I Prefer Paris

Rue Rude

Lately, I’ve been bonding with my Paris bloggers community. So much so, that I am hosting a Paris bloggers cocktail party at my apartment this Friday with Laurie Pike, editor extraordinaire, of The Paris Blog.It will be interesting to meet the faces and bodies behind the voices of the other Paris blogs.

One of the other ways that I’ve been connecting with the Paris blogging community is doing an article exchange with some of them.
My first one is with one of my favorite blogs, Rue Rude, a witty and intelligent blog about everyday life in Paris, written by Sedulia Scott.  Even though our blogs are very different, I came up with a topic that would give us common ground: the experience of living in our neighborhoods.

Enjoy and please logon on to www.ruerude.com to read my article.

Class War in Paris

My Paris is very different from Richard’s. He lives in my favorite part of the city, the Marais, an area full of beautiful old stone buildings with interior courtyards and gardens. On the other side of Place de la Bastille were the hoi polloi of the Faubourg Saint-Antoine, which is still an artisans’ area, so the fortress of the Bastille was built to protect the aristos of the Marais. Like so many tourists, I was disappointed when I came to Paris and discovered that the fortress was torn down long ago.

I live in the sixteenth arrondissement, which is a byword among French speakers worldwide for stuck-up, coincé, rich, boring, ladies in fur coats, and businessmen with skinny shoulders going to their glass offices in pinstriped suits and loden coats.

Paris Daily Photo:An Interview with Eric Tenin

Paris Daily Photo is a delightful blog with a simple mission: It posts a single photo of Paris everyday. Eric Tenin, photographer and editor, takes imaginative, captivating photos of Paris daily life and writes short blurbs to go with them. 
Sitting in a comfy club chair, I interviewed him last week over coffee at the Starbucks on rue des Archives.

How did you start Paris Daily Photo?
I was offered a digital camera from my family as a gift and I accepted it. I didn’t know what to do with it, so I started to take photos and decided I must have a blog to post them on. I posted my first photo, which was near my house by the Luxembourg Gardens on March 11, 2005. (He has since moved to the 9th)

What famous historical figure, living or dead, would you want to take a photo of?
Mozart in Paris

What’s your personal favorite Paris Daily photo?

Do you ever run out of ideas for photos?
All the time. I take 2 or 3 pictures in advance, but I’m always worried about my next pictures. My photos are one week old at the most.

What’s the most interesting comment you’ve received from a reader?
I have two readers who regularly post comments that add historical backgrounds and specific references to my photos.

Tell me about the online Daily photo community and your relationship with them. (There are over 150 other Daily Photo blogs).
After I started my blog, I invited others to do the same in their cities/towns and it’s grown very well. All of them have been extremely nice in sharing their city.  I am happy to have some small towns in the U.S., along with large cities. It’s a good mix.
We are starting a portal of all the city blogs featuring photos of each city and an icon that will take you to that city.

Are there certain areas of the city that you tend to take more photos of?
Yes. I take a lot of photos between where I live in the 9th and where I work in the 14th. 

Were you always interested in photography?
No. I never really liked it before.

What other places besides Paris, would you like to take pictures of?
Venice, Barcelona, New York and Amsterdam.

What photographers inspire you/influence you?
I’m not into photography but I now love to look at photos to improve my own.   People ask me tech questions all the time, but I have no idea what to tell them.

If you suddenly could only post one last photo on Paris Daily Photo, what would it be?
The Statue of Liberty in Paris on the ile de Cygnes in the 15th. Also, one of the entrance signs to Paris that are on the roads entering the city.

www.parisdailyphoto.com

Eric’s Bio
Eric Tenin, 46, journalist for a living, blogger for a hobby. I was born in Paris and have been living here all my life. I love it and I would trade it for very few other cities in the world (Barcelona, New York or San Francisco maybe). I am a city person, and a workaholic; I get bored after 2 days when I am on vacation!

The Pantheon: Ernesto Neto’s Leviathan Thot

As a Paris insider, I have an embarrassing admission to make:
I’ve never been to The Pantheon. Quelle Horreur! Sunday afternoon I finally went, and the Brazilian artist Ernesto Neto’s astounding installation was worth the wait.

The installation, inspired by a sea monster in the Book of Job, is a series of white fabric sculptures filled with tiny grains of white polystrene, where the shapes look like a combination of white tear drops, cow udders, and snow filled balloons. Words don’t do it justice and the pictures help, but it’s simply one of those things you have to experience in person. This installation jumps to the top of my Eye Need to Do List and absolutely don’t miss it.

Click on to the Pantheon photo album on the right for more pictures.

Ernesto Neto’s Leviathan Thot at The Pantheon
Place de Pantheon, 75005
Metro: Cardinal Lemoine, Line 10
Till December 31st

Pantheon Facts
Originally built as a church, The Pantheon is one of the great neo-classic buildings of Paris, and it later became a temple and burial ground. Designed by Jacques-Germain Soufflot, it was not completed till 1789, 9 years after his death by his student Jean-Baptiste Rondelet. Located under the central dome of is the famous Focault pendant. Voltaire, Rousseau, Marat, Victor Hugo, Émile Zola, Jean Moulin, Marie Curie, Louis Braille are all buried in the necropolis(cemetery).

