Author Archives: Parisian Fields

About Parisian Fields

Parisian Fields is the blog of two Toronto writers who love Paris. When we can't be there, we can write about it. We're interested in everything from its history and architecture to its graffiti and street furniture. We welcome comments, suggestions, corrections, and musings from all readers.

A convent education

As I was leaving for the hospital, I grabbed a book from the bookshelf near the bedroom door. I chose it because it was a small paperback I could slip into my little bag of belongings. Just as well. There … Continue reading

Posted in Paris books, Paris history | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 19 Comments

Astérix and the lost streets of Montparnasse

I am a latecomer to the adventures of Astérix, the hero of more than 30 bandes dessinés – comics, or perhaps “comix” à la René Goscinny, the creator of Astérix and all those other “x” characters. There’s Obélix, the pigtailed … Continue reading

Posted in Paris churches, Paris popular culture, Paris streets | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

The boating party

For Marnie, with thanks for many happy memories, and for your long-standing support of this blog. Sail on, silver girl. I am thinking about boats today, for several reasons. One is the fact that a good friend of ours who … Continue reading

Posted in Family history, Seine, Toronto | Tagged , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Up Stairs. Down Stairs.

One of our favourite walks starts close to the apartment we often rent that overlooks the Boulevard de Port Royal. It begins when you go through a hole in the sidewalk and down a set of stairs. Just west of … Continue reading

Posted in Paris history, Paris parks, Paris streets | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

Beer and sandwiches from the Brasserie Dauphine

If the title of this blog rings a bell for you, you must be a fan of the mystery novels of Georges Simenon. When Inspector Maigret holds an interrogation at the Quai des Orfèvres, more often than not he orders … Continue reading

Posted in Paris books, Paris crime, Paris nostalgia | Tagged , , , , , | 32 Comments

A museum of images in a garden of peace

With such an abundance of museums and galleries in Paris, should it be a surprise that on occasion, the one you had your heart set on visiting happens to be closed? But then there is the flip side of the … Continue reading

Posted in Paris gardens, Paris history | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

Napoleon slept here

I don’t remember where I bought the postcard, although the price on the back shows that I lashed out a whopping 5 euros on it. It shows an undistinguished shopfront covered in advertising. It must have been the caption that … Continue reading

Posted in Paris history, Paris markets, Paris streets | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Lorette

“What is the significance of the name Loretto?” asked Norman, looking at a picture of the former Loretto Academy in Niagara Falls. “It reminds me of that church in Paris.” Notre-Dame-de-Lorette in Paris is an imposing Neoclassical edifice in the … Continue reading

Posted in Paris churches, Paris history, Paris quartiers | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Edward Hopper in Paris

Norman and I were browsing in a second-hand bookshop recently, when I came across a book about the American artist Edward Hopper that included this illustration: The caption read, “Stairway at 48, rue de Lille, Paris, 1906.” I shouldn’t have … Continue reading

Posted in Paris art, Paris streets | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 21 Comments

Paris Camino, part two

Here we are at the intersection of the rue St-Jacques and the boulevard Port-Royal (aka Carrefour de la Mort – our name for it; you won’t see it on the walls!), heading south. Once you have crossed the tricky intersection, … Continue reading

Posted in Paris civic functions, Paris hospitals, Paris streets | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments