The Devil in the White City

Each time I am in Paris, I pass the Grand Palais which is situated near the Champs-Élysées.  It is the traditional way to walk for some of the beautiful views of this enormous glitzy shopping street. I have never given the Grand Palais too much thought.  I always admire the building but this time, I decided to look into a bit more.

This lead me to Chicago...for those of you who have read The Devil in the White City, you will remember that the setting is The World's Fair held in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus' arrival in the New World in 1492. Chicago beat out NYC, D.C., and St. Louis for the honor of hosting.   I moved to The Netherlands from Chicago so of course this does my heart proud.  More information, read on: World's Colombian Fair.  Needless to say, Chicago had to come up with something that would wow the visitors as much as the Tour de Eiffel did in 1889.  Let's say there was a bit of competition going on...


How does the Grand Palais come in to the picture?  Well, Paris hosted another World's Fair in 1900. Paris had to come up with something that not only topped Chicago but also their own Eiffel Tower...hence the Grand Palais amongst other landmarks.

Right Bank

Right Bank Baby

I love taking pictures of people, especially the elderly...but this little boy caught our attention...he just got off the carousel and was looking ooh, so very chic.  Looks like something from Right Bank Babies, http://www.rightbankbabies.com/.

So what does Right Bank mean?   Mostly people are talking about the Seine river in Paris.  This river cuts the city into two:  The northern banks is to the right and the southern bank is to the left.  The Right Bank is associated with elegance like the

Champs-Élysées with the posh shopping and the Left Bank is more bohemian.

Of Course Sophia and I had to have our spin on the carousel in front of the City Hall of Paris (Hotel de Ville).

Hôtel de Ville, Paris

Sophia and I are taking a spin on the carousel

Pâtisserie

Pâtisserie near the Eiffel Tower

Who doesn't like a beautiful croissant?  Pain au chocolat? Hmmm....I think I gained 20 pounds just eating these beautiful creations when I lived in France during college.  My family knows I love France!  So when my brother and sister-n-law came to visit me in The Netherlands a few weeks ago, Paris was one of the cities on their list to visit.  Let's just say that they did not need to twist my arm.

Before going, I decided to ask my French friend, who recently lived in Paris, for some tips of things that she enjoyed while living in this beautiful city.  I am going to write about some of these tips in the next succession of blogs.

One important fact that she reminded me of is that a Boulangerie and Pâtisserie are protected titles in France.  Which means that not just any bakery can use it.  If you see Boulanger....close but no cigar.  It is a big difference because you can depend that all things that are made within a Pâtisserie are made fresh that day and not frozen.  Plus they must employ a master pastry chef.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P%C3%A2tisserie

I took the above picture of a beautiful Pâtisserie near the Eiffel Tower...the lady was shy so she turned her back but she was very pleased that I took a picture of her bakery.  I wanted to stay a bit longer and try out a few of her many treats. But the lighting was perfect for a sunset picture at the Eiffel Tower...duty called.