And the Winner of the Name that Designer contest is (drum roll please) . . .

My lovely husband.
Who just happened to be reading Le Point, a French magazine, and noticed his photo. The designer is Karl Lagerfeld. Um, should have asked to have my photo taken with him maybe?

This site shows a picture with him and gloves.

And he is in Wikipedia

Project Runway – Name that designer contest!

See this man in the photo? Do you recognize him?

25 minutes before this photo was taken –
I was standing right next to him in a bookstore. As I was looking at a Valentino book in a bookstore on the Rue de Rivoli near the Louvre, I took notice of him because he was wearing gloves and it was 85 degrees outside. This lead me to examine how well put together he was and that his clothes really truly looked made to fit him. And he smelled nice. If he had not been so animated while talking to the bookshop owners I might have mistaken him for a misplaced manikin in the windows of the Haute Couture shops. I hazard to guess he was excited about the air conditioning in the bookshop considering he was wearing those gloves, tight leather pants and long sleeved jacket. He also had a small posse accompanying him of which I had to negotiate while I exited the store. I realized he must have been someone of importance when I stepped outside the bookshop and about 10 different haute couture cameras snapped my photo. So if you see my photo in the tabloids let me know as I did not sign any disclaimer!

25 minutes later I came across this seen. -

One very gothic looking skinny model with a very strange necklace, stretching across the stone steps of a hotel and the man I was just shoulder to shoulder with waving his arms about like a conductor and then greeting people. Later as I watched them I noticed the model pick up some brown boots and carry them into her pimped out truck with living room and kitchen. They seemed to know a few in the crowd and I heard her speaking English. It was fun to watch all of this but I have absolutely no idea who they are. Do you? If you do please clue me in because I would really like to know.

This was not the first time I came across a photo shoot – Here’s another model standing in the highest heels I have ever seen and she does not seem very happy to me.


It’s not that I don’t have an appreciation for fashion or modeling I do, I just don’t keep up with the latest trends or even know the names of the designers. I have been known to be addicted to the show Project Runway as I really enjoy watching the process of putting fashion together. I also really enjoyed the PBS show on Haute Couture. It really gives you the sense that this is really like buying or collecting art and the work that goes into designing and making these dresses is truly an art form. These days the clientele is beginning to dwindle to around 200. In the mid 50’s the clientele was around 100,000 according to the program. The shows were not as elaborate in the 50’s either. You entered into what looked like a living room and some models came out. Today the big show with music and fancy makeup is part of the art. I do wonder if Haute Couture is a dying out as a practice. There seem to be a recent trend to display these garments in museums. I went to an exhibit in the San Francisco mueseum and J. and I also went to see the retrospective exhibit on Valentino here in Paris. This exhibit was very interesting because they put like colors and patterns and materials together and you could see how the lines, lengths, the drape of the dresses changed over the years. It was very beautiful to see all of this. This year’s Valentino collection featured this dress. The shoulder stuff looks like a bunch of circles cut out and maybe strung together but I am going to guess that it’s just painstakingly pressed to perfection. The photos really don't do the dress justice but we can't take pictures at the museum.



Later in the day I viewed a photography exhibit near Jardin Luxembourg and came across this photo -


No, this is not Valentino’s Spring 2008 dress. It’s an artic deep sea octopus! Maybe Valentino got his inspiration from this creature for this year's dress!

Vive la France! Bastille Day in Paris

Military Parade of Hats.
Background photo - hats of the fireman. Do those really fit the head?

The traditional festivities of Bastille Day are very similar to the 4th of July – parades, picnics and fireworks.

We awoke to the sounds of helicopters buzzing around the place. The helicopters buzzed around all day long like a pesty fly. On our way to the parade our street had many large military vehicles posted around including tanks. The locals had told us they close the streets for the parade and all I thought was well – of course it’s a parade. They were not kidding. Having left 2 hours before the start of the parade you would think this would be enough time to scope out a good spot. However, the streets we had planned to use to get to the parade were all closed! There was only one spot where they left open to funnel everybody into the parade area though you could leave anyway you wanted. It took us almost two hours to get there. This is a military parade and I might best describe it as the parade of blue and hats as there is very little entertainment except for a few military bands. You really get a sense of what it might be like to have troops marching through the streets. The parade started with Nicolas Sarkozy being whisked down the street. The crowd among us had been joking and comparing his size to the past president’s as he is very petite man they joked they might miss him. He is very petite. Shortly thereafter was the air show! I think this was the best part. The first planes had streamers of red, white and blue smoke as they whizzed down the parade path. I don’t know much about the planes but I do enjoy watching them always. Some were HUGE and some were itty bitty. I had seen them a few days before whizzing around Paris practicing. The parade was led by the Ecole Polytechnique which is a very prestigious school in Paris. They school has military uniforms and swords to match. I would think it would be so much fun to march down the Champs-Elysee and through the Arc de Triompe! After this the crowd joked, “Is this still the Polytechnique?” as the other military uniforms were various shades of blue and funny hats. It was kind of game of who had the best hat! It was very crowded and everyone was a great time. Some folks brought step stools. In some ways our journey to the parade was more interesting than the parade itself. We observed 100 diplomatic cars all over the place and if you had a special badge you could cross the bridge we had originally planned to cross. At one point they stopped traffic so buses of military people could get to the parade. We walked right pass the guys with horses and listened to the warm up band.

