Water

Water supply is of course an issue for a big city.

Paris, within the city limits and not counting the suburbs, is actually not that big in surface and has hardly more than 2 million inhabitants. It becomes really big only when you include the suburbs.

Anyhow the city consumes something like 500 000 m3 (= some130 000 US gallons) of drinking water per day, which if I have calculated correctly corresponds to some 250 litres (around 65 US gallons) per person and day, of course not all swallowed.

In ancient times, water came from a few local sources and fountains and was also partly brought to Paris in aqueducts and partly taken directly from the Seine where a first hydraulic pump was installed during the 17th century (called “La Samaritaine”, which gave the name to the department store which later was built there). Water was carried to people’s homes by water carriers – the last ones disappeared around 1910. In my yesterday’s message I talked about the Bassin de la Villette as a fresh water reservoir where water was brought in via the Canal de l’Ourcq. This did not last long. The water distribution was finally correctly organized during the second half of the 19th century and houses began to get water supply at home.

Today the water comes from different sources up to some 150 km (100 miles) away, but part comes also from upstream the Seine.

You can also get pure spring water in Paris – and for free! Some 600 or 700 meters under the ground you can find some 25 000 years old fresh water from an underground river and you can still get hold of it at three places in Paris, quite distant from each other (see the map). It holds some 25-30 Centigrades (some 80° Fahrenheit) if you drink it immediately, but if you live fairly close you would probably bring some plastic bottles and then take them to your fridge. Many people do. If you are interested in the water quality, it’s checked regularly and you can find an updated report on the spot.One of the sources can be found at the Buttes aux Cailles, Place Paul-Verlaine, 13th arrondissement. It gives enough of water also to feed the local swimming bath. (I will soon come back to this area.) Another one is at Square Lamartine in the bourgeois 16th arrondissement.… and the third one is in the much more popular 18th arrondissement, Square de la Madone, today surrounded by a number of Chinese shops and supermarkets. (We are getting a number of China towns).

Another nice possibility to get rid of your thirst, free of charge, is to drink from one of the numerous Wallace fountains (of which I already made some posts). The water here comes from the normal distribution system, not from the underground river.

Mid-month-theme: subway day

The 15th of each month is the day for the « mid-month-theme » - subway – which I share with bloggers in NYC and Stockholm. This month’s theme is “above ground”.

Most of the Paris metro lines are crossing the Seine under water, but some of the first lines (the one you see here is from 1905) were built with bridge crossings - easier and at the time considered as less risky than to make under-water-tunnels.

In September last year I showed a metro train on the Pont de Bir-Haikem. The above photo was taken last week, showing a train on the same bridge, in the opposite direction, towards the Passy area (16th arrdt.). I repeat that this bridge has the particularity of being built for trains, cars, bikes, pedestrians… and, in my opinion, the bridge is really beautiful.

You can find today’s posts – and some other subway related posts – by using the following links:

New York City Daily Photo – Stockholm by pixels – PHO (Paris).

I wish you a very nice and relaxing weekend!

Jardin du Ranelagh (3)

This is the last “chapter” referring to the Jardin du Ranelagh and La Muette. (It will be a bit long, but I wished to finish.)

I already mentioned that what remained of the old royal castle was destroyed in the beginning of the 20th century. The heirs (the family Franqueville) sold the land in different parcels and the area became full of bourgois apartment buildings and also, facing the park, a number of private residences. Some of these residences – “hotels particuliers” - are still occupied as private homes, some as embassy residences. This is one of the most expensive areas of Paris.
On part of what was sold from the old castle area, Henri de Rothschild, built a new castle, a new Château de La Muette, ready in 1922. Rothschild was an active person in many fields; he financed Pierre and Marie Curie, also wrote plays and novels under the name of André Pascal and gave a lot of elegant dinners and receptions here, until he was forced to move out due to the beginning of World War II. In 1940 the building became the headquarters for the German Naval Command and in 1945 the headquarters of the Allied Powers. In 1948 Rothschild sold the property to OEEC which originally was created to administer the Marshall Plan and later became OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) which still resides here. Thirty countries which are supposed to accept democracy and a free market economy are represented by delegations led by an ambassador. Important renovation work of the castle has been ongoing the last years, including also annexes (for a staff of about 2500).

