Tag Archives: Artcurial

Going, going, gone

In the 1850s, as the old Paris of narrow streets and ramshackle houses gave way to the broad boulevards and uniform apartment blocks planned by Napoleon III and carried out by Georges-Eugène Haussmann, Charles Baudelaire wrote an epitaph for the … Continue reading

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The meaning of two wheels and a motor in Paris

It is glorious to walk the streets of Paris and revel in the colour, especially after hours in the cramped unbearable beigeness of an airplane. (Whatever happened to the use of the word steerage?) We were grateful to be on … Continue reading

Posted in City of Reflections, Paris automotive | Tagged , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Tall tales and some Paris-Marseille rivalry

Tall tales abound in every culture. When Philippa and I set out to explore our new neighbourhood in May, we never suspected that we would learn more about tall tales in France. On the nearby Rond-Point des Champs Elysées, a … Continue reading

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