In afternoon we picnicked in our local park – Parc Montsouris which had tanks. Everybody was out picnicking and playing games. At the end of the day we went to see the fireworks. Unfortunately the spot we chose on a bridge had trees that masked some of the fireworks but we did see quite a bit, heard the opera music and was able to see the Eiffel Tower sparkle! I really really liked that as I have never seen it sparkle. I do wonder why classical music is often chosen for fireworks. The firework shows was as good as Chicago’s in my opinion. Our spot did happen to be close to the metro so we were able to hop on very quickly and even get a seat! This was truly a blessing as it had been long day! You Tube has some great videos of it.
Photo college - Military car on our street near our house, The Tour de Eiffel sparkling and lit up, and a guy in suit to view the fireworks. I think this is normal attire for some....

Cow Photo as promised

We have also seen a poster about the cows of France!

Everybody Dance Now! The Bals les quartiers de Paris!

It doesn’t take long for the French to get moving out on the dance floor. On the eve of Bastille Day, the local fireman(Sapeur-pompier), who I have learned are sex symbols in France, host a dance at the station in each quarter. Once we were tuned into the traditional event we did research and learned people will dress up in costume and one fire station advertised a strip tease at the end of the night. And a long night it is – the event starts at 9 and lasts until 4AM. There are about 30+ Balls so we choose one close to our house. We did not dress up in costume but we did attend the ball at the Port Royal . Within 30 minutes of the start of the Ball the place was hopping!!! I think the firemen kicked off the dancing by dancing with each other out on the dance floor and they were fired up for a GOOD time – screaming, hooting, howling and wiggling those behinds. Gals were flirting too. I have to say their behinds did look good – blush blush. Unfortunately the woman’s uniforms are not as flattering as the men’s. I would describe the event as a mix of wedding reception, rock concert and night club.

Wedding reception - because entire families come including the kids and the grandparents. It had an intimate feel like everyone knew each other. The firemen lead us in what looked like the electric slide at one point but not quite and then on frequent occasions a mambo line would form and the kids joined in at the end of the line. They played the oldies like Michael Jackson’s Thriller.

Rock Concert - because when certain songs played would play there were wild screams and excitement like Madonna just entered the room. I did not recognize a single one of these songs.

Night club – because there were at least 7 different bars with the firemen as bartenders. The ball we attended had a beach theme going. One bar had a surf board, another with Pirates of the Caribbean theme, a love boat them and my favorite bar was the champagne bar(top left photo). The place was pretty wild at times with the firemen dancing on the bars and soon the ladies were encouraged to take their place. Once the 3 and 4 stripe firemen caught wind of this though they were quick to put an end to the bar dancing. They must have been the chaperones.

For me there seemed to be some subtle differences between this and American dance parties. For starters everybody was dancing before even the first drink. Men young and old would dance in groups with each other like the girls. Some would smoke while dancing! Many were dressed in I dream of genie pants.

We left around midnight along with only a few others. You could tell the place was going to get crazier and the cops right outside the place seemed ready to tame it. There were a ton of police right outside the door. Later in the week someone told us about a Ball they attended where 5,000 people came. I can hardly believe it and wish I could come back next year!
This event was one of the best surprises about Paris yet.

Sorry no pics it was too dark and I was feeling shy to catch some of the firemen dancing. I am guessing there are photos out their on the net that capture the scene just fine.

The End of the Line

Kung Fu Master and Kung Fu Panda! (art sized ads in the Metros)

Gotta get the bread!
At the end of the line 4 at Port D’Orleans, we started our journey to the Parc Floral for the Paris Jazz Festival on Saturday afternoon July 12th. As J. is hobbyist boulanger, we made a brief detour to a local bread shop, Max Poline, that is quite famous for their traditional round loaves of bread. It was featured in his master bread book. The bread was intended for our Jazz picnic. Across the street was the Saturday morning book market and a group of American high school band students playing Gershwin. We enjoyed our treats as we promenaded and listened to the music.

YUMMO!




We then boarded the metro and burned some rubber to the end of ligne 1 at a stop called Chateau De Vincennes. I mean we literally burned some rubber. The wheels of the metro are Michelin tires with almost no tread. Inquiring minds want to know if these tires ever get a flat? The underground metro stops often smell like burning rubber on a hot day. The tires make it much quieter than the normal metal ones on the train. Whoosh!
See the tires in the photo.


The riders also tend to be very quiet and polite on the trains. The metros are only loud when the contemporary troubadours make their rounds with singing and merry making.




