Hundred (or more) years ago - once more

Once more, I will make a comparison between some postcards from about 100 years ago, concentrating on the area where I live.

For some possible visitors from the near neighbourhood to my blog I have indicated where the photos have been taken (and where I live - the empty circle): 1) Rue des Moines. On the left, we can see a school building, still in operation. One modern building has been added on the right side. The old photo seems according to the stamp to be from 1905.2) Rue Truffaut. All buildings seem to be the same. 3) Rue Brochant. No new buildings to be seen. Only the trees have grown, but have less leaves today. It will hopefully be “repaired” in a few weeks.4) Rue Brochant. A bit further down the street, compared to the previous one. Trees have been added. 5) Place Charles Fillion (Place des Batignolles) with a view towards Rue des Moines. One modern building added on the right. Unfortunately the church, Sainte Marie des Batignolles, is covered by tarpaulins. Being “refreshed” at the moment. The photo is taken just in front of the entrance to “my” park, Square des Batignolles. 6) End of Rue des Batignolles (Place du Docteur Félix Lobligeois) with a view towards Rue Legendre. Only minor changes. The photo seems according to the stamp to be from 1907. Once more the church (this time the front side) is hidden by tarpaulins. If you are interested, I have already made some similar comparisons: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.

Spring?

I will once more delay my additional post about the Jardin du Ranelagh. I felt that I just had to show you what the spring looked like in ”my” park (Square des Batignolles) yesterday. It seems that as well the trees as the flowers and the people (and maybe also the birds) had decided that the spring is here. However, we are only in the first half of February and the winter may be back. Anyhow we have had some fantastic days.Wisely enough, the orange tree was still inside the small orangery and the banana tree had kept its winter clothes.

Hundred (or more) years ago

Now and then I like to compare illustrations from Paris in the past with Paris today and I have concentrated on the streets around where I live, in the Batignolles area, 17th arrdt. Here are two more of such comparisons.

This first one is based on a postcard, probably from the very beginning of last century, of Rue Legendre close to where it crosses Avenue de Clichy. The vehicles used for public transportation have changed… and a few other things, but a lot remains as it was. You can see that the building which partly was visible on the extreme right has been replaced by a modern building and the idea from the city architect was then obviously to make space for a wider street one day. It will probably take quite some time before the street can be made wider. The second comparison is based on a drawing, which probably is from 1870-1880(?), of the crossing of Rue Lemercier and Rue des Dames. There was then obviously a store owned by someone with an English name, but I have not managed to find any trace of this “H. Didsbury” store, today replaced by an “Ultra Kitch” shop. I imagine that if someone finds my photo in some 120 or 130 years, he or she will not find any trace of the “Ultra Kitsch” shop. … and of the buildings?

Especially for the attention of some possible more local blog visitors, I put in a map to show “where”.

Break for Christmas

I believe I will now make a break again. I’m a bit annoyed with my network connection, but there are also some other priorities the next couple of days. Before receiving family on Christmas Eve and visiting family on Christmas Day, I have still some final shopping to do (illustrated by the below pictures), some preparation of my flat, some…… , actually quite a lot.

I will try to be back with a post or two before the end of the year, but I take the opportunity to wish you all a Merry Christmas (God Jul, Hyvää Joulua, Joyeux Noël, Feliz Navidad, Frohe Weihnachten, 圣诞快乐, Buon Natale…)!!!

Also on behalf of Paloma who prepared the Christmas card!

Place de l'Etoile - Arch of Triumph (bis)

I’m continuing my post from yesterday.

The decision to build the world’s biggest Arch of Triumph was – of course - taken by Napoleon I, but it took some 30 years before it was at last completed in 1836, with delays and modifications due to different changes of regime in France.

The construction is extremely heavy (about 50 000 tons), something like five times as heavy as the Eiffel Tower. It’s 50 meters high.

The Arch was finally dedicated to the army victories during the French revolution and the following Napoleon wars. It has today become a more general symbolic place for all kinds of national events, e.g. the celebrations of the end of the two World Wars. The 14th July parade has the Arch as a starting point (direction Place de la Concorde). Most state visits include posing of flowers on the grave of the Unknown Soldier, who is buried here since 1923.

When it was getting darker (and even colder) I took some photos of what you can see around (see also the top picture).

When again down I could not resist and took a further shot of the Christmas illuminated Champs Elysées… … and of course some pictures of the Arch itself. I then went for a warming coffee… and discovered again the Arch.

Some of these photos can also be seen on my photo blog.

I have some repeated connectivity problems. If I'm not visiting your respective blogs in the usual way, please excuse me. The service provider should (again) visit me Friday.

Place de l'Etoile - Arch of Triumph

So far, with my different posts about Paris, I have very little talked about the more famous landmarks, thinking that they are known anyhow. I will now make an exception and talk about the Arch of Triumph at the Place de l’Etoile.

In a certain way, I chose the wrong day and hour to visit the Arch – Monday late afternoon / evening; it was the coldest and windiest day since long, the daylight was fading away…

Anyhow, I walked up the some 300 steps (there is a lift, but only available for officially physically handicapped people which I’m not - yet). I took some pictures in all directions. Due to the fading light, the photos are blue.

