Paris in the fall. Photographer: Martina Nicolls
Category Archives: Opal Hush
Sir Wallace fountains – drinking fountains in Paris
Sir Wallace fountains – drinking fountains in Paris. The Sir Wallace fountains – or Wallace fountains – are the iconic green drinking fountains across Paris. In 1872, philanthropist Sir Richard Wallace (1818-1890) aimed to bring free, clean, drinking water to the public, particularly the poor in Paris. His friend Charles-Auguste Lebourg designed the cast-iron fountain.Continue reading “Sir Wallace fountains – drinking fountains in Paris “
Mister Morris’ Columns – Parisian advertising
Mister Morris’ Columns – Parisian advertising. Around Paris, looming large, are many iconic Mister Morris’ Columns – decorative advertising pillars. In Paris green with its SPECTACLES sign on the ‘lid’ of the column, they advertise SHOWS. Initially theatre shows and now mostly cinema shows. Frenchman Gabriel Morris was a Parisian printer who specialized in postersContinue reading “Mister Morris’ Columns – Parisian advertising “
The Paris Tree Plan
The Paris Tree Plan. Paris has a Tree Plan – in fact, it has two tree-planting plans: The Biodiversity Plan and the Paris Tree Plan. In 2021, the City of Paris adopted a Tree Plan that sets out defined commitments to 2026 and perspectives to 2030, and reaffirms the role of trees in the city.Continue reading “The Paris Tree Plan “
Does anyone read James Joyce’s Ulysses any more?
Does anyone read James Joyce’s Ulysses any more? American-born writer Janet Tyler Flanner (1892-1978) lived most of her life in Paris. She arrived in 1921, a year after Irish author James Joyce (1882-1941) made Paris his home for twenty years. Janet was described as a ‘narrative journalist’ who was the Paris-based correspondent for The New Yorker magazine fromContinue reading “Does anyone read James Joyce’s Ulysses any more? “
A sign of the changing typeface in Paris: out with italics and in with normal
A sign of the changing typeface in Paris: out with italics and in with normal. The typeface of tourist location signs is changing in Paris. The font, the style, the weight, the colour. I wrote a previous article, “Metropolitan to Métro to M – signs at Paris metro stations,” about the Paris Métro station signs graduallyContinue reading “A sign of the changing typeface in Paris: out with italics and in with normal “
One year until the Paris 2024 Olympic Games commences and the Torch is ready
One year until the Paris 2024 Olympic Games commences and the Torch is ready. On 26 July 2024, the Paris Olympic Games commences and concludes on 11 August 2024. The Paris Paralympic Games commences on 28 August and concludes on 8 September 2024. So, a year from now, the 2024 Olympic Games will begin. ButContinue reading “One year until the Paris 2024 Olympic Games commences and the Torch is ready “
Dreaming of Building Your Castle in France? Author Gerald Doucet offers advice.
Dreaming of Building Your Castle in France? Author Gerald Doucet offers advice. French author Gerald Doucet offers much serious and hilarious advice in his book Building Your Castle and Living Like a King in France. Admittedly, it is dated now (1995), but much of the advice is still very current in his memoir of collective castle-buildingContinue reading “Dreaming of Building Your Castle in France? Author Gerald Doucet offers advice. “
How did The New York Times International Edition come to Paris?
How did The New York Times International Edition come to Paris? The New York Times (NYT) is an English-language daily broadsheet newspaper owned by The New York Times Company. As the name suggests, it is from New York City, founded in 1851 as the New-York Daily Times by journalist and politician Henry Jarvis Raymond (1820-1869) and banker GeorgeContinue reading “How did The New York Times International Edition come to Paris?”
The French café: open ‘like a lighthouse in the night’
The French café: open ‘like a lighthouse in the night.’ A photography exhibition in Paris is a tribute to the women and men across France who keep cafés open ‘like a lighthouse in the night.’ Along the railings of the park next to the Town Hall of the 14th arrondissement in Paris is a photographyContinue reading “The French café: open ‘like a lighthouse in the night’”