Category Archives: Paris churches

Twenty questions

Posted on December 27, 2020 by Parisian Fields

A happy Saint-Sylvestre to you all! A few of you may wonder what that means, but in France, New Year’s Eve is often called by the name of the saint whose day falls on December 31. That fact got us … Continue reading →

Posted in Paris churches, Paris history, Paris popular culture, Paris postcards, Paris streets | Tagged Arc de Triomphe, Arc du Triomphe du Carrousel, avenue Foch, Café Varenne, C’était un rendez-vous, Centre Pompidou, chasse-roue, Chevaux de Marly, Claude Chappe, Claude Lelouch, Deyrolle, Dufayel, fiacre, La Samaritaine, Le Grand Mogol, Marie Antoinette, Marie Curie, Mel Bonis, metonymy, Notre Dame du Travail, Oscar Wilde, Place Beauvau, Point du Jour, Porte St-Denis, Porte St-Martin, Quai d’Orsay, Rose Bertin, rue de Varenne, rue Xaintrailles, rue Xavier-Privas, Saint-Sylvestre, Sophie Berthelot, St-Fiacre | 14 Comments

Cloches et clochers

Posted on November 29, 2020 by Parisian Fields

On April 15 of this year, as Paris remained in lockdown, one of Notre Dame’s bells rang out to mark a year since the fire that largely destroyed the cathedral’s interior. The bell’s name was Emmanuel, and a grainy still … Continue reading →

Posted in Paris churches, Paris history, Paris music | Tagged angelus, Bells, Belltowers, Bienvenue chez les Ch’tis, Glockenfriedhof, Louis Vierne, Napoleon Bonaparte, Notre Dame Cathedral, Notre-Dame-de-Jouy, Regis Singer, Sacre Coeur, Saint-Severin, Sainte-Odile, Savoyarde, Second World War, St-Germain-l’Auxerrois, St-Merri, St-Philippe-du-Roule, St-Yves, Stephen J. Thorne | 9 Comments

My life in France (Part 3)

Posted on December 4, 2016 by Parisian Fields

Paris was exhilarating; Paris was exhausting. By Easter, especially with all the extra services the choir had to attend, I felt in need of a break. One problem: no money. Then someone at St. George’s Church told me that a … Continue reading →

Posted in Angers, French language, Paris churches, Paris music | Tagged Arcueil, Bec Hellouin, Benedictines, Caen, Evreux, Maison des Examens, Marie-Claire Alain, Monastère Ste-Françoise Romaine, Salle Pleyel, Sorbonne, William Goodenough House | 10 Comments

My life in France (Part 2)

Posted on November 6, 2016 by Parisian Fields

The day after I wrote my last exam in Angers, I made a quick trip to Paris to find a place to stay. I had been accepted by the Cours de Civilisation Française de la Sorbonne, and I made a … Continue reading →

Posted in French language, Paris churches | Tagged Cours de Civilisation Française de la Sorbonne, Jeunesses Musicales de France, rue du Ranelagh, Sorbonne, St George's Anglican Church Paris | 18 Comments

Hark the Herald

Posted on December 22, 2013 by Parisian Fields

In casting about for a Christmassy theme for this week’s blog, I thought about angels. Angels have prominent roles in the Christmas story, and I had photographed lots of them in Paris, hadn’t I? Or had I? Well, yes and … Continue reading →

Posted in Paris architecture, Paris churches, Paris streets | Tagged Antonin Mercié, Avenue de la Grande Armée, Cluny Museum, Gustave Rives, Hotel Carnavalet, Hotel Roblin, Paris angels, Petit Palais, Rosemary Flannery, rue de l'Annonciation, Tuileries Palace, Val de Grace | 6 Comments

Paris in the First World War

Posted on October 27, 2013 by Parisian Fields

It’s that time of year again. The poppy-sellers are out on the streets of Toronto, and soon, on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, we will stop what we are doing for a minute or … Continue reading →

Posted in Paris churches, Paris history, Paris postcards, Paris streets, World War I | Tagged Big Bertha, Brigadier Bidault, Eugene Bailly, First World War, Margaret Macmillan, Menilmontant, Nantes, Paris 1919, Paris Gun, Peacemakers, rue Mathurin Regnier, St-Gervais, Zeppelin | 21 Comments

An honourable education

Posted on June 23, 2013 by Parisian Fields

Every time we plan a trip to Paris, we have a list of things we want to do there. And every time we get to Paris, we end up doing fewer than half of those things. After all, opportunities arise … Continue reading →

Posted in Paris churches, Paris history | Tagged Basilica of St. Denis, Legion of Honour, Madame Campan, Maison de l'Education de la Legion d'Honneur, Napoleon Bonaparte, St-Denis | 11 Comments

The man who gave Paris 50 fountains

Posted on May 12, 2013 by Parisian Fields

On our first visit to Paris together, Norman took a picture of me standing beside a Wallace fountain. I liked the dark green caryatids and the elegant dome. Later, on a visit to the Pavillon de l’Eau, we learned that … Continue reading →

Posted in Paris churches, Paris history, Paris hospitals | Tagged Bagatelle, Bois de Boulogne, Café de Paris, Charles Auguste Lebourg, Commune, Fragonard, Franco-Prussian War, Hertford Hospital, Julie Castelnau, Maria Emilia Fagnani, Marquess of Hertford, Père Lachaise, Richard Wallace, rue Laffitte, rue Taitbout, St. George's Church, Wallace Collection, Wallace fountains | 15 Comments

Traces of tragedy on a quiet street

Posted on May 20, 2011 by Parisian Fields

Not many people walk the length of the rue Jean Goujon in the 8th arrondissement. Either they are strolling along the river, or gazing at the likes of the Christian Dior boutique on avenue Montaigne (fashion central), the next street … Continue reading →

Posted in Paris churches, Paris history, Paris streets | Tagged Apostolic Armenian Cathedral in Paris, Bazar de la Charité, Notre Dame de la Consolation, rue Jean Goujon | 5 Comments

Notre Dame du Travail: more than meets the eye

Posted on April 8, 2011 by Parisian Fields

If I had to pick only one place to visit on a trip to Paris, it would be Notre Dame du Travail. What makes it so special? It starts with the eye, but there is more than meets the eye. … Continue reading →