A Sunday stroll in Paris

On Sunday my wife and I walked from where we live in the 11th arrondissement (district) of Paris to the 7th, passing much of historic Paris on the way. We had two goals: A gallery where an artist friend of ours was having an exhibition of her work, and the Catherine-Labouré garden, which is just down the street on the rue de Babylone. The journey was about an hour or so, punctuated by a stop for a Coke and a Perrier in a brasserie as it was a hot, humid day.

We just found out about this particular garden today, in an article about Paris gardens in the New York Times by the paper's former Paris bureau chief, Elaine Sciolino. Although we have lived here for 20 years, we often learn new things about our adopted city thanks to people, like Elaine, who have come here more recently or even visitors who have done good research before coming.

The photo above left is a cafe on the rue Vieille du Temple if I am remembering right.


This is the Paris city hall, the Hotel de Ville.

















This is a "vegetation wall" by Patrick Blanc, on the rue de la Verrerie.
















A view of the river Seine.



















A playground at the Catherine-Labouré garden.















The French never forget Ingrid Betancourt, the French-Columbian Green politician held hostage by FARC in Colombia since 2002.