The Main Event
Voila! We emerged from the underground at the end of the line to see that the Chateau is still standing. I was very surprised by this as I had not expected it. Um, may this explain why we were accompanied on the metro by an army troop with very large guns! The Chateau was once surrounded by a moat and you cross a drawbridge to enter the grounds which has a church and round tower used as a dungeon. The location of the Chateau was the original location of the fort and home of King Louis IX. It was base camp for his crusades into the Egypt. The fort was torn down to build this Chateau and it now is the home of the military museum. I just happen to be reading a book about King Louis IX. He went to church everyday. They have planted a tree to remember King Louis IX’s home. The jazz concert in Parc Floral was very relaxing and featured Ousman Danedjo and Zap Mama. We sat next to the fountain and watched everyone dance and cheer. The park had a variety of gardens from water lilies, to bonsai, to forest, to bees and butterflies exhibits.

Parc Floral - water lily pond and the Close Encounter at the Parc...




Homeward Bound
For a brief moment we contemplated taking the bus home b/c we had done this once before and the bus rides are quite enjoyable for city viewing. I highly recommend them as a way to see Paris. J has this handy palm program that actually will tell you the fastest route home from a particular stop. It can also tell you how to only use the buses or metro or RER to get someplace which is very handy when there is a strike. There have a been a few since we have been here. We opted to take the metro instead of a bus b/c we would only need one ticket and the bus would require two tickets. When not on a strike the metro, buses and RER are very reliable. The metro stops even tell you when the next train is coming. Here is the journey home.

1) We walked back to the end of the line 1 at Chateau de Vincennes to start our journey.
2) Then a long long walk so we could transfer to ligne 6’s end of the line stop called Nation. There are often long walks at transfer points. At Montparnasse there is such a long transfer they have built a moving path that goes 9KM hour!
3) Unexpectedly we found ourselves at the other end of line 6 at a stop called Bercy.
The palm does not know about construction work I guess. Ligne 6 is not supposed to end at Bercy but due to construction work it had a new end of the line. Voila! J. noticed that instead of rushing to the transfer bus we could take a boat to another stop that might get us home. Yeah boat! It’s a public boat that just opened up to ferry folks along parts of the Seine. After a walk through Bercy Park taking note of the concert venue with walls made of grass, a wooden carousal and fountain running down the stairs we finally found boat stop. Waiting for the Navette Fluvial (the boat) we enjoyed our apples and discussed if the new library buildings really looked like books. I am not convinced- maybe if I squint?
4) Then after a 10 minute ride on the Seine we reached the end of the line for the boat at Gare D’Austerlizt. At this point there was a choice to ride either the RER line or continue on with the metro. The RER is the suburban line and very interconnected with the Metro. It’s great! Chicago does not have this. We went back to our crystal ball metro palm program and it told us the metro would be faster. So….
5) We board Ligne 10 and ride to where? The end of the line at Place D’ Italie. Still we are not home but we are in the homestretch.
6) We transfer to ligne 6 so we can transfer to where we started the day on ligne 4 and ride to the end of the line at Port D’Orleans and HOME!

Adhoc Metro Musings –
I find the little bunny telling us to watch our hands and feet in the door very amusing. The only complaint I have about this metro is the arrangement of the seats. They face each other and the space between is quite small. You often find your legs in the lap of the other person. Other than this it’s reliable and normally fast and I have not found a place I can't get to yet via public transportation.

POP QUIZ - How many end of the lines were there?

Other Metro Photos

little bunny fufu.....and what? a surfer in Paris on the metro?

Supercow! The Cow of Steel!

The Charolais
When I was 16 there was a tradition to get your driving license, drive out the countryside and play this game called Hey Cow. It's rather silly and simple. As you drive by the field of cows you scream at the top of your lungs and I mean don't hold anything back and scream, "Heeeeeeeeey Cooooooooooooooooow". He who turned the most cow heads wins. It is so silly is sure to make you laugh. I am not sure this is a game we should play with French beef cows. We have recently moved and the butcher in our new hood has a stained glass window of a cow in the window and on the door a poster of cow that must be the superman of cows. The cow in the poster is so large it is sure to catch your attention in disbelief. (Unfortunately, at this moment I don't have the right technology to connect the camera to the computer to submit the photos of this supercow but will do this in the next week or so. Or at least I hope so. ) The poster informs us that the name of the cow is the Charolais.

As we had never heard of such a cow, J. called upon the US leading expert in cow nutrition and digestion. J. went to school with him at Iowa State University. He has his PHd in ruminant (cow) digestion, has worked in Utah for awhile as a professor but is now a consultant to farmers and the USDA currently residing in Kansas or maybe it's Nebraska. He writes the following about these French cows -

J,
1. Charolais are larger-framed therefore having a higher maintenance requirement (i.e., overhead costs are higher)
2. Our meat grading system rewards greater intramuscular fat (a.k.a. marbling) for added flavor. This is the paramount feature of an Angus which Charolais lack.

We do have some of these in the U.S., but fewer than 5% of the herd nationally. The best combination is a crossbreed of Angus and Charolais (see the gray steer in the attached photo. Good eatin'!!

I could also add that they're French and that makes them snobbish, but there is no scientific proof that this matters.

A similar breed that is even more muscular (but even more lean) is another one called Limousin (as in the region of France). These are notoriously surly and bad mothers (see attached).



This beef is on our list of things to try while in France.
Bon Appetit!