Our Favorite Corner of Paris

A trip to Paris is never complete 

without a visit to our favorite corner not far from Notre Dame. 

And our favorite little eatery. 

I've posted before about La Reserve de Quasimodo

which serves old French favorites

and does them well. 

Their bread is from one of Paris' finest boulangeries

using the old style of baking. 

And a separate entrance leads into their wine shop. 

The view looks out on

 Paris' magificent Hotel de Ville 

right across the Seine. 

And just around the corner,

sits another building claiming to be one of the oldest in Paris. 

All decked out for Noel

including Bethlehem polar bears. 

Paris is always beautiful

but even more so at Christmas! 

Next time I'll have more photos of a walk on the other side of this bridge

and the church of St. Louis. 

(Photos copyright:Kirsten Steen)

29, Avenue Rapp in Paris

One of my favorite places to stop and snap photos (every visit)

is 29, Avenue Rapp

right across the Champ de Mars from us. 

This Art Nouveau jewel was built by Jules Lavirotte (1864~1929)

who studied at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in both Lyon and Paris. 

Even in winter, 

flowers grace the windows above the intricate entryway. 

Looking up you can see the oxen heads 

positioned just under the lower balcony

and the patina'd columns of the upper terrace. 

The stunning exterior is an example of glazed earthenware

created by ceramicist Alexandre Bigot. 

The door frame was designed by sculptor Jean-Baptiste Larrive

and sculpted by three different people. 

Notice the lizard door handle. 

I couldn't help getting a shot of this little guy

scraping the window like he wanted to come out and play. 

Passersby gawk just like I do every single time!

And the view from the building?

Must be astounding at night

with the tower lit up and shimmering every hour. 

Lavirotte built many buildings,

quite a few of them in the 7th arrondissement.

Click on his name to see a list of them.

One is actually just around the corner on Square Rapp.

This post shows a little of Square Rapp

though not much of the building. 

Might have to make it a treasure hunt 

to see each of his buildings next time. 

(Photos copyright: Kirsten Steen)

(Info on Lavirotte via Wikipedia)