Borat and Beaujolais Nouveau

I saw Borat, the hysterically funny movie by Sacha Baron Cohen, best known as Ali G, and celebrated the arrival of Beaujolais nouveau at my corner bistro last night.

Borat opened here on Wednesday after being a smash hit in the States as the #1 box office movie 2 weeks in a row and the theater was filled with a laugh-hungry audience. Ali G’s sibling alter ego Borat Sagdiyev is a highly offensive yet endearing character from Kazakhstan who does the quintessential American road trip, with hilarious escapades including being saved by a Christian right evangelist church, coached by a southern etiquette expert on how to act at American dinner parties, and a pilgrimage to Los Angeles to marry Pamela Anderson, the girl of his dreams. The presumably French audience surprisingly got all the American references. If you like laughing out loud movies, this is a must.

After all the belly laughing from the movie, my belly was ready for some food. At about 10:15 I went to my corner bistro Au Bouqet St. Paul, on the corner of rue St. Paul & rue St. Antoine, and the joint was jumpin’ with a jolly crowd celebrating the new Beaujolais Nouveau. It seemed like an excellent vintage as the diners kept asking the cheerful waiters in black berets to open more bottles . I am mostly a teetotaler, but I indulged in a few sips and, not being a wine aficionado by any stretch of the imagination, the most I can say is that I liked it very much. (In fact, I always kid about my non-drinking, saying that if the person who invented liquor had met me when they were trying to determine if it would be a successful product, they probably would have decided there’s no money in it.) I enjoyed a fresh salad of poached chicken, corn, tomatoes, and Emmenthal cheese and was caught up in the celebratory spirit of the occasion.

I love the French because they always find cause for celebration.

A Bouqet St. Paul
85 rue St. Antoine, 75004, Metro: St. Paul
Open 7 days 9AM-11PM

Gay Paris Nightlife: Club Sandwich at Club Neo

I finally found gay underground nightlife in Paris at Marc Zaffuto’s Club Sandwich at Club Neo on Sunday night. Not that I was actively looking for it, but once in a blue moon I crave going to a good old-fashioned underground club with a drag show/performance art piece, like the old Jackie 60 in New York.

Marc Zaffuto, nightlife impresario and fashion executive by day, and partner Emmanuel d’Orazio organize Club sandwich once a month, usually on a Sunday night. It’s a small, invitation-only crowd of about 150 people, mostly gay but with a smattering of chic, fashion girls.

Look Report

Young 20-30's slim hotties in loose almost homeboy jeans and tight T-shirts

Black leather shorts, vests, and jump suits

Prada –like form fitting button down shirts with gabardine dress pants (BORING!!)

70’s style very short, colored running shorts with bare chest on top

Black, Black, and more Black
Other looks: pointy black patent shoes,black velvet knickers with white stockings, underwear only

Club Neo is on a narrow street tucked behind the Champs Elysees.I arrived unfashionably early at 10:45PM and embarrassingly had to wait for the doors to open at 11PM, with the bouncers giving me dirty looks for arriving too early. (the invite said 10PM) .The club is in the basement and looks like a classic Paris 70’s disco (Regine’s came to mind): small, intimate, and all black with slick marble floors, leather banquettes and stools, and low ceilings. The fantastic 80’s dance music was mixed by Alexandre Malgouyres (Burberry’s PR) and Erik Halley (Accessories designer), and I boogied down to Boy George, the Eurythmics, and Soft Cell. Again my club timing was off and I left at 1:30AM, missing the fabulous performances of Melle Mercedes, Audrey Manta and William Carnimolla .

As Alicia Bridges said in her classic disco song:” I love the night life, I (still) love to boogie on the disco ‘round (Oh yeah)….

Checkout the cool Club Sandwich Party videos (R rated, partial nudity)

www.myspace.com/clubsandwichparty

Serial Colors: Frederick e. Grasser Herme

I went to a book signing Thursday night for Frederick e. Grasser Herme’s new cookbook, Serial Colors, at Le Galerie Food in the northern Marais. The delightful gallery/bookstore dedicated to everything food, was packed with eager foodies waiting to have their books autographed. The unique book is actually 10 small notebooks, each in a different color with recipes coordinating to the color. The books are sold separately for 6.50 euros. 85 euros gets you the whole set,smartly bound in a ring with a white Lucite cover, packed in a shiny white box

Frederick e. Grasser Herme is a major player in the Paris food world. In a recent interview, she told me she wears three hats: cookbook author with 20 published books, food consultant to top restaurants and hotels, and cookbook publishing advisor. Her books run the gamut of food topics including caviar, tartines, mozzarella, and queerest of all, a book with recipes for dogs and their masters.


