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Category Archives: Paris shops
The ghost of Paris past
Two summers ago, I participated in a project to photograph our Toronto neighbourhood as it looked in 2024. I chose a stretch of our local commercial street and systematically photographed each shop façade. Then I went around to the laneways … Continue reading
Posted in Paris automotive, Paris nostalgia, Paris parks, Paris shops, Paris streets
Tagged Bastille train station, Belle Jardinière, Bercy, Brigitte Mouly, Cinema Cithea, Citroën, Daniel Nicolas, J.C. Clavier, Jean-Claude Ratier, Les Halles de Bercy, Louis Emou, Michel Dornet, Michel Legeard, Paris buses, Paris1970, Roger Havart, Scilla Gabel, Trigano, Vespasienne
9 Comments
The domestic front
I was having lunch with my friend Mireille in a pleasant bistro when I became aware of a commotion at the next table. A man with three small children – two girls and a boy. The man was focused on … Continue reading
A geranium in winter
Finally, after almost four years, we were back in Paris. We stayed in an apartment belonging to a friend of Norman’s, and were greeted with the sight of red geraniums in the window boxes. We were there for Christmas and … Continue reading
The writing on the wall, part two
After posting the last blog, I had a nagging feeling that there was a question I had not answered and a connection I had not made. I found the question by looking at the images again. It was that date: … Continue reading
Posted in Paris architecture, Paris film, Paris shops, Paris streets
Tagged Affichage National, Albert Guillaume, colonnes dufayel, Emile Zola, Eugene Atget, Freedom of the press, Georges Dufayel, Georges Méliès, Gustave Rives, Jacques François Crespin, Leonetto Cappiello, Loi du 29 juillet 1881, Palais de la Nouveauté
16 Comments
Rooftops
One of our favourite TV programs, Dix Pour Cent/Call My Agent,* opens with the following image, taken either from the roof of the Louvre or from a drone. It is never on screen for more than a few seconds, and … Continue reading
Posted in Paris architecture, Paris history, Paris hospitals, Paris shops, Paris streets
Tagged Alexis-Hubert Jaillot, Call My Agent, Couvent des Feuillants, Dix Pour Cent, DTACC, Grands Magasins du Louvre, Hall des Tapis, Le Bon Coin, Maje, Matthaüs Merian, Oratoire du Louvre, Renaissance Paris République, rue de Marengo, rue de Rivoli, rue St-Honoré, Val de Grace
42 Comments
Pippa, Pouch, and a Paris Publisher
We don’t usually make a big deal of birthdays. Norman’s falls in late winter just as the academic term is winding up. Philippa’s falls in early summer, just as everyone is going away. This year we were in Paris for … Continue reading
Posted in Paris shops
Tagged Abbey Bookshop, André Arnold-Peltier, Au Port du Salut, Brian Spence, Brigitte Peltier, Francois Pouch, Latin Quarter, Librairie Pippa, Marius Arranz, Maxtor, Quartier latin, rue du Sommerard, Salon des éditeurs indépendants du Quartier latin, SEME Santé Etudes Musique Espoir
4 Comments
The chariot on the Champs-Elysées
For many people in Paris, owning a car is neither necessary nor desirable. Transit service is good and parking is difficult. But that means that when your groceries include, say, containers of milk or orange juice, bottles of wine or … Continue reading
Posted in Paris food, Paris markets, Paris shops
Tagged caddie, Champs Elysees, chariot, Monoprix, Montparnasse, Parc Monceau, Perigot, rue Raymond Losserand, sac à roulettes
20 Comments
Le Bazar de l’Hôtel de Ville
Sooner or later, we know, we will end up having lunch at the Cantine in the BHV (Bazar de l’Hôtel de Ville). It’s central. It’s inexpensive. The food is good. The view from the big windows is magnificent. And of … Continue reading
Posted in Paris architecture, Paris shops
Tagged Auguste Roy, Bazar de l'Hotel de Ville, BHV, Deux Magots, Dufayel, Empress Eugénie, Fnac, Galeries Lafayette, Grand Bazar de la Rue de Rennes, Gustave Rives, Haussmann, Hudson Bay Company, La Samaritaine, Le Bon Marché, Les Grands Magasins Dufayel, Napoleon III, paris department stores, Paul Sédille, Printemps, Pygmalion, Robert Simpson, rue de Rivoli, Sabine Forget, Sears, T. Eaton Company, Xavier Ruel
9 Comments
Richard Ewen: A Texas Artist Whose Watercolours Capture Paris
Richard Ewen is a talented watercolour artist who lives in Austin, Texas. He loves Paris, visits it regularly, and then, back in Texas, creates marvellous paintings of Paris, many of which are based on reflections in shop and café windows. … Continue reading



















