and a lot of culture
Yes, it’s December and it’s Chanukah. During this dark time, let’s hope the light we kindle during Chanukah brings peace.
November 2023
When we lived in Manhattan, we had a very lot of guests. We had space for our visitors and they received a key and their morning coffee at their requested wake up time. Same in Paris except that I often play tourist (which of course I am) and accompany my guests on their Paris itinerary.
Arlene & David had not been in Paris for many years and enjoyed a few days with us in early November. I tagged along with them on their Louvre tour. I must say, the most visited museum in the world is very special and a must-see and it is much easier to access if one arranges for a guide. We took a small group tour. As expected, the tour included Venus de Milo, Winged Victory, the Crowning of Napolean, the Raft of the Medusa and the Mona Lisa — all spectacular for their beauty and historical significance. That said, Arlene and I availed ourselves of a few calmer galleries which would be my choice going forward, having seen the aforementioned classics at least four times over the years. One gallery of treasures is a temporary exhibit of items saved from the Notre Dame fire of 2019. [And as an aside, we have visited Notre Dame’s exterior multiple time to check on the progress and read about the incredible restoration work, on panels surrounding the scaffolded cathedral. Tourists come to sit in front of Notre Dame on stadium-like seating in front of the cathedral to honor Our Lady at all hours. And as of last week’s visit by French President Macron, Mass can take place in time for the Paris Olympics; however all the work will not be finished. The cost of repair and restoration so far has been about $197 million.]
Another friend whom I have met, or re-met is Catherine Cartier Tourneur. During the summer of 1967, Catherine who had been an au pair to my Aunt Anna’s family in Philadelphia, came to stay with the Tabacks, ages 6, 4, 1 and our parents. Last year Catherine found my brother Peter on Facebook (she wondered what happened to that Taback family from Syosset). Barbara and I remembered her and Barbara was able to help connect Catherine and me. We have met a few times, which has been very special. First, we had lunch and the went to a former royal residence, Vincennes Castle (1370).
This royal residence, was named for the forest of Vincennes, a favorite hunting spot of French monarchs dating back to the 12th century. This castle is remembered as the home of King Charles V the Wise (1364-1380), from the Capetian House of Valois who reigned smack in the middle of the Hundred Years’ War (1337-1453) between England and France, the war Joan of Arc helped the French win. No wonder it was so well-fortified. It was built in the outskirts of Paris and was secured by a moat, a wall and originally included nine towers. There is also a beautiful holy chapel, one of the first in the high gothic style, completed in the 16th century. Vincennes Castle became the king’s residence because it was well-fortified, replacing the Palais de la Cité where Saint-Chapelle still stands. Later monarchies lived at the Tuileries Palace and Versailles. At one point, Vincennes served as a prison, its most famous inmate the Marquis de Sade. Today Vincennes Castle still serves as a military base, arsenal and includes France’s Defense archives.
Our next visitors neither stayed with us nor needed us to play tour guide. Lisa and William are former residents of the Île Saint-Louis, a quiet residential island in the middle of the Seine, Paris. We enjoyed revisiting their favorite haunts and dining on the French foods on their checklist during their time in Paris.
Our Saturday night activity with Lisa and William was Paris Photo at the Grand Palais, the largest international art fair dedicated to photography.
We also spent a soggy morning strolling on Paris’s High Line, La Promenade Plantée.
While William and Andy were working, Lisa and I explored and wandered. We enjoyed a few museums (for a later post), CityPharma (merci, Tracy), Tapisseries de la Bûcherie for gorgeous needlepoint supplies (thank you Kenden), revisiting Lisa’s former neighborhood on the Île Saint-Louis, a bit more shopping and dining.
Some highlights of our time together with Lisa and William included their vast knowledge of French food. We dined together at a classic Montmartre restaurant (Le Bon, la Butte), a classic brasserie with a plateau de fruits de mer, and a classic restaurant for cassoulet (L’Assiette). But the BEST meal was our in-house market meal, of wines, baguettes (traditional, bien sûr), cheeses, charcuterie, crudités, walnuts, rotisserie chicken with roasted potatoes, radishes with salted butter and salad (a concession to me). Did I mention butter? There is nothing like any of the aforementioned items anywhere in the world and that goes for the butter (many of our visitors have stashed French salted butter in their checked luggage as souvenirs). Arlene and David joined us for this special meal — I really don’t think the fit Parisian folks can possibly eat this way but we sure can!
While I am on the subject of food, I must share Andy’s childhood memory of Sunday afternoon coffee (and cake) at the Upper West Side NYC apartment of his Hungarian Nana, complete with delicious kouglof (or kugelhopf) from Lichtman’s (of blessed memory), the Hungarian bakery on the UWS (founded by the grandparents of our friend Beth Nabi). A recent article in David Lebovitz’s blog sang the praises of “Vandermeersch: King of the Paris Kouglof” so naturally, we had to find it. We schlepped to the edge of Paris (Lebovitz called it “the middle of nowhere” ) and immediately ran into my long lost babysitter Catherine, who pointed us in the right direction. And yes, it was divine!
We have learned, from meeting some Americans in Paris, that there are now many places to go with a Brooklyn vibe. We had a fun Saturday night at Abricot in the 10th arr. We went to hear the professional musicians who work at Rock U. While some people go to cooking school while in Paris, others go to Rock U. This performance-based rock band school for all ages is the creation of Matt Black whose wife (a mighty fine drummer) Becky, is a cousin of our friend Elyse.
