All posts tagged: adventure

Reflections on our most significant place in Paris

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For 2017 we’ve decided to reflect on the places in Paris that are the most significant to us, as well as ask some friends for their contributions. Lawrence Rue du Faubourg St. Denis, between Boulevard de Bonne Nouvelle and Boulevard de Magenta Here is my favorite bar in the city. It’s called Mauri7, pronounced MORE-ISS-SET, MORE-EES-SET if you’re French.  Here there are beers for average prices and wine for cheap.  It’s two fifty for their house red, which you can ask for without embarrassment, as it should be. In my brokest months, I brought a flask filled with trash whiskey from the Lidl, ordered Coca-Cola and made myself endless mixed drinks that got stronger and stronger. They play good hip-hop.  It’s very busy on weekends.  There is a small smoking area in front cordoned off under a dark awning.  In the warm months it’s packed shoulder to shoulder, and a stocky bouncer polices its boundaries.  I saw him at the Franprix on Boulevard de Magenta once, but I didn’t speak to him – what was I …

Amsterdam

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                Coffee & Coconuts Ceintuurbaan 282-284, 1072 LR Amsterdam Possibly my favorite café in the world, I came to Coffee & Coconuts twice over a 3-day trip in Amsterdam. People seeking inspiration, a place to write/read/sketch/think, will find it here with the beanbag cushions, the hanging tables, the old theater-converted to a coffee shop venue, the sheer size of the place and of course, the coconut water you can drink straight from a young coconut! – A Van ‘t Spit http://vantspit.nl/ It’s not a café or a museum, but I can only describe the roast chicken at Van ‘t Spit as a spiritual experience. You have to wait for a good hour (maybe even two) before getting a table, but it’s more than worth it. My friend described the two chefs (twin brothers) as born on this earth to give us one gift and that gift was their roast chicken. The comfort level of this food, that satisfied feeling of eating well without eating too much, may inspire …

Fall Nature Walk

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The fall is our favorite season in Paris and we love making the most of it before winter comes. After those infamous long August vacations, September is the time to embrace la rentrée – or “back to school” – and there is a new and exciting energy throughout the city which continues through the autumn months. With this fresh start come new projects, ideas, businesses, and everyone feels recharged and ready to explore. Not to mention the weather: crisp, sunny fall days highlight Paris at it’s best, and inspire all kinds of adventures. One of our favorite things to do is take a fall nature walk, either in one of the many parks or just along an area with trees and greenery. As the leaves are changing, the urban landscape comes to life and this type of walk can be just what you need to clear your mind and get inspired by your surroundings. Prompt: take a fall nature walk in one of the places we recommend or your favorite outdoor spot. Absorb the nature and your …

Marché Aux Puces (Flea Market) de la Porte de Vanves

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Paris is famous for its flea markets and all the wonderful treasures to be found within them. We’ve written before about the pop-up brocantes (or mini flea markets) that happen almost every weekend rotating around various neighborhoods. But for the best finds it can be better to focus on the city’s larger markets, usually more of a time commitment due to location and size, but definitely worth the effort. The largest and most well known flea market is probably the Marché aux puces de Saint-Ouen, located just outside the city’s border near Porte de Clignancourt. It offers a mini village of individual vendors selling things ranging from antique furniture to vintage magazines, clothing and so much more. This market is truly an experience, and offers such a variety of items that it can definitely be worth the trip. One of our favorite markets in the complex is the Jules Vallès Market where there are a lot of well-priced finds to be had. That said, our recent impression of this market is that it’s become overpriced and a …

Montparnasse: A Guide Inspired by The Dud Avocado

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Inspired by one of our favorite books about Paris, we decided to spend an afternoon in the Montparnasse neighborhood, formerly a happening bohemian scene in the 1920s and then again in the late 1950s. Now less of a nightlife destination, we were curious to see what the area still has to offer and also to check out the hotspots of Sally-Jay Gorce, the book’s young American protagonist. Although The Dud Avocado is a work of fiction, it’s based on the reality of this once booming left bank neighborhood and the lives of the creative, free spirits who spent time there. Settling in with tea at her go-to bar, Le Select, we tried to imagine the environment as it was 60 years ago– filled with intriguing artists, French regulars sweating out their drinks, and East Coast crossovers. “The waiters at the Select comported themselves with that slightly theatrical mixture of charm, complicity and contempt that one would expect from servants in Hell.” pg. 93 The Dud Avocado Explore the neighborhood in the present: – Pay a pilgrimage to …

Take the Metro to a random stop

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Sometimes a random adventure is the best way to discover the best parts of a city! For this prompt, use the public transportation system as a guide and pick a random stop you’ve never been to. Get off there and walk in one direction for 10-15 minutes recording what you see with either photos or writing. Take notes on your impressions of the area, the people there, and use your observations to create a neighborhood profile. You might be surprised at what you find! Most of the world’s big cities have comprehensive public transportation systems, and riding them is a great way to explore and get to know the area. Remember: many of our ideas can be done in any urban environment! Nora: Metro stop: Porte de la Villette (Line 7) The edges of Paris next to the Blvd Périphérique are often neglected and overlooked as just the transition zones between the city and its surrounding suburbs. But recently more interesting spots have been popping up and make the trip to the outskirts worth it. I …

Museum Musings

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Ekphrasis: a literary description of or commentary on a visual work of art (Merriam-Webster) For this creative adventure we decided to take a classic Paris activity–a museum visit– and get something more out of it than just looking at some pretty art. We asked ourselves: How do we best engage with a museum? How do we really get impacted and inspired by it?  How do we really feel a work of art? Prompt:  Pick a museum with an exhibition that interests you or somewhere you’ve never been. Take some time to explore and notice what artworks jump out at you, instead of scanning through the entire exhibit. Try to sit with the work of art that speaks to you most for 20 minutes or more and let your mind wander. If feeling inspired, take it a level further and pull out a notebook. Sketch the painting or simply write free-associations that come to mind, something you could turn back to later as a seed for a poem or short story. Our creative adventure: We chose …

Market, Moules, Meat, and More

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For this week’s creative adventure we decided to get inspired by one of Paris’ largest and most celebrated outdoor food markets and challenge ourselves in the kitchen. Dinner party challenge: Think about a recipe or dish that holds some meaning for you. What is a dish that you’ve always wanted to make but have been too scared to try? Or the meal that your parents made for you growing up that instantly transports you back home? Don’t plan a meal that you know you have perfected. Challenge yourself instead to cook a dish that will make you feel something, be it nostalgia or pride. Make a day out of your dinner by shopping for ingredients at a local market (where prices are cheaper and food is fresher than in chain grocery stores). Wander around the stalls looking for not just any parsley, but “the most beautiful parsley” (as our favorite vegetable guy described it). Turn off your phone and take your time. Market Recommendation: The Marché Bastille takes place weekly on Thursdays and Sundays from …

All the old familiar places

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It’s a strange reality of living in cities that neighborhoods where you spent most of your weekdays or weekend nights are relegated to places you once went, bars whose names you struggle to remember. You move to a new apartment, a different neighborhood attracts your attention, and subconsciously, you have moved on from that place and that time. Prompt: Pick a cozy café or place where you can lean back and reflect for a while. We chose Nuage Café, a co-working space in the 5th, where you pay for the time you spend there (4 euros per hour) with unlimited coffee, tea and snacks. The upstairs nooks (where you’re required to take your shoes off) with floor cushions are a great place to write and work. Think back on a neighborhood that had some significance to you (we picked the 5th arrondissement in Paris). Write a list of places (including bars, restaurants, apartments, spots where you kissed someone or broke someone’s heart) that hold meaning to you or that you simply like in that neighborhood. …

Photo a Day

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For this daily creativity break we chose to take a photo every day for a month (work days only) in the same spot on our commute. The point of this exercise is to observe something we see everyday in a new light by freezing the moment in time.       Try it yourself and then ask these questions: What is the same each day? What is different? What do you notice that you haven’t noticed before? Why did you choose this spot? See below for our photos! Annie: Nora: