Paris in California

Song - Under Paris Skies by Lee Terry Meisinger



Mr. B and I didn't have much planned for Memorial Day Weekend.....but he did take me out on Friday night to a local French restaurant in Lafayette - Reve Bistro.  As we have gotten older we are tending to stay home most nights, especially me.  So Friday night was a fun and delicious adventure!

And on Sunday we decided to head up to Sonoma to go to the Paris Flea Market at Cornerstone and sponsored by Chateau Sonoma. It was a little cloudy and drizzly outside but we were ready for an adventure.

The vineyards were full of fresh new growth and we found lot's of people who had nothing to do on this three day weekend deciding to go up to the wine country!

There were lots of venders there as well as several places to eat.

Mr. B spotted this beautiful window? adornment? well whatever it was, it was beautiful!

I learned how to get the French Bistro look.....

The French Sonoma Peloton......

And under one of the "big tops" were some beautiful antiques....

There was a Frenchman singing and playing an antique card fed music box filled with French tunes!  It certainly added to the atmosphere and was fun too!

The rain held out while we enjoyed a glass of Rose, the gardens, the music and the antiques.

The Clematis was especially stunning growing over the walls...

The flea market was on the outskirts of town and we decided to head into Sonoma for some lunch at The Girl and the Fig.  By the time we arrived, so did the rain.  There was no outdoor seating and the inside of the restaurant was packed......so was every other restaurant there!  Mr. B found out that besides it being a three day weekend, Bottlerock was happening in the Napa Valley. We left Sonoma in a downpour and headed towards home.....

Mr. B missed our turn off of the freeway and we decided to take a different route.  We ended up in Crockett at The Dead Fish which was perfect.  We sat in the bar area at a table next to the big windows looking out over the Carquinez Straights. Great timing, perfect atmosphere and yummy food.

On a warm day, it's nice to sit outside and enjoy the train blowing it's whistle just a few feet below you as Amtrak rolls by.

Nice weekend all around....hope yours was as well.....

Returning to France Day 8

Song - Vivaldi a la Sainte Chapelle by Les Solistes Francais

We woke up early on Sunday to go to the big Paris Flea Market - Les Puces de Saint-Ouen which is only open Saturday, Sunday and Monday.  It's in kind of a dicey area just outside of Paris proper so I was glad we took and Uber there instead of the Metro. Once you are inside the market you're OK except to watch your purse and wallet (and I mean that in more ways than one ;-) )

A good idea that Sydney suggested for all of our outings was to take an iPhone photo of the map or directory so if you part ways you will have the information at your fingertips to regroup!

After the first stall that we stopped at (ribbons, trim & buttons), we did all go our separate ways as each one of us had different things that we were excited to look for.

 

 Some of the stalls were a collection of unrelated objects like the one above.

And others were carefully collected objects like the silver collection above. I personally enjoy finding unique pieces of silver for my own collection but I had never seen the spoon below. Do you know what it is?

I finally had to ask the shopkeeper.....and it's a fat-separator.  You put broth in the spoon & allow the fat to rise to the top, then you press down on the upper lever and the broth pours out of the bottom of the spoon but the fat stays inside.....supposedly!

And a portion of a linen collection.......but I couldn't find my exact initials on any of them!

Perhaps you could find portraits of your great-great grandparents?

Do you think I will have any trouble getting this alligator on the airplane?

 

I am sure packing this chandelier in my suitcase will be a cinch! 

We all came home with our little treasures.  I bought two bone handled knives and an antique white wild boar terrine.  Jackie & Sydney found paintings, etchings, 12 fruit knives, ribbons, fabric, pillow covers and loads of other fun things!

We headed home about 3pm as we had tickets for a Vivaldi concert later that evening inside Sainte Chapelle!

Dinner was across the street from Sainte Chapelle at Les Deux Palais - just salad and a Croque-Madame.

As it got dark we headed across the street to get in line for the concert.

It was magical.....the setting and the music!  The group that night was Les Solistes Francais with Paul Rouger playing the main violin and directing. If you are ever in Paris, I highly recommend you find out what concerts are at Sainte Chapelle and get your tickets early as it is usually a sell out!

