Monday 21 August 2017

Que c'est beau! This may be one of the most beautiful and satisfying buildings I've ever seen!

The address is 77 rue Gallande, in the 5ème arrondissement, across from the  l’Église Saint-Julien-le-Pauvre in the square René Viviani-Montebello, close to Notre Dame de Paris (that's enough italics - ed.)...

You can read more about it here. It is just so wonderfully, extraordinarily, perfectly, overwhelmingly, undeniably, delightfully French. When I saw the above picture, I could immediately smell Gitanes, fresh-baked baguettes, garlic, red wine and pissoirs. But enough about our home life. Just feast your eyes on its higgledy-piggledy perfection (my wife pointed out that there's something very reminiscent of the contemporary British artist Cyril Croucher - who I wrote about here - in those high, blank, seemingly infinite walls stretching up out of sight):
Zut allors! Sacré blue! Oh là là! C'est si bon! Magnifique! Défense de fumer! Er...

If I ever get well again, I will return to Paris, purely in order to visit this building - and to pop in to Odette's for a reviving café au lait and a plate of choux à la crème. 

2 comments:

  1. Wonderful! I almost expected to see Jacques Tati pop his head out of the top window.

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  2. Lovely. I suppose the British equivalent is 13 Park street, just off Borough Market. Very similar vibe and it just 'works'.

    http://www.panoramio.com/photo/14169051

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