Category Archives: Paris gardens

A walk in the snow

No trip to Paris would be complete without at least one lengthy visit to Des Photographies, an intriguing shop in Village St. Paul in the Marais. There, with some help from Sylvain Calvier, I have found and bought some wonderful … Continue reading

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The hidden city

One of the distinct pleasures to be had in Paris is the feeling you get when you open a door into a private space. Enter a digicode and hear the satisfying click-thunk sound, or simply push open a closed but … Continue reading

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Propping up Parisian trees

Paris. City of light? Yes. Bridges? Indeed. Trees? Absolutely. The trees and their changing colours are one of the marvels of Paris. But it is no accidental marvel. Parisians work hard at maintaining their trees. Paris abounds in small parks … Continue reading

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The collectors

Before our last trip to Paris, a friend and fellow Francophile lent me a book to read on the plane: The Hare with the Amber Eyes by Edmund de Waal. I highly recommend this absorbing family saga, imaginatively told through … Continue reading

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Nine minutes, twenty-one seconds

A recent New York Times article pointed out that the traditional division of Paris into Left Bank / Right Bank might be giving way to a more East-West distinction. (Some people will say that has long been the case.) And … Continue reading

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A villa in the south

When we say the south, we don’t mean the south of France, we mean the southern parts of Paris, particularly the 14th arrondissement. And when we say “villa,” we don’t mean a detached house. The villas of Paris are cul-de-sacs, … Continue reading

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Hiding in plain sight

When we rented an apartment near the Val-de-Grâce, the lady who owned the flat told us that the church and buildings there were very beautiful, but the only way to see inside was to go for mass on Sunday morning. … Continue reading

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Life in a quiet Paris quartier

We are back in Canada, but still enjoying our memories of Paris. We stayed in a comfortable apartment in an area of the city we had never before explored, not far from the intersection of the Boulevard Port-Royal and the … Continue reading

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A tomato grows in Bercy

On a tiny side street in the 3rd arrondissement near the market known as Les Enfants Rouges (named for a former orphanage where the children wore red jackets), we stumbled across a tiny garden, divided into even tinier plots, filled … Continue reading

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