Some of the buildings are older and were already neighbours to the royal garden. One of them, later owned by the family Marmottan, was in 1932 donated to the French State and became a museum, Le Musée Marmottan. . Different donations by e.g. the heirs of a major sponsor of the impressionists (their doctor) and by one of Claude Monet’s sons have contributed to make this museum to the world’s richest in Monet paintings.
It’s also here that you will find the perhaps most famous one, the one that gave the name to the impressionist movement, “Impression Soleil Levant”. (See my post mentioning the first impressionist exhibition - Grands Boulevards 3). You can also find a large number of works by Manet, Morisot, Renoir, Sisley, Degas, Pissarro… . The museum which too often is neglected has also one of the world’s most outstanding collections of illuminated manuscripts from the 12th to the 16th centuries as well a great collection of furniture, statues and paintings from the Napoleonic period.

Together with Paloma, I passed by the park again yesterday. The weather was much warmer than during my previous visit and a lot more kids were playing. A few of the pictures used in the three posts about the Jardin du Ranelagh can be found on my photo blog.

Jardin du Ranelagh (2)

Some more information about Le Jardin du Ranelagh and La Muette (see yesterday's post):

There used to be a railway line passing by here (see map yesterday), part of a circular railway system which was created during the latter part of the 19th century, called “Petite Ceinture” (Inner Circle), which surrounded Paris and also was connected to the major stations like Gare du Nord, Gare Saint Lazare etc…. It was partly underground and partly in open air. This was the last part of this railway to close, in 1985, but a station situated just in front of the park is still there, now as a nice restaurant, ”La Gare” (see top photo). The bar is upstairs and you eat downstairs on which used to be the platforms.

Surprisingly some state visitors were officially welcomed at this small station. You can see a photo of the arrival of Alphonse III, King of Spain, in the beginning of last century.

Part of what was the railway line could possibly become underground parking places; part is today an open wild walking space.

The park was involved in a historic moment in 1783; the first ever human flight was launched at the upper end of the park. The “montgolfière”, which had been invented by the brothers Montgolfier left from here and landed after some twenty minutes and some 10 km (6 miles) in the south-east part of Paris (Buttes aux Cailles). It was piloted by Pilâtre de Rozier (who two years later became the world’s first air accident victim, trying to cross the Channel), accompanied by the Marquess d’Arlande.

There will be a third and last post on this park on Monday. In the meantime, I wish you a nice weekend!

Jardin du Ranelagh (1)

We are now going to visit a park or garden, which is called Jardin du Ranelagh. This is in an area of the 16th arondissement which goes under the name of La Muette. My kids learnt to bike here; we are close to where I used to live until about a year ago.

The name La Muette refers to an old royal castle which once existed here and the name Ranelagh today given to the park comes from an English lord (see below). There is quite a lot to say about this area and the park, so I will make it in two or three episodes.

First a few words about the disappeared castle. It was originally built during the Middle Ages as a hunting residence (this was then far from the city) and was rebuilt several times, the last time in 1743. Among it occupants you can name Queen Margot (married for a while to Henry IV), the future Louis XIII, the Duchesse de Berry, the future Louis XVI and more especially Marie-Antoinette who spent much time here. The main building was destroyed in 1793, but the wings remained and were occupied until the beginning of the 20th century. One of the owners was a piano manufacturer (Erard) and later his heirs. The great park was sold in parcels, including an important part to a Rothschild, who built another castle (now OECD headquarters) in part of the old castle park. Also the rest was sold and the area got full of bourgeois apartment houses and “hotels particuliers” (private residences). Here below I have tried to compare what the area looked like during the 18th century and what it looks like today. One street, rue de Passy, which today is a busy shopping street, still follows the same trace. I will talk about the railway and the still existing station in a following episode.

We can see that part of what used to be a royal park is still there, now as a public park. Obviously it was here in the outskirts of the park, that Lord Ranelagh opened a “rotonde” where concerts and other amusements took place, sometimes attended by Marie-Antoinette and friends.

Let’s now talk about what the park is today: A nice green area, where children can play, where their parents or grandparents can sit on a bench, and where - depending on generation - you can play football (soccer) or at bowls, go on a pony ride, do roller skating, take a tour on a merry-go-round…and - a nice summer day – do sun bathing and picnicking. There are a few statues, including one of Jean de la Fontaine and one of Victor Hugo.

The day I visited the park last week was sunny, but cold and windy, and the activities were limited. Hardly any clients for the pony promenade, the responsible for the merry-go-round hesitated to install the wooden (sorry, today plastic) horses, the marionette theatre was closed...
… and I made an extra post today, see below!

… and at last, today starts the Chinese New Year, the year of the rat, 鼠 , so Xin Nian Kuai Le 新年快乐 and Gong Xi Fa Cai 恭喜发财!!!