Afterwards we ended up in the lobby of our hotel for a glass of wine & Sydney had a whiskey.....I tell you this because it ended up being so funny.  I kept smelling something and it wasn't good! And you know how you don't want to say anything in polite company? We were staying in a very clean hotel and what was that off odor?  Then Jackie began to smell it as well and it was getting worse.  Well, Sydney finally got the giggles and confessed that she was drinking a very "peaty" whiskey.  It was her drink and breath that we were smelling!

"Always carry a flagon of whiskey in case of snakebite

 and furthermore always carry a small snake."

-- W. C. Fields

Par-eee

Paris is always amazing!

 

Last Tuesday we dropped our car in Avignon and took the TGV into the Gare de Lyon.

 

 

Then checked into our favorite little hotel that feels like an oasis when the hustle & bustle of Paris feels overwhelming.

 

We went to the Cluny Museum and saw the "Heads of the Kings of Judah" which were discovered buried on a farm in the 1970's.

 

 

......St. Sulpice which was made famous for Dan Brown in his book "The DaVinci Code" with the meridian line running through the church.....

 

"The meridian line is a fascinating astronomical instrument of the 18th century, used to study the planets and determine the date of Easter each year. The sun's rays enter the church through a small opening in the south transept and rest on the line at various points throughout the year. On the winter solstice, the rays hit the obelisk; on the spring and autumn equinoxes, the bronze table. The obelisk bears a Latin inscription that doesn't quote Job, but describes the use of the meridian line. "

 

 

 

 

....enjoying one of my favorite places The Luxenbourg Gardens...

 

 

 

 

.....and the Pétanque guys.....right next door to the sweet crepe maker....

 

 

.......great food, wine, cheese, desserts and art......always!

 

 

 

 

We enjoyed the Marche Raspail........

 

 

......as well as the Marche aux Puces - the famous Paris Flea Market

 

 

Rode the Metro and climbed a lot of stairs...a whole lot!!!

 

In fact my thighs should be rock hard by now......if I didn't enjoy that wonderful French cheese so much!

 

 

 

 

 

 

And Mr. B trying to look casual while they were doing a fashion shoot right behind him in the beautiful glow of the late afternoon light on the steps of Sacre Coeur.

 

 

Au revoir Par-eee.....until next time!

 

 

 

Posted with Blogsy

La Femme

Yesterday while cleaning the house for an unexpected photo shoot, I came across an etching that I had purchased at the Paris Flea Market in April 2011. I must have returned from my trip so anxious to not have it damaged, I stored it in a very "safe" spot and promptly got busy with my daily life and then forgot about it.

Until now!

So today I decided to do a little research on the woman with the basket.






"La Femme a la Corbeille" 1908


Edmond François Aman-Jean was born in Chevry-Cossigney (Seine et Marne). He was orphaned at the age of 10 but was taken in by an uncle in Paris. There he began his art studies in the atelier of the sculptor Justin Lequien.

In 1908 he began etching, which is when this was produced. After mastering lithograph & etching he abandoned them to embrace painting.

I liked the soft feminine feel along with the hand-on-the-hip-attitude going on. It reminds me of a Matisse.

On the front plate it says Eau de Original.

oh boy!

After doing some research I discovered that Eau de Originale means PRINT in English. Looks like a print out of a book. Eau...I mean......ewwwww!

Duh....who would of thought that that translated to Original but me?

Looks like Mr. B and I will have to go back to Paris (bummer) and return it (hint, hint)!

But then I dug a little deeper and found some French transcripts with the wording "Eau- forte Pont Seche " which is also on the front cover and translates to Drypoint Etching.

Etching....original.....drypoint.....mmmmm.....

But no matter what I have, I love my etching and it is getting framed next week.

Sorry Mr. B but you will still have to take me to France someday soon anyway or I may have to put my hands on my hips and have a little attitude as well! Oui?

Maybe my Francophile friends will have a different interpretation of which I will be very delighted to hear.....unless it says that the Flea Market cranks them out for every tourist that wanders down their alley!

If you travel to Paris it is well worth the adventure to go to the best Flea Market around, the most famous flea market in Paris is the one at Porte de Clignancourt, officially called Les Puces de Saint-Ouen, but known to everyone as Les Puces (The Fleas). It covers seven hectares and is the largest antique market in the world, receiving between 120,000 to 180,000 visitors each weekend.


Do any of you remember the I Love Lucy episode where she buys an "original" Parisian painting, only to return to her hotel room to discover Fred & Ethel bought the exact same one? Kinda reminds me if that....
I Love Lucy - Season 5, Episode 18
Paris at Last