Road To Nowhere

Paris iPhone Photo Chronicles ~ Road To Nowhere ~

Road To Nowhere, a photo by Paris Set Me Free on Flickr.

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I organised two walks today as part of a very innovative concept.

One group would set off from the very south of Paris and the other from the very north. And guess what? We'd meet in the middle for coffee - great!

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Only God decided to dump a few million tons of snow on the city and no-one came. So I walked the route alone, and jolly nice it was too! You'll be seeing some of the shots I got over the next few days.

Scared off by a light sprinkling of the white stuff, I ask you. Pathetic! Oh, and it was damn cold of course. Thanks again God.

I was surprised at how quickly I covered the snow-encrusted ground from the Porte de Clignancourt to Ile de la Cité - it only took me an hour and a half - amazing. But I wasn't hanging around, you understand, not with temperatures like ours.

The friendly Aussie who gave me a great write-up the other day risked getting seriously stranded on her way back down under, so I hope she made it. And to cap it all, they had the natural disaster film The Day After on the telly this evening. How apt.

And why not...

J è  GRAB MY 20 AMAZING PARIS CURIOSITIES FREE NOW!  ç J

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© 2012 Sab Will / Paris Set Me Free - Contact me directly for photo tours, interviews, exhibitions, etc.

Weather Or Not

Paris iPhone Photo Chronicles ~ Weather Or Not ~

Weather Or Not, a photo by Paris Set Me Free on Flickr.

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I've never understood weather forecasts. I mean, I've never understood why people watch them for minutes every day, the majority of which is about other places, when all they need to do to know what the weather is like is stick their head out of the door.

And if they want to know what the weather will be like tomorrow they've only to stick their head's out of the door tomorrow - simple!

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There is an obsession with the weather, especially in places where it really doesn't matter that much. If you're dehydrating in a drought or getting washed away in a tsunami I imagine the last thing you're doing is tuning in to the end of the news of an evening.

I could tell you that a fairly heavy blanket of snow snuck up over our ankles yesterday evening. I could but one miserable metaphor doesn't make a magnum opus, although many would appear to differ.

There was a thing on Facebook just now saying if someone from the 1950s appeared today, what would be the most difficult thing to explain to them about life today. The answer was that we have devices in our pockets capable of accessing the entire knowledge base known to man. And we use it to look at pictures of cats and get into arguments with strangers.

To that we could add 'and talk about the weather'. I know it's snowing. In lots of places. I also know that there are other places where it is very hot right now. This doesn't change much for me.

My girlfriend would call it 'kom-you-nee-kay-shun', at which I, being a man, am obviously crap. But still. The weather. Sheez. Be like the guy whose abode we see here. If it's raining he stays in his tent. If it's not he comes out. That's called being at one with nature. Maybe a little too close all the same. Now, what's on the box? Oh good, the news is just ending...

And why not...

J è  GRAB MY 20 AMAZING PARIS CURIOSITIES FREE NOW!  ç J

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© 2012 Sab Will / Paris Set Me Free - Contact me directly for photo tours, interviews, exhibitions, etc.

Over, Bitch

Paris iPhone Photo Chronicles ~ Chillin' ~

Over, Bitch, a photo by Paris Set Me Free on Flickr.

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'Regarde le ciel' (look at the sky) is a common, if vaguely irritating cheapo graffito you see scrawled all over the place on these shores. (I hate being told what to do!) It seems a lot of people are taking it to heart, though, as we have as many people in Paris moaning about another cold day as there are whinging Aussies complaining for exactly the opposite reason... are people never happy?!

So this post will stop talking about the weather... now - it's over, bitch!

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Talking of overbitch, well, you can see as well as I can, and possibly have as little idea as I as to what it can mean. Other than some risqué review in Queen, the Champs Elysées night club which lives up to its name. I went there once and it was quite fun, I seem to remember, and I remember rather a lot with beers at €10 a glass, probably €15 now.

Then we have another relatively new attempt at being funny - the, again, cheaply stuck up notice informing us that 'Graffitis (sic) are not allowed here', strangely in English. Which in turn has been defaced to read 'now' instead of 'not', ho ho. Which was the whole point in the first place, kind of.

To finish with there's what's probably just a 'tag' - someone's name scrawled in red, with not much to recommend it at all at all. So much for the white wall, but it was asking for it. White as snow. My goodness, just look up for a second, will you, that isn't, is it, what I think it is, falling from the cloudy sky, could it be..? Oops.

And why not...

J è  GRAB MY 20 AMAZING PARIS CURIOSITIES FREE NOW!  ç J

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© 2012 Sab Will / Paris Set Me Free - Contact me directly for photo tours, interviews, exhibitions, etc.

Spouting Nonsense

Paris iPhone Photo Chronicles ~ Spouting Nonsense ~

Spouting Nonsense, a photo by Paris Set Me Free on Flickr.

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A mildly surprising notice for a drinking water fountain: "Eau dangereuse à boire" - water dangerous to drink. Well, it doesn't look like it's spouted for quite some time unfortunately because it's quite a beauty. An old wall-mounted model on an RER station platform from 1895 - not the sort of thing you see every day. It was probably appreciated by the large number of pregnant women using the station to get to the newly opened maternity clinic nearby...

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I've actually got quite a thing about fountains; not only have I done a Top 10 Wallace fountains, but I'm thinking of doing another one on all the other types out there, and heaven knows Paris has got its fair share.

Today was a funny day; I found myself confronted with a very pleasant walking companion who just happened to know almost all my little Paris secrets on the route we chose. It's a good job she wasn't paying me money to accompany me!

But it's a pleasure to find someone as nutty about things like old shop signs and bits of crumbling wall and yes, even fountains and watering holes of various shapes and sorts and there were plenty where we were. Which was around the Rue Mouffetard area.

