More on Not the Top Ten

Friday, November 9: Part 2. This is the expanded version of the first entry.

I'm off today to visit Villa La Roche, designed by Le Corbusier, in the 16th arrondisement. It's a beautiful day (though cold) but too far to walk so I ride the metro to the Jasmin station and then walk to Square Docteur-Blanche. The Fondation Le Corbusier, located in the Villa Jeanneret next door, and Villa La Roche are at the bottom of this gorgeous "voie privee."

Villa La Roche. You must ring the bell to be admitted to the Villa La Roche. (You may not visit the Villa Jeanneret.) However, photos are authorisees. There are many architectural students drawing and taking photos. The house is amazing. It manages to have cozy & intimate spaces (especially when you look at the photographs of the rooms as they were furnished) and yet feel completely open all at the same time. There is a fireplace in the library directly above the one in the Salon, both with flues off center. The one in the library looks particularly amazing as there is a glass window/partition directly above the fireplace. Unfortunately, not all of the rooms are open for viewing. I pick up a map that has the location of all of Le Corbusier's works both in Paris/Ile-de-France and in all of France. When I leave, there's a line of people waiting to get in.

I wind around to Avenue Mozart, walk up to the Chaussee de la Muette, and then down to the Jardin du Ranelagh. The hand-cranked carrousel is still there but the little lady who cranks it is not there. I'll check again after visiting the:

Musee Marmottan. The museum has expanded tremendously since the last time I was here (probably 15 years ago!), thanks to a number of legacies. The collection of Berthe Morisot works is fabulous. My favorite Caillebotte (rue de Paris, temps de pluie) is here. There's a very substantial Impressionist collection on the Premier Etage but there are a lot of Monets on the Sous-Sol which I think are not his best work (all the legacy of Michel Monet).

Flo calls just as I'm walking out the door of the museum. One minute earlier and I wouldn't have heard the phone ring! We have a lovely chat as I'm, first, sitting on a bench and then, when I get too cold, walking back up to the Metro station La Muette. This station connects with RER C station Boulainvilliers so I decide to take the train back to St Michel as I "need" to stop at two of the Gilbert Jeune bookstores to pick up a couple of things.

From the Place St Michel, I walk down r. de la Huchette. As it is exactly 7 p.m., I impulsively decide to go to the Theatre de la Huchette to see La Cantatrice Chauve (The Bald Soprano). It's the 50th anniversary this year. Productions of these two Ionesco plays (La Cantatrice Chauve et La Lecon) began in February 1957 and have continued non-stop until today. The Bald Soprano begins every night at 7 and The Lesson at 8 p.m. The house is packed (it's tiny, but still!). The acting is superb.

At the end of r. de la Huchette is the rue du Petit Pont. I'm hungry now, so choose one of the many cafes there, the aptly named Cafe le Petit Pont. I can hear many American voices around me but there is a man playing piano, and the whole place has a very festive and lively atmosphere. There's so much energy. And I have a new book to read! (L'Ecole des Femmes, by Moliere)

Since I'm here, I "have" to pop into Shakespeare & Co! Find British book called A Pound of Paper, by John Baxter, the story of how he, a boy from the bush (Australia, where he says, in the 50s, reading was regarded with suspicion), came to be living in a Paris penthouse with a library worth millions! How can I not buy this? I'm a sucker for books about people who are obsessed with books!

Walk home past Notre Dame and across Place de l'Hotel de Ville. There are maybe 150 people milling around with their bikes - apparently they meet here every Friday night to go on a 20 km ride around Paris. I knew about the roller blading but now it seems they do the same thing with bicycles. I stop to ask one of the cyclists about it. she tells me to check their website: parisrandovelos.com !!

Three are three things (I care about) that I'm going to miss by leaving on 14 november:

1. Vauban Exposition opens that day at the Cite d'Architecture. here's a description:
"Two major Parisian cultural establishments have come together for the same project: the Cité de l'Architecture et du Patrimoine and the Musée des Plans-Reliefs (Paris, Hôtel National des Invalides). The Vauban exhibition is the Cité's first heritage and urban architecture exhibition." and "A multi-faceted genius - an engineer, military architect, town planner, hydraulics engineer and essayist, Vauban made a considerable impact on the urban landscape of France under the Sun King. The exhibition offers a comprehensive overview of the work of this inspired builder, to whom we owe the citadels of Besançon and the Vauban Tower, providing details of the fortifications he built and his town planning and architectural projects. " Unfortunately, it closes on February 5, 2008.

2. Les Precieuses Ridicules, by Moliere, opens that day at the Theatre du Vieux Colombier.

3. I can't remember the third thing but I know it's something important!