bixa was really exhausted. Much of her first day in Paris was a bit jumbled in her mind, though she's done quite well handling the jet lag. We met her at the airport and then Kerouac gave us a fabulous tour around the city by car, before dropping us off at my apartment. A little later, we met Kerouac across from Saint-Eustache and continued our tour on foot.
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Post by lagatta on Jul 13, 2015 12:49:28 GMT
Yes, I'd understood that after my initial confusion. I guess bixa is too busy taking everything in to write here.
Edited to add: htmb, thanks for the update! Even I get befuddled by the jet lag, although Montréal is a direct flight and usually only about six hours to Paris.
Do you like your apartment?
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 13, 2015 13:08:00 GMT
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Post by tod2 on Jul 13, 2015 13:30:18 GMT
I am aghast that you came off all those flights, and when landed in Paris you still had the get-up-and-go to start walking around!! In 2010 we hopped across to Canada from Paris- a daylight flight which played havoc with our jet-lagged bodies and then was taken on a tour of Calgary.....I've never felt so tired in my life and being conversational and awake was murder!
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 13, 2015 13:37:52 GMT
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 13, 2015 13:41:53 GMT
Tod, the in-air portion of the Toronto to Paris flight was 7+ hours, so not as brutal as some long distance flights. I was so thrilled and dazzled to be here, not to mention finally getting to meet these two great people, that I was initially quite energized. We left Kerouac after the last site shown above, but I begged Htmb to keep me awake until some sort of normal bedtime. She did a super job -- some of which I'll show below -- but I only made it to 9 pm before completely fading away.
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 13, 2015 14:29:59 GMT
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Post by lagatta on Jul 13, 2015 16:06:14 GMT
That is great. Did you really walk all that? Yes, I know the Louvre etc aren't very far from htmb's flat - it is a great area for a first visit as you are walking distance from those historic places but still in a more "real" neighbourhood with shops (talking daily shopping, not "le shopping" as in buying fashion items one doesn't need and probably won't wear) and other amenities. I usually stay farther east now because most of my friends live in those areas; the eastern arrondissements and Montreuil.
I think 9pm is a perfectly respectable hour to get to sleep after jet lag and several legs of your journey. It will seem strange in Paris as you are so much farther from the equator than Oaxaca, so it is still light out in the summer. But lots of Parisian workers who have to get up very early turn in early too.
I hope you also enjoy a nice meal today with your friends (a picnic?) or just a coffee or drink at a sidewalk café.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 13, 2015 16:10:39 GMT
As I continuously say, I absolutely love seeing Paris through other peoples' eyes. Everybody spots different things and is intrigued by different angles. I doubt that my Parisian skies have ever been as fabulously blue as Bixa's.
Another advantage is that I am able to go and see touristy things that I normally never see.
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Post by tod2 on Jul 13, 2015 16:44:52 GMT
Well, I don't mind admitting that all the angles Bixa has shot through her superb camera are completely seen through my eyes for the very first time! Well done VIRGIN OF PARIS...you have done a superb job! Keep it up and shame us to pieces!!
The one memory that comes to mind when the name Saint-Eustache is mentioned , is that it leads the way to Au Pied Cochon - where I had a superb fish dish whilst sitting next to a gentleman eating pigs trotters. I could never see the value in all that gelatine.....
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Post by Deleted on Jul 13, 2015 16:47:31 GMT
I've only just arrived at this thread, partly out of lack of time, mostly out of jealousy. Your photos are gorgeous Bixa, what camera are you using?
The one day I went to St Eustache it was so dark and cloudy that we could barely see inside. Those are stunning images. I have an ancient relative who was married in St Eustache, so I have a lot of fondness for it.
More, please!
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Post by fumobici on Jul 13, 2015 19:11:45 GMT
First visit? That's bound to be magical. Enjoying the photos, well trodden ground as we photographers know offers up different possibilities as the light and sun change and with them the mood and colors and tonalities. And of course no two people take the same photos in any case.
I think making it to ~9PM is absolutely the right thing--sleep through right to 9AM the next morning if that's what your body wants and you'll be three quarters acclimated from then on out. When I arrived in Amsterdam from Seattle last year I took a two and a half hour afternoon nap upon arriving, then got up and stayed up to 11PM or so walking around and that worked as well.
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Post by lagatta on Jul 13, 2015 20:40:55 GMT
I usually take the nap too if going to Amsterdam, though my flight is much shorter than yours. Sometimes I'm working the next day (early), though if I can I arrive two days before starting to have a full day to run errands (such as non-cow cheese, and a bottle of wine...).
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Post by lagatta on Jul 13, 2015 22:24:12 GMT
By the way, I'm so happy to see these faraway friends meeting up. Lovely! And do enjoy some good food, by which I don't necessarily mean fancy, expensive or fussy food. And some art, whether in museums or galleries or in the streets and squares.
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 13, 2015 23:36:28 GMT
I am overwhelmed by everyones kindness and enthusiasm ~ thank you! Well, I'm kind of overwhelmed in general, as I continue to revel in the remarkable hospitality and fabulous outings. I am going to try to backtrack & answer everyones questions, although some of them have gotten answered by now. NYCGirl, I am in the Marais, a great place to walk around & certainly Htmb is a whiz at getting us from here to where we need to go. Mich, I arrived here on the morning of the 10th and will be heading for the airport @noon tomorrow. LaGatta, Kerouac treated us to an extensive driving tour before dropping us at the apartment & arranging to meet later. I just goggled out the window & never managed to get my camera out until the car stopped in front of the tower. It was when we met up later that we did the great walking tour. As for "did we really walk all that" -- yes indeed & then some! As I said earlier, after our walk with Kerouac, Htmb took me walking on the river. Later she checked her app & we'd done over 9 miles on foot that day. Again,thanks to every one of you for the nice comments.
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 13, 2015 23:54:02 GMT
Okay, for purposes of this thread, we are now at the morning of Saturday, July 11, with Kerouac downstairs in the car waiting to whisk us off to a magical excursion. Again, this is ground well-covered by others, so I'll just present my pictures with minimal text. For background and more great pictures, see Kerouac's thread here and Mich's here. What a treat to approach Pierrefonds in the morning of a beautiful day and to be the first visitors ~
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 14, 2015 0:05:35 GMT
Castle-y as this building appears, it is not part of the big castle complex. Rather, as Kerouac discovered on an informational park sign, this house had once been a home for retired dentists & is now a dental museum. Back to the real castle ~ If you go places with Htmb, you're bound to see gators! The morning sun just beginning to penetrate the courtyard ~ At this point, we went inside & I have many, many pictures to prove it. However, it's two in the morning right now & I have to get on a plane to Sicily at noon tomorrow. I will try to get back to this thread as soon as possible, as well as creating threads on my next destinations, so I hope you all will check back later. Thanks!
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Post by lagatta on Jul 14, 2015 0:22:41 GMT
Sicilia! Crosswords of the cultures of the Mediterranean and then some! All those Normans dressed up as Arabs and Greeks!
Though I am sorry that your stay in Paris was so short.
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Post by mich64 on Jul 14, 2015 2:09:05 GMT
I was beyond excited when I opened up and seen the latest installment! Incredible that Kerouac took you both to Pierrefonds! I remembered both your comments in each of our threads and it must have been surreal for you each to be guided there in person a few years later.
I had wondered and took pictures of that same house that Kerouac has now explained to be a Dental Museum, now I know! I had assumed it had something to do with the Castle.
A whirlwind couple of days that I am sure you will not soon forget Bixa, spectacular sights and charming company, what an extraordinary experience!
Looking forward to the rest of your journey.
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