After a terrific night of music, we met Becky and Matt the next day for brunch, again at a spot with a Brooklyn vibe: Georgia in the 10th arr. The food was American in its description but French in its presentation. No complaints about any of that!
Look Who Came to Paris:
We had a wonderful visit with Rena and Sally after Thanksgiving. These ladies hit the ground running with a packed itinerary. I was the beneficiary of being able to join them on a few of their adventures.
Musée de Cluny, musée national du Moyen Âge Paris
While this museum is known for its history; its building dates back to Roman times (with a few additions over the centuries), we began our tour with a special exhibition titled Voyage dans le Cristal.
What Cluny is most famous for is tapestries. Here is a series called The Lady and the Unicorn, six tapestries, five of which depict the senses from the late 15th and early 16th centuries. Notice the floral motifs, referred to as the millefleurs style which remind me of William Morris designs.
An evening out at our favorite cocktail lounge, Bar Josephine at the Lutetia, named for Josephine Baker. We learned that the restored frescos that adorn this space are original to this historic hotel and were covered by layers of paint. Why historic? It was Nazi HQ during WWII but after the liberation of Paris and the end of the war, survivors of the camps were brought to the Lutetia to reunite with loved ones. There is a placque outside the hotel describing the hotel’s post-war significance.
A Day at the Opera
Rena, Sally and I took a self-guided audio tour through the Palais Garnier, the Paris Opera House, home to the ballet. This magnificent theater took 14 years to build by architect Charles Garnier. It opened in 1875 but had been commissioned by Napoleon III (who also commissioned Haussmann to rebuild and reroute Paris). And BTW, Napoleon was deposed in 1870 and died in 1873 so he did not get to enjoy this commission.
Thanks to our friend Sandy, who stages George Balanchine ballets all over the world, including Paris, Andy and I went to the ballet at the Palais Garnier last March. It was impossible to take it all in that night (sensory overload) so this tour was a very deep dive into the architecture, the art, the themes, the gilt, the pomp and circumstance. We all loved it.
We enjoyed a wonderful and memorable visit with the moms. Not only are they great moms but they are great travel companions. It was a pleasure!
Our most recent (and last Paris) guests were Tris and Sam. Their visit to was a substitute for having to cancel a trip to the Middle East in October. How nice that Paris and the Frankles were the consolation prize. Here are some photos. I will share some of our adventures now and others in a future post.
CATACOMBS: let’s be thankful we don’t have them at home. Everything about this place was a complete surprise to me and while I think the pictures say it all, I will add my take. Unlike the Catacombs of Rome, which preceded the ones in Paris by centuries and have connections to religious institutions, the Paris catacombs came about in the late 17th century, out of necessity and do not have the same sacred significance. The French, capitalizing on the popularity of the catacombs in Rome, found a solution to two problems: the problem of collapsing buildings where miles of underground mines had existed and the problem of overcrowding cemeteries. It is estimated that there are six million dead bodies throughout the tunnels. The church relinquished its role in burial practice and the government took charge. The tunnels are filled with layers of remains and the cemetery of their origin and year is marked in each section. There are even some boldface names whose remains are there including Robespierre, Colbert, Rabelais and Lavoisier.
Musée de la Libération de Paris
During our visit, we descended twenty meters (100 steps) to the FFI (French Forces of the Interior) command post, led by Colonel Roi-Tanguy, and used during the Liberation of Paris. It was built in 1938-39 but not used until August 1944 and then, for only a few days.
This museum also tells the stories of two of its heroes: Philippe Leclerc de Hautecloque who survived the war and Jean Moulin who died a prisoner of the Gestapo in July 1943.
Musée Nissim de Camondo
This beautiful museum only tells its sad story if one learns the whole story, which I will share. The home, 18th century furnishings and art collection, belonged to Count Moïse de Camondo who donated all aforementioned to the Paris Decorative Arts society upon his death in 1935, in memory of his son, Nissim, who died in World War I. This is what the Museum literature says.
What is missing is that the Camondos had been a wealthy Jewish banking family, coming to Paris from Constantinople in the 1870’s. Béatrice, Moïse’s surviving daughter assumed she would be safe as the Nazis occupied France. Her family had war heroes; they were philanthropists; they were members of many clubs and societies. Béatrice and her two children were deported to Auschwitz, where they died in 1943.
My good friend Lisa recommended the Musée Nissim de Camondo to me as well as Edmund de Waal’s 2021 book, Letters to Camondo. In this book, de Waal tells the tragic story of the Camondo family through imaginary letters between Moïse and himself. De Waal is a descendant of the Ephrussi family, contemporaries of the Camondos, also Jews (from Ukraine), who traveled in the same Belle Époque social circles. He wrote about the family Ephrussi in The Hare with Amber Eyes (2010). I recommend both books and de Waal does a beautiful job sharing the family connections between them and their tragic demise.
Thanks for reading all the way to the end of this post. Next up will be some more art and lots of fashion. Did I mention what a good (window) shopper I am?
Enjoy this special time of the year with lots of love and joy.
À bientôt❣️
The Innocents Abroad, 21st Century Version 