I even managed to get another member of my Crap Paris series thanks to a very dodgy looking building indeed which looked like it was about to bite the dust. Check it out before it does!

And why not...

J è  GRAB MY 20 AMAZING PARIS CURIOSITIES FREE NOW!  ç J

_________________________________________________________________________________
© 2012 Sab Will / Paris Set Me Free - Contact me directly for photo tours, interviews, exhibitions, etc.

Heading Up To Notre Dame

Paris iPhone Photo Chronicles ~ Heading Up To Notre Dame ~

Heading Up To Notre Dame, a photo by Paris Set Me Free on Flickr.

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One of the advantages of having a bloody great exhibition-construction thingy taking up the majority of the square in front of Notre Dame is that you can climb it and get an unusual perspective on the front of the magnificent cathedral.

One of the disadvantages is that you've got a bloody great exhibition-construction thingy taking up the majority of the square in front of Notre Dame completely destroying the overall view of the thing.

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This is all in the name of the so-called 850th anniversary of one of the world's most famous religious edifaces, although how they calculated the date on a building which took many decades to complete I'm not sure. 850 years ago would be, hmm, let's see, 1163 or thereabouts. Oh, I see now, that's the date construction is supposed to have started, although it wasn't really completed until 1345, coming on for two centuries later.

I recently climbed to the top and what a wonderful experience it was. You see the huge bell Emmanuel as well as some of the superb chimeras at close quarters, along with a constant throng of other visitors unfortunately. And you never forget the little winding spiral staircases - you really feel you are back in the middle ages.

Anyway, back to reality and about 5 metres above the ground where I took this photo from. I was next to a tour guide telling his flock that all the statues we can see at the top of the shot were beheaded during the French revolution as they were mistaken for the French kings and therefore very definitely not flavour of the month.

Talking of losing heads, one of the statues on the left is of Saint Denis, holding his somewhat gingerly in his hands - at waist level, I hasten to add. A nice complement to all the tourists running around like headless chickens with their cameras and guidebooks and whatnot.

And why not...

J è  GRAB MY 20 AMAZING PARIS CURIOSITIES FREE NOW!  ç J

_________________________________________________________________________________
© 2013 Sab Will / Paris Set Me Free - Contact me directly for photo tours, interviews, exhibitions, etc.

Chillin'

Paris iPhone Photo Chronicles ~ Chillin' ~

Chillin', a photo by Paris Set Me Free on Flickr.

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Temperatures have dropped radically here in Paris and we even had a dusting of snow yesterday although not enough to be picture-worthy unfortunately.

How people on the street manage in these conditions I don't know. They do as best they can. Yesterday I hosted our monthlyish Paris quiz and there were quite a few people in attendance. In case you're interested I'll give you some of the questions now.

As it was roughly our 7th time in the place I decided to focus the questions around the number 7. Genius, I know.

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Name 7 Paris bridges. Go on, see if you can. Name 7, yep, count 'em, 7 Paris train stations. Attention! Not metro stations, train stations... Name 7 Paris parks or gardens. That's parcs or jardins, indicated on the map thus. And the killer question of 7s: name 7 famous buildings in the 7th arrondissement. And there are lots of them!

I think it went pretty well although the table arrangement meant that people were a bit separated from each other which I'd have preferred not to be the case. I like it when we're all squashed up next to each other and there's more interaction between the participants and stuff.

The next quiz is in a month and I'll really have to get my thinking cap on to find a new theme, although Nathalie gave me a great idea: the names of people who have metro stations named after them and why they deserved that honour. I'm interested to know what the metro stop Bréguet SABin is all about. Not to mention the rue Pillet WILL, in the 9th. This being Sab Will writing, you understand. Paris has a place in her heart for all of us, even if it's just a cruel metal grill...

And why not...

J è  GRAB MY 20 AMAZING PARIS CURIOSITIES FREE NOW!  ç J

_________________________________________________________________________________
© 2012 Sab Will / Paris Set Me Free - Contact me directly for photo tours, interviews, exhibitions, etc.

My Magic Monday

Paris iPhone Photo Chronicles ~ My Magic Monday ~

My Magic Monday, a photo by Paris Set Me Free on Flickr.

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My virtual friend Melissa from Prête-Moi Paris blogged about something called Project Optimism today, and the idea seems cool.

You're supposed to commit to posting an optimistic blog post on Mondays focusing on what's good about the world as opposed to the usual moans and gripes we all have.

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This struck a chord as we bloggers do often find more inspiration in the miserable and maudlin than the chirpy and cheery, which is a bit of a shame when you think about it.

But it's kind of like on the news when the only positive story is usually thrown in at the end of all the killing and economic doom 'n' gloom as a sort of joke item to finish on. No news is good news. But it doesn't have to be that way!

I won't be able to commit to this every Monday as my blog doesn't quite fit the profile but I'm very happy to talk about it here today. Check out the links in the first paragraph above to find out more.

My personal contribution to the theme is this little guy, from Amélie Poulain's grocery store, who just happened to be hanging around looking for a positive post to attach himself to, and this is it!

Oh, and there's a funny badge which goes with the project which I'll also include here. A monkey catching an elephant, now that's positive thinking for you if ever there was any. Building the Eiffel Tower out of matchsticks is the only Paris equivalent which leaps immediately to mind. Perhaps leaping from the top of said tower into an inflatable paddling pool at the bottom could be another.

Anyway, I am feeling positive about this year, 2013, so I hope you are too. Let's make it a great one!

And why not...

J è  GRAB MY 20 AMAZING PARIS CURIOSITIES FREE NOW!  ç J

_________________________________________________________________________________
© 2012 Sab Will / Paris Set Me Free - Contact me directly for photo tours, interviews, exhibitions, etc.