The fashionista boutique and water bar restaurant, Colette, hired her to create a different colored food for their menu every month and that’s how the colored food idea started. The first book, Noir, has recipes for all black food. Another ongoing fascination is making vegetables sweet like desserts and desserts savory in a cookbook, Cuisinez Les Legumes Autrement (Cook the Vegetables Otherwise).

When asked what foods would be a must on a desert island, uzu fruit, a Japanese citrus much like a tangerine with a sour taste, Pierre Herme uzu flavored chocolate, and pink beet roots were her first choices. She likes her food simple, eats just for pleasure and is not particularly interested in food techniques. Favorite chefs/restaurants are Pascal Barbot- L’Astrance, patisserie and chocolate genius and ex-husband Pierre Herme, Thierry Marx-Château Cordeillan-Bages, Helene Darroze, and American Charlie Trotter. Top picks for food shopping are the organic Raspail market on Sundays, Marche Aliques, Marche Alma Marceau, and Grand Epicerie at Le Bon Marche. Current projects include a prepared food menu for Hotel Amour in Paris and menus for the up-scale Moroccan hotel chain, Dar Ahlam.

Being a former chef and caterer in New York, I was inspired by Frederick’s inventive and innovative food ideas.

Click here to order Frederick e. Grasser Herme’s books on Amazon

Le Bon Marche: Mr. Clean's French Lovechild

Walking through Le Bon Marche,my favorite Paris department store, I came across this amusing
Mir dish detergent display. Rumour has it he's Mr. Clean's French lovechild.

November Eye Need to Do's: Cesaria Evora,Grand Palais- Public Portraits, Private Portraits, and Ophelia Winter

Exposures in Progress:Public Portraits, Private Portraits
A collection of exquistive portraits by Goya, David, Vigée-Lebrun, Delacroix and Reynolds
Grand Palais
3 avenue de General Eisenhower
Metro: Champs Elysees-Clemenceau
Open every day 10AM-8PM, Closed Tuesdays
Wed. 10AM-10PM
Tickets: www.fnacspectacles.com

Hot chocolate from Cacao et Chocolat
Enjoy a delicious cup of hot chocolate to warm your bones

Cacao et Chocolat-Open everyday
29, rue de Buci -
Métro : Mabillon ou Saint Germain des Près

63 rue de Saint Louis en L'Ile
Métro : Pont Marie ou Saint Michel

36 rue Vieille du Temple - 75004 PARIS
Métro : Hôtel de ville

Cesaria Evora
The incomparable
November 24,25,26
Olympia Theater
Tickets: www.fnacspectacles.com

Black Calvados
Rub shoulders with Lenny Kravitz,Lindsay Lohan, and Fergie
at the club du moment. Dress to kill to if you want to get in.
Thanks to my ultra-hip New York friends Nicole & Danielle for this
40 avenue Pierre 1er de Serbie, 75008

Maison Rouge
Busy Going Crazy
The Sylvio Perlstein colllection
Art & Photography from Dada to present day

10 Boulevard de la Bastille
Wed. - Sunday 11AM-7PM,Thur. till 9PM
Metro: Bastille or quai de la Rapee
www.lamaisonrouge.org

Ophelie Winter- Shame on U
Check out the video from the French sexy, hot singer
http://youtube.com/watch?v=CorMijyQPGk

Contest Winner
and the winner is..............
Karl Leino of Paris
Congratulations Karl for your winning entry for the Eye Prefer Paris contest:
Eye Must Do’s

I will send you the DVD of “Charade” starring Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant, a delicious romantic comedy from 1963 with wonderful scenes on the Bateau Mouches, Palais Royal, and the Tuileries.

Thanks to everyone for their clever contest entries

Tennis, Anyone? Tennis Masters Series Paris

James Blake

Yesterday I had the thrill of going to the BNP Paribas Masters Tennis tournament at Bercy. James Blake, the lone American, and top French players Arnaud Clement, Paul Henri Mathieu, Sebastien Grosjean, and Richard Gasquet, played fantastic, edge of your seat tennis.

I had excellent seats in the press section, courtesy of my friend Nikki who is a sports producer. I am a huge tennis fan and forgot how exciting it is to see it live, since I usually spend countless hours watching on television, sprawled on the couch eating fattening salty snacks.

The matches were breathlessly competitive and of the three I saw, two were 3 setters and one was a 2 setter with tiebreaks in both sets. I was torn by whom to root for in the Blake/Clement match, but my American side won out and I cheered as Blake won in three tough sets. I love tennis because it’s a mix of great athleticicsm, beuatiful movement, and intense competition.

I eagerly await the French Open next May on the red clay courts at Roland Garros.

BNP Paribas Masters at Bercy
Till Sunday, November 5th
/www.fft.fr/bnpparibasmasters/

LAST CHANCE TO ENTER CONTEST
I am extending the contest to Saturday,November 4, details below

I am starting a monthly feature that’s a short list of must see/must do things in Paris. I am looking for clever title and the lucky winner who comes up with the best one, will be credited on the blog and sent a DVD of my favorite American movie about Paris.Please submit your entries in the comment box below

Entries must be received before Saturday, November 4th
May the best Monsieur/Madame win!