Djurdjevic - Personal Photos

January 23, 2011

Personal photos, September 2005

France 2005

A Sunday in Paris...

Paris, France, Sep 18, 2005 - Sunday, Sep 18, was a glorious day in Paris. The air was crystal clear as befits an early autumn. The leaves have already started to turn on some trees. The temperature was slightly nippy, low 60s F in late morning, especially in a light breeze. It was one of those days when walking in the sun was too warm for a jacket, while strolling in the shade was too cold without one. In other words, great weather for someone from a hot desert climate.

I started out wearing my leather jacket, but ended up carrying it during most of my five-hour walking tour of Paris.

One of many creperies along the way that were hard to resist (I did manage to resist this one... it was shortly after breakfast). :-) But I did get a banana there... potassium, potassium for long walks. Notice its other specialty besides the crepes? (the "Hot-Do"). Guess it was too dugong cold for a G to stick around... :-)

At the bottom of Champs Elysees, close to Place de la Concorde and across the street from the American Embassy, I saw this long line of people snaking through the neighborhood for over a mile. About half way up the street, there was a temporary sign advising the people that there is a four-hour wait from that point on. Yet nobody seemed discouraged. So I asked a lady in the line what everybody was waiting to see. "This is a special day in Paris when public get to see some of the national monuments," she said speaking with a lilting French accent. "And Elysees Palace is the most important of them all." Maybe so, I thought, but not important enough for me to spend four-hours or longer just to get it. I smiled back and thanked her.

Notice, by the way, the beautiful fall colors on the chestnut trees that line this street?

Speaking of the American Embassy... voila! Can you believe all the fortifications around it? They reminded me of medieval castles. The only thing missing was a mote and the indentations at the rooftop from which to pour the hot oil on would be assailants. :-) We are so "loved" outside the U.S., aren't we, just as the feudal lords were?

Place de la Concorde with a view of the French National Assembly in the left background.

... as are the Louvre (back of me) this obelisk and Arc de Triomphe in the distance.

View of the Eiffel Tower from Jardin de Tuileries, the raised plateau above Place de la Concorde.

A view of a part of Place de la Concorde from Jardin de Tuileries. Right behind where I was standing when I took this picture, I spotted a series of cute bronze sculptures...

On the last frame above right, I caught a group of kids jumping off a sculpture I had just photographed.

And then I found this plaque that explained what the sculptures were about - "welcoming hands." Nice. But it's a good thing this sculptor did not live in a communist country... she'd be DOA (dead on arrival - given her last name). :-)

More pretty fall and summer colors on the trees at Jardin de Tuileries, approaching the Louvre, faintly visible in the distance.

(a postcard based on the above photo of the chestnut trees at the Jardin de Tuileries near the Louvre, Paris, and the actual chestnuts I collected in various cities...)

There are thousands and thousands of yellow and purple daisies in the flower beds that line the approach to the Louvre. I considered going in to spend the rest of the day there, but only for a split second. As I turned around and saw the throngs of people waiting to go in, I changed my mind. "Maybe another time," I thought, not particularly disappointed, as I have been inside several times before.

Just as I had stepped up to the Louvre level, the woman in the kerchief approached me and asked me if I spoke English. I nodded affirmatively. She handed me a piece of paper that said she was a Bosnian (Muslim) refugee that needed help. Considering how nicely she was dressed and how well fed she looked, she hardly looked like someone in dire straights. I considered telling her to go ask for help at the American Embassy down the street, whose foreign policy caused all the Balkan wars and refugees, but I just shrugged instead. Undaunted, she went on working the crowd, such as these two men in the picture.

Two views of the Louvre from the right bank (of the Seine) quay, but from opposite directions.

And this is a view of the Louvre from the left bank, the arty and bohemian part of Paris. The shot was actually taken from the Ponte des Arts (Bridge of the Arts).

By now, you might be surmising what I was doing on the left bank... walking toward Notre Dame...

...which is actually based on an island between the two banks of the river Seine.

I got there just in time to attend the end of a Sunday service, along with thousands of others. When the mass ended, the organist produced some of the most magnificent sounds of music I have ever heard (the photo of the organ while he was playing is on the right). I had tears in my eyes and remained glued to my seat long after he was finished. I was imagining what it would be like to hear Bach, arguably the world's best organist that ever lived, perform his magic on this instrument in such an awe-inspiring setting. Then I got up and lit two candles... one for the living, and one for the dead, among my loved ones.

After the service, it was time for a coffee break at a right bank bistro, one of hundreds that I passed today. I was quite proud of myself for having had a conversation in French with the waiter even though I never took French in school. Nothing special; pretty simple stuff, but at least I did not need English. The waiter did speak English, by the way, which made my little feat that much more special. :-)

As I continued my walk on the right bank, I came across several lovely flowers shops, such as the one above.

Right next door was a fruit and veggie shop that seemed to specialize in onions and garlic. Most of the bins you see here are different kinds of garlic. Do you think the French use enough of them in their cuisine? :-) I though the Italians were the garlic champions of the world... :-)

From flora to fauna... right next door was a pet shop, where these two cuties were first playing, then sleeping together. At 1,300 euros each (about $1,600), they were waiting to be adopted by a loving (and evidently well off) family.

Back at Place de la Concorde, but on the left bank now, I took a shot standing on the bridge in front of the National Assembly. The photo shows just how expansive this square is. The rooftop of the American Embassy is the last white building above the treetops in the left part of the picture.

The Alexandre III bridge, designed in 1897 by Alfred Picard for the 1900 World Fair, is arguably the prettiest Paris bridge. I took this shot from Quay d'Orsay on the left bank. The rooftop of the Grand Palace is visible in the background.

Last but not least, these two pictures need no caption. After I took them, I walked back along Avenue Kleber to my Etoile area hotel to complete the five-hour jaunt. After a steady diet of carbohydrates and proteins in the last two days, I was craving fruit. Luckily, I found a fruit shop open on Avenue Kleber even though it was Sunday. I feasted on grapes and Sprite - my reward for a long but fun walk.