Place de l’Etoile is a meeting point for 12 avenues, which of course explains its name, the “Star Place”. Officially, it was renamed in 1970 in honour of Charles de Gaulle.

Between each avenue there is a “hôtel particulier” (private residence), today of course rather occupied by offices. The place exists in different forms since 1670 and is today 240 meters wide (perfect circle). The Arch came some 200 years later.

L’Etoile is one point on the “historical axe” between the Louvre and the new office centre (la Défense) with another Arch-like office building which can be seen at the horizon of the Avenue de la Grande Armée…

The place was modified to give the Arch of Triumph a dignified surrounding. The “hôtels particuliers”, all in the same design, are from about the same date as the Arch (1836). Some of the avenues got their final and prolonged layout during the latter part of the 19th century (Haussmann again).

… This is now already too long. I will continue tomorrow!

Local shopping...

Different areas of Paris are like small villages with their own local life. Christmas decorations are not quite as glamorous as around the large boulevards or the big department stores. This is the main street of Batignolles, the part of the 17th arrondissement, where I live, with the parish church, Sainte-Marie-des-Batignolles at the end of the street.

One of the advantages I have is that I can find all kind of shops, cafés, restaurants, banks, pharmacies…, not to mention the indoor market, just round the corner. What here follows is an illustration of what I find by walking some 150 meters (I let the non-metric bloggers convert to yards) south, west, north or east from my flat. I believe there is something like 70 pictures in the below collages. The dentist and the orthopedist are just two stairs down, my doctor is 75 meters away… You may understand why I don’t need a car any more.

The last leaves...

The last leaves… There have many pictures of autumn leaves lately – and by qualified photographers, but I could not resist.

So yesterday I took some pictures in what I use to call “my park” (Square des Batignolles, Paris 17th arrdt.), some two minutes walk from my flat. It has been quite cold in Paris the last days, some +5°C (or about 40°F) during the afternoon. Even the birds must have felt a need to warm up. They had all gathered at the same sunny end of the small lake for a nice common siesta.Some of you may remember that I have now and then reported on the growth of what may be a banana tree. The first leaves were visible in the beginning of April. The leaves had grown considerably until they were cut at the beginning of this week … and I never saw any bananas. What remains of the tree has now got some winter clothes.A few of these photos can be seen on my photo blog.

Now, I wish you all a nice weekend! The weekend will be busy, but I plan to be back on Monday!

A bank succurcal

I refer to my post on Rue Fortuny last week. When leaving this place you arrive at a square, called Place du Général-Catroux (17th arrdt.), once called the place of the Three Dumas.

On this square you will find the statues of Alexandre Dumas, father/père (The Count of Monte Christo, The Three Musketeers…) and son/fils (The Lady of the Camelias…)*. There used also to be a statue of the grandfather, also called Alexandre, bastard son of a Tahitian slave and a noble Frenchman, who became a General in the French Army in 1793. This statue was destroyed by the Nazi occupants in 1942.

There is a remarkable building here, built as a private home (hôtel particulier / mansion) for Emile Gaillard in 1884, who was governor of the French National Bank (Banque de France) and a great art collector. Some years after his death, the building was bought by the French National Bank. Despite its size and prestigious style, this is however not the Bank’s official site and major building in Paris, just a succurcal.

The building is normally hidden by the trees, but as some of them had now lost their leaves; it was possible to get a more general view.

One small detail that you can find above some windows; a “G” for Gaillard. Some of these photos can be seen “in full” on my photo blog.
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*/ I have previously posted on the graves of Alexandre Dumas fils and of “The Lady of the Camelias” (Marie Duplessis), both at the Montmartre cemetery.

Rue Fortuny

I don’t know how well Nespresso is spread over the world. At least it’s a great success in France and I must admit that I’m a fervent Nespresso drinker since a few years, I believe even before George Clooney.

It’s doubtful if, ecologically speaking, this is the best coffee preparation method, but anyhow… So I went to the closest Nespresso shop to get my monthly dose. This shop is in an old former one-family private house (“hôtel particulier”) some ten minutes walk from where I live.

Leaving the place, I could turn to the left and find the Swedish Church of Paris or to the right and find the Parc Monceau…, but I went straight on via a small street called rue Fortuny (17th arrdt), which you can see on the top picture.

This part of Paris was scarcely inhabited until the middle of the 19th century, but Paris grew and it then became fashionable for fortuned people to own a “hôtel particulier” in this area. Only in this small street, maybe 200 meters (220 yards) long, there are a number of them, some really nice. Today they are mostly used as offices, but some quite well-known people used to live here.

Edmond Rostand lived and wrote Cyrano de Bergerac at no. 2. At no. 13 (a street number mostly avoided) lived Marcel Pagnol - very popular French author and film director; "Topaze" is perhaps the internationally most well-known of his works, starring John Barrymore and later Peter Sellers in different Anglo-American film versions. Some actors and actresses also lived here, the most famous being Sarah Bernhardt at no. 35, and also e.g. the dancer, actress and courtesan Caroline Otero (“La Belle Otero”), at no. 27. Less “official” is perhaps that Nicolas Sarkozy was born and spent his first 18 years at no. 46, together with grandparents, a later divorced mother and two brothers.
Some autumn leaves from the way home to taste my coffee.

I put a few of these photos on my photo blog.