Aquarium visit

I picked up Paloma (For possible first time visitors; my grand-daughter.) at her school (kindergarten) today and we went to the newly reopened aquarium at Trocadéro.

It’s not an enormous aquarium, but it has the advantage of being centrally located and you can find some 15000 sea animals, 500 different species in 43 basins. Inside there are some cafés, some small cinemas (for nature or sea related films), a place for concerts, a playground for kids…We had a very nice afternoon together!

Pont de Mirabeau

From the Pont de Mirabeau, the Mirabeau Bridge, you have a splendid, somewhat distant, view of the Eiffel Tower and the (copy of) the Statue of Liberty (see previous posts).

Le Pont de Mirabeau was named after one of the greatest personalities during the French Revolution, the Comte de Mirabeau (1749-91). The bridge is also clearly linked to another name, the poet Guillaume Appolinaire (1880-1918), who wrote a famous poem, “Sous le Pont Mirabeau coule la Seine…“ (“Under the Mirabeau Bridge runs the Seine…”). The bridge has often been referred to also by other French artists and is somehow a very “romantic bridge”.

The bridge was constructed 1893-96. It links the 16th and the 15th arrdts. It’s a bit further down the Seine than where most tourists go, but it’s one of the most beautiful bridges in Paris. The bridge is decorated with four colossal bronze sculptures.

On what is called the link side of the river (“Rive Gauche”), you have a few of the modest skyscrapers which were allowed to be built in Paris (15th arrdt.). On the “Rive Gauche” side of the bridge, you can find the old station “Javel” which was built for the Exposition Universelle in 1889, to which the Eiffel Tower was erected as an entrance arch. From this station you can still take a local train towards the Eiffel Tower - and further along the Seine – or, in the other direction, towards Versailles. Some of these pictures can also be seen on my photo blog.

Place de l'Etoile - Arch of Triumph (bis)

I’m continuing my post from yesterday.

The decision to build the world’s biggest Arch of Triumph was – of course - taken by Napoleon I, but it took some 30 years before it was at last completed in 1836, with delays and modifications due to different changes of regime in France.

The construction is extremely heavy (about 50 000 tons), something like five times as heavy as the Eiffel Tower. It’s 50 meters high.

The Arch was finally dedicated to the army victories during the French revolution and the following Napoleon wars. It has today become a more general symbolic place for all kinds of national events, e.g. the celebrations of the end of the two World Wars. The 14th July parade has the Arch as a starting point (direction Place de la Concorde). Most state visits include posing of flowers on the grave of the Unknown Soldier, who is buried here since 1923.

When it was getting darker (and even colder) I took some photos of what you can see around (see also the top picture).

When again down I could not resist and took a further shot of the Christmas illuminated Champs Elysées… … and of course some pictures of the Arch itself. I then went for a warming coffee… and discovered again the Arch.

Some of these photos can also be seen on my photo blog.

I have some repeated connectivity problems. If I'm not visiting your respective blogs in the usual way, please excuse me. The service provider should (again) visit me Friday.

Place de l'Etoile - Arch of Triumph

So far, with my different posts about Paris, I have very little talked about the more famous landmarks, thinking that they are known anyhow. I will now make an exception and talk about the Arch of Triumph at the Place de l’Etoile.

In a certain way, I chose the wrong day and hour to visit the Arch – Monday late afternoon / evening; it was the coldest and windiest day since long, the daylight was fading away…

Anyhow, I walked up the some 300 steps (there is a lift, but only available for officially physically handicapped people which I’m not - yet). I took some pictures in all directions. Due to the fading light, the photos are blue.

Place de l’Etoile is a meeting point for 12 avenues, which of course explains its name, the “Star Place”. Officially, it was renamed in 1970 in honour of Charles de Gaulle.

Between each avenue there is a “hôtel particulier” (private residence), today of course rather occupied by offices. The place exists in different forms since 1670 and is today 240 meters wide (perfect circle). The Arch came some 200 years later.

L’Etoile is one point on the “historical axe” between the Louvre and the new office centre (la Défense) with another Arch-like office building which can be seen at the horizon of the Avenue de la Grande Armée…

The place was modified to give the Arch of Triumph a dignified surrounding. The “hôtels particuliers”, all in the same design, are from about the same date as the Arch (1836). Some of the avenues got their final and prolonged layout during the latter part of the 19th century (Haussmann again).

… This is now already too long. I will continue tomorrow!