Paris Journal 2015 – Barbara Joy Cooley Home: barbarajoycooley.com
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Usually, we avoid walking beneath the Eiffel Tower. But once in a while, we stride right through the mass of humanity gathered there. Yesterday was one of those days. I spotted a couple of those “do you speak English” scammers, but they seemed to know better than to approach us now. Our photo is probably posted on a bulletin board in their headquarters with the caption “avoid this couple,” ever since I photographed one of them a few weeks ago. When we’d crossed the Quai Branly, we noticed a fair or festival going on, off to the right. We approached the entrance to this allée of tents and booths, and paused at the sign which announced that this event features “uniquely” the business, associations, and artists of the 7th arrondissement. However, the first booth on the right was a Native American music group. They had a fabulous sound system, which made their vocals and woodwinds sound heavenly. I don’t think they have any connection to the 7th arrondissement; they were probably hired just to provide exotic musical entertainment for an hour or so. We enjoyed strolling through the fair, which featured a lot of food vendors. The food looked great, but we’d already consumed our meager brunch. We walked on down the steps to the Berges de Seine. We paused at the espaliered wall again because this time we noticed the plaque that explains what this little project is attempting (see photo on July 11 entry).
So on a very small scale, the vertical garden attempts to do what we do on Sanibel when we establish more conservation land in order to connect existing conservation lands; we are creating a wildlife “corridor.” The vertical garden connects the green spaces of the Berges de Seine with the trees and hedges up on the street level. This time we did not walk on the archipelago barges because we wanted to save time and energy for a visit to one of our favorite spots in Paris: the Musée du Petit Palais. There is no special exhibition going on now at the Petit Palais, only the permanent collections. So the museum was uncrowded, and we did not have to wait in any line before entering. Tom wanted to go straight to the museum café first, so we passed through the heavy glass doors into the atrium, where I spied an empty, unbused table right on the edge of the garden. Tom removed the two trays left by previous diners (probably European; we notice that Americans tend to bus their own tables in cafeteria settings like this) and deposited them in the space provided above the trash receptacle. I saved the little table for us while Tom went inside to buy refreshments. I love sitting in this elegant garden. I watched sparrows bathe themselves in the shallow part of one of the water features. I photographed the glorious dome of the museum. Tom returned with coffee for him and a little glass of white wine for me. Soon after, a server brought us the small club sandwich he ordered. So we had a very relaxing and elegant pause in that gorgeous spot. After we were refreshed and refueled, we strolled through the permanent collections, noting that some of our favorite paintings were on display, and others were either out on loan or stashed away in storage. Tom’s favorite Petit Palais painting is Grimaces et Misères (also known as Les Saltimbanques (1888), by Fernand Pelez. It was there yesterday, in its full-length, miserable glory (below).
One of my favorites, Les Halles, by Leon l’Hermitte, just joined the permanent collection at the Petit Palais this past year. There’s a street named for Leon l’Hermitte near our apartment. We noted that Monet’s famous Soleil Couchant sur la Seine, à Lavacourt, effet d’hiver was not on display in its normal spot. Some inspection of the museum’s web site this morning tells me that now that painting is in Salle 39, which is on the lower level of the building. Several other interesting items now are on display downstairs, so we will have to return soon. We love having an excuse to return to the Petit Palais. Admission is free, by the way, for the permanent collections. The museum is open Tuesday through Sunday, from 10AM to 6PM. We recommend this place to everybody who asks us what they should see in Paris. After our leisurely visit, we left the Petit Palais and walked back along the Berges, turning off at the Pont de l’Alma so that we could avoid the Eiffel Tower mob. We strolled down the gracious avenue Rapp, across the Champ de Mars, and back through the quiet streets of our neighborhood. Tom ducked into the bakery for a fresh baguette, and soon after, we were home. We rested, read, and got ready for dinner, which wasn’t far away. I’d booked a table at l’Alchimie – the first restaurant where we’ve made a repeat visit this summer. Our timing was perfect; Chef Eric Rogoff explained that he and his family are leaving for vacation today. For three weeks, the restaurant will be closed. Dinner was spectacularly good. Eric gave me a complimentary glass of champagne with a touch of peach liqueur in it. When I ordered a glass of white wine, he presented the bottle: it was a special Chablis. Tom and I shared a generous croustillant de gambas that was stuffed with veggies as well as the shrimp, and served atop a fruity, flavorful sauce. The shrimp were tender and moist; not the least bit overcooked. I normally do not order steak in Paris restaurants, because it generally is not anywhere near as good as steak back in the U.S. I make an exception at l’Alchimie, however, because Eric really knows what he’s doing. Even a less expensive cut, like rumsteak, I will order when he’s cooking. And so I had a rumsteak (a steak from the top half of an American-cut round steak) with shallots and a rich, brown sauce. I ordered it cooked a point, and it was a perfect medium-rare. It was tender and delicious. Tom had a generous and succulent bone-in pork chop which was lean yet juicy and tender. It could not have been better.
For dessert, we shared an apricot tart which came with a drizzle of caramel sauce and a scoop of butter pecan ice cream. Eric’s kids, a boy and a girl, were at the restaurant, playing quietly while mom no doubt was packing the family’s vacation things. They’re going to the south of France, like so many other Parisians do. We wished Eric bonnes vacances. We will miss him and l’Alchimie very much, but we promised to return to the restaurant in September, when he will have an entirely new menu, as he does each season. |
Sunday, August 2, 2015
Native
American musicans at the entrance to the 7th
arrondissement’s community fair.
Native
vegetation allowed to grow now on the Berges de Seine.
Across
from the vertical garden, the vegetation grows thickly on one of the “archipelagos”
or floating gardens created on barges just off the Berges.
The
glorious dome of the Petit Palais, as seen from its
central garden.
Les Halles, by Leon l’Hermitte.
Croustillant de Gambas at l’Alchimie,
on rue Letellier.
Rumsteak with smashed blue potatoes.
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