Live from the Rive Gauche, Sunday December 12, 2021
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Places we visited and notes today:
It’s the greatest place in Paris, Yves Camdeborde’s L’Avant Comptoir de la Terre. The Basque inspired small plates and natural wine are fantastic and the people that work there are even better. Stop by and tell them I sent you. Open every day of the year Noon-Late at 3 Carrefour de l’Odeon.
Also in the greatest triangle in Paris that is the Carrefour de l’Odéon also have the Jambon Truffe crepe at Breizh cafe and the side salad with wasabi vinaigrette. It's so good! Le Hibou is a great place for petit dejeuner, the chicken paillard for lunch and apero.
For wonderful gifts for yourself Zoé Ferdinand creates the cutest literary themed shirts, necklaces and candles including Paris est une fête, Hemingway’s Moveable Feast en Français.
Heading down Rue Saint Sulpice, the one time brothel central for the clergy of the abbeys of Saint Germain and Saint Sulpice.
Chez Christiane at no 26 was for those looking for an even more torturous good time, fetishes and special passions as listed in La Guide Rose. Nothing was left out of the imagination here or frowned upon. At no 15, located in a former hamman on the 2nd floor, Alys whose name is still emblazoned in tiles at the entrance ran a small brothel with a few but very popular girls.
However there is one lady that ruled the roost on Rue Saint Sulpice. At no 36, Miss Betty was located in the very narrow building just opposite the north side door of the church. Miss Betty and her ladies would only serve the priests of the two nearby parishes. The quick walk from one to the other up to the 2nd floor where they could take part in any fantasy they wanted just in time to return to the church to say a quick prayer and some holy water to wash their sins away. Still to this day, her name is on the floor at the entrance where if timed just right you may side right in to catch a peak, but don’t venture too high up, Miss Betty isn’t there anymore. Remaining all these many years later is the small clue that would tip off the keen observer to find these establishments. It was decreed that they had to note in a discreet way exactly what they were and most would choose a simple way to do it. On the exterior the number of their address was normally just a little larger than any others and some like Miss Betty chose to fancy hers up just a bit. Look up at no 36 and see the light blue and gold number that the many owners since have kept as a little nod to the past of Rue Saint Sulpice.
Rue des Canettes just off the Place Saint Sulpice has a blanket of balloons overhead that represent those lovely little champagne bubbles for the season.
For all your French beauty needs CityPharma at the corner of Rue Bonaparte and Rue de Four is the place you must visit. Prices are 40%-70% lower than most pharmacies in Paris as the turnover is so high. If you can’t find it here, you don’t need it.
Place de Furstemberg is a perfectly picturesque and home to the Musée Delacroix. The last studio and home of the leader of the Romantic movement, Eugene Delacroix. The small museum can be a quick visit but is a wonderful place to see on a sunny afternoon and take a little break in the back courtyard. Open Wednesday - Monday 9:30am-11:30am, 1pm-5:30pm and until 9pm on the first Thursday of each month. If you visit the Louvre, hold onto your ticket and take it to the Delacroix the next day to visit for free.
Rue de Buci is filled with restaurants, many rather touristy so can be overpriced for not the greatest of food. It’s a very fun street any time of the day to stop and grab an afternoon apero. The Maison Thevenin patisserie has delicious pain au chocolat and croissants as well as everything else they make. They have a few more locations on the Rive Gauche.
On the Rue de Seine on the back wall of the Institut de France is a small niche with a plaque to a life given during the Liberation. Commander Louis Helie died on this spot on August 19 1944. The 55 year old resistance fighter that survived being captured by the Germans in WWI and fought against them and gave his life for France. I imagine the niche once held something but for the last few years it has hidden the drawing of an angel by fashion designer Jean-Charles de Castelbajac.
Born in Casablanca in 1949, he was fascinated at an early age with military history. The fascination would transfer to fashion when he created a military jacked cut from an old blanket that would later be worn by John Lennon.
In 2002, his creations began to expand from the runways and onto the walls of Paris. With chalk in hand he would quickly draw an angel and sign with a simple +. They started as keepsakes dedicated to loved ones. A love note to family and friends, sometimes with a message and a date that would eventually disappear. I have come across these for years and would always snap a photo. Many only last a few days or weeks, and some find a hidden spot that protects them from the elements.
In front of the Institut de France is the temporary large installation by German artist Georg Baselitz. In conjunction with his exhibit at the Centre Pompidou, the piece has been added to the landscape of Paris to also commemorate his induction into the Academie des Beaux Arts. The piece is of 5 heeled legs that are dancing in a circle and connected to the earth. Check it out if in Paris